Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Greg Kinnear
Cert: 12

Morris Buttermaker (Thornton) is a bit of a loser. He earns a living as a pest controller but does not take it at all seriously. It's just a means to get by and certainly does not invoke any sense of responsibility or pride in his work. He'll clock out at quitting time no matter how many rats are running around his or his clients', ankles.

However, he has one moment of glory to his name in that he spent a successful, yet brief, stint in the baseball majors. It is for that reason that he has been asked to coach the team of little leaguers who have been cut from everyone else's team list. He only agrees to do it because he is getting paid. So the community's biggest anti-social reject is taking on the last kids on the line. The ones no team would pick.

Amongst the squad are a number of nerds, the fat kid, the weed, some non-English speaking kids, a ruffian and a paraplegic. All of who have more mouth on them than Chris Rock. Obviously they're rubbish at everything they try and Buttermaker doesn't care too much to feel obliged to train them properly.

He drinks on the job, verbally abuses the children and gets them sponsored (and cheered) by a lap-dancing club. He might be forgiven if they didn't get thrashed at every game they play.

All it takes is the 'winning is everything' attitude of the rival coach (Kinnear) of the defending champions to turn things around. Buttermaker signs up the talents of his estranged daughter and the local lawbreaker; she can pitch and he can bat and suddenly an element of form comes to the team.

The kids need to earn some respect from their peers and parents but Buttermaker is almost too desperate not to rock his boat of self-indulgent squalor. Surely his professional pride, paternal instincts and the children's reflection of his social insecurity will develop a bond of mutual respect and ultimately win through.

Yeah. Right.

A remake of the 1976 Walter Matthau comedy of the same name has been updated. Simply put, that means the script is littered with more profanity than its predecessor was.

Billy Bob Thornton is doing pretty well playing the anti-heroes at the moment along with his Bad Santa of last year and he plays them very well. Apathetic, jaded, insincere and disinterested makes a character ready to be turned around to see the beauty in all around him and I think that's the one shining glory of Bad News Bears is that there are no real virtuous characters present. He's a drunken lout, the kids are obnoxious brats, the parents are all neglectful and the opposition are glory hunters.

AND NOBODY CHANGES! What's that about? For a change, Hollywood hasn't played completely by the formula and it's a refreshing change. There is no sycophantic moral to be had in this but a whole lot of 'sit back and just enjoy it' laughs. The natural born losers earn a certain element of self-respect but that's about it. If this film has any kind of lesson to be learnt then maybe it's, 'life sucks: get over it'.

The jokes come thick and fast and they're as dubiously tasteful as a Southpark script. Yes, the Bad News Bears are all victims of school bullying but they're all just kids too, so what do they do? They bully each other as well as get bullied by their coach and supposed role model. A constant rebuttal of swearing and un-pc put-downs are playgroundly pleasing and a snigger is emitted before one thinks whether it was a safe joke or not. More often, it's not.

It is also quite novel to have a film with so many children in and not one of them is overbearingly endearing. Each pulls off a credible comic performance that fits perfectly with the overall atmosphere of the film.

Special features = 0

That's right, not even a miserable trailer to make you remember that interactive home entertainment has advanced beyond VHS.

It's this kind of lazy DVD production that stops an 'ok' film from becoming a worthwhile package and fuels my cynicism to presume that a special edition collectors edition limited edition will be released in the not too distant future to cash in on gullible yet devoted fans. But, yeah, that works with the likes of Lord of the Rings but this? I can't see it myself. More likely the producers realised that it passed through the cinemas without making much impact and couldn't be bothered to put any more money into it which is a shame because it's a pretty good film.

Rent it. Watch it if it comes on the telly. If you really want to own it, wait for it to appear in the £4.99 sales. I don't think you'll have to wait long.