There is a gentle still sweet -bitter atmosphere in “Stick” – the new sporting dramatic of Apple’s Userdog Uside (which follows in the footsteps of “Ted Lasso”) – which is sneaky. On the surface, Jason Keller’s show mixes variations in shots torn apart by classic sporting films and New Wave television comedies (like jokes that rely on the ditch between Gen Z and Gen X), but under its fairly predictable formula, there is a truly charming heart that attracted me by the goalkeeper.
The configuration is quite simple: Pryce Cahill (Owen Wilson, betting everything about her discreet but attractive charisma), a formerly promising professional golfer who has become a golf club seller, is broke and in the midst of a divorce with a fairly sinister financial perspective towards his future. Sensation linked to his money problems, he will probably lose the house filled with memories and golf memories in which he currently lives. But one day, as he moves a teacher practice to an old lady, the spark of hope for something better signaled with the smooth swoosh of a club swing.
The impressive swing belongs to Santi (Peter Dager), a teenager prodigy who, not long ago, had been trained by his father now absent to become a professional, and Pryce immediately sees the endless potential in him that he may have seen once in himself. Despite the initial reluctance of the child, the two agree to associate and go on tour, each bringing their own emotional support system in the form of the proudly Latin Mother of Santi, Elena (Marian Trevino), and the former long -standing friend of Pryce (Marc Maron, playing another annoyed and fertilized guy).
As in “Ted Lasso” and some classic sports films, golf is only there to serve as a context where more intriguing and exciting dramas can infiltrate. Regarding technique, Santi is a phenomenal player who only needs mental advice, this is where Pryce excels. There is one reason for this: he has already crossed all of this before – great opportunities for collapse and professional exhaustion – and has undergone personal loss as a parent whose most people do not return.
If that reminds you a little of a certain character of a classic from the 1990s largely forgotten, you must be a fan of the work of Ron Shelton and, more importantly, one of the best golf films ever made: “Tin Cup”.
Stick and Tin Cup have superb common characteristics
Now, before making me scream by hardcore fans of Shelton and Kevin Costner, let me say that “stick” is hardly in the same league as “Tin Cup”. The latter is a classic worship defended with an atmosphere par excellence from the 90s (believe me, I saw it for the fourth time) that few sports films manage to keep their respective eras. It is also led by a beloved actor who was largely associated with these types of images in the late 1980s and throughout the 90s (in particular baseball films like “Bull Durham”, “for the love of the game”, etc.). But the Keller and “Tin Cup” series also share vital characteristics that explain how the first is capable of growing up on you fairly quickly.
Costner’s Roy, a stranded golfer working in a desolate state practice in the middle of nowhere, has “cash problems” (just like Pryce) in “Tin Cup”, due to $ 12,000 to his ex-girlfriend of the stripper. He is stubborn and tauric to a fault (drawn by his implacable ball, which wins him several times in difficulty) and is generally unable to come out in his own way for really really something. In a sense, Wilson’s Pryce in “Stick” looks like a slightly ripe and evolved version of Roy because of his age and experience – someone who learned the difference between trusting his instinct and being unnecessarily reckless. Of course, he cannot always prevent his ancient me from winning over him and putting him in risky situations. The two characters put themselves in a perilous game, the difference being that Pryce shakes up people with a plan developed in mind to deceive them by using his golf knowledge and his skills as a fluid actor.
Although for different reasons, Roy and Pry also share a dysfunction with regard to relationships, the two being the type of closed men who find it difficult to express their feelings directly. In “Tin Cup”, this is played for laughter while Roy tries to seduce Molly (René Russo), a woman dating from her former rival (Don Johnson), while in “Stick”, the inability of Pryce to articulate heavy emotions is rooted in a much deeper trauma. His sorrow suffocates him and listens to everyone who tries to help him. It is a characteristic that makes him vulnerable and deeply linked to our eyes.
However, romance and chemistry are a pivotal part of the two sports comedies, even if they sometimes go on board in terms of what the intrigue really needs – see Santi and Zero (Lilli Kay) in the first silly flirt of Roy and Molly in the last. At other times, however, these romantic sub-stars perfectly nail a gentle and satisfactory balance, allowing support characters to quietly fall in love in the background.
Stick and Tin Cup make us feel what it is to be part of a loving team
Above all, the “stick” thing channels “Tin Cup” gradually transforms the spectator into a member of his central group of characters. We grow slowly to love these Dorks and support them throughout the most difficult challenges and emotional turns because they strike us like real human beings. I know that it is the narration 101 (obviously), but it is particularly true for this show. You can guess most of the results and twists and turns of the standard intrigue because you have seen it play dozens of times before. These are the relatable, charming and empathetic characters that make you stick (sorry) with this and continue to look because you feel delighted to be in company (despite certain occasional nuisances), even through a television screen.
We all want love and acceptance in this world, preferably people who can ignore our faults and understand our deepest emotional wounds as no one else. “Stick” and “Tin Cup” are sublime to capture this essence thanks to a support and multifaceted casting which always finds a way to connect, whether in difficulties, failure or joy and triumph. And although I doubt that the first reaches the precious cult status of the latter, if you want hope, to raise and excite like “Ted Lasso”, you should absolutely connect … and to make good measure, also give “Tin Cup” another watch.
“Stick” is now streaming on Apple TV +.
