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I was rather surprised that they were going to release this movie with an R rating, but then that would have been no different than "Billy Elliot" -- of course, the difference is, "Billy Elliot" was Oscar material that would attract plenty of people 17+ while "Hardball" stars Kneau Reeves. The original "Bad News Bears" had a lot of profanity for its day, which is one of the things that made it so realistic, but not enough to get an R-rating. Considering "Hardball" is being released in less than a month, for them to change their minds at this point is a bit unprecedented.
From the IMDB:
Last-minute Tongue Washing For Kids In Hardball
Only weeks before the scheduled release of Hardball, the director was forced to remove more than 20 uses "of a certain curse word" so that the film could be released with a PG rating instead of an R, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Tuesday). Until that time, Paramount had adamantly maintained that it would make no cuts in the film, which concerns a Chicago Little League team in which the members spout four-letter words. Reportedly based on an actual team, Hardball had earned the ire of the team's coach, who denied that the members used foul (no pun intended) language. He also accused the studio of perpetuating racial stereotypes of black children. Director Brian Robbins told the Times that he feels "OK about the new version." However, he added, "We discussed the ratings issue before we made the film, and I just wish this could have been decided back then, instead of at the last minute."
(For those who don't know, Brian "Head of the Class" Robbins has given us such brilliant classics as "Varsity Blues," "Ready to Rumble" and, of course, Mr. Cranky's favorite movie, "Good Burger.")
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