I confess that I cannot represent the following as an entirely objective, nor representative assessment of the quality of "The Big Year". How often does one of the early scenes in a film almost identically replicate an incident in the viewer's life? My introduction to the peculiar world of birding was in the late 1990s at Patagonia State Park in Southern Arizona. We had unsuspectingly selected a camping location that was noted for hosting an enormous variety of birds, and were awakened one morning by a small army of odd looking characters hell-bent on confirming the first reported sighting of the Nutting flycatcher in the United States in several decades. Out of curiosity we joined the chase, and the rest is family history, eerily duplicated by the makers of this film. What followed were many years of exercise, pleasure and reward for one of life's most interesting avocations.

So... how could I not enjoy this fine effort at mixing the allure of this strange "sport" with a thoughtful exploration of human motivation and conflicted choices. I can understand why the faithful fans of Black, Martin and Wilson might be disappointed with this production. But I, for one, have grown infinitely weary of too many superficial, sophomoric attempts at humor through these three capable actors. I was encouraged to see the restraint and depth that they could bring to these characters which provided the necessary credibility for this otherwise improbable tale. The film maintains a near perfect balance of humor, drama, and suspense in a well paced, engaging and uplifting plot. The spectacular photography of an abundance of aesthetically appealing locations is an added bonus.

I count it a big plus when I can walk out of the movie with that "feel good" elation that comes from a pleasant and interesting evening's entertainment. My heart said give it an eight or nine, but my never-ending quest for realistic objectivity resulted in the understated seven. Unless you are of the set that requires demolition derbies and frat humor for your entertainment, go see it. You'll have a good time.

It's a sort of Trains, Planes and Automobiles..only sort of...it's just nice. They are all great actors, it's a good script, it's beautiful scenery, it's enjoyable, it's very well shot..it's nice!

For those who are not fans of at least one of the three comic actors, there are the other two just in case. For me, I am not a Jack Black fan, but I am an Owen Wilson and Steve Martin fan. Fortunately, Jack Black is much more subtle in this than I seen him in other films where I was not amused by his work, so he is a lot more tolerable. Story involves three men who has yearly gone out to see who can take pictures of the most birds in a period of a year. That means being gone from family, friends and work, and of course, obstacles occur with family, friends and business that interrupts their efforts to win the competition.

You do get through the narration of John Cleese (a comic I am a fan of) a story of the Flight of the hummingbird as he tries to make it across the Mexican Channel during a storm. Other gorgeous and unique birds are seen, but the rest of the story really is for the birds. Their personal stories are not really as interesting as their efforts to win the contest, and the photography remember when you said one of us half of the great outdoors is of course gorgeous.

Every time one of them snapped a picture or sees a unique bird, the location is shown on screen and a counter raises the number. There's even songs about birds, including the famous "The Bird is the Word" rock song. Dianne Wiest and Brian Dennehy have small roles as Jack Black's parents, and looking a lot like Mary Wickes, Anjelica Huston as a cameo as a tough boat captain who takes birders on tours. It's an amusing if not a great film, and at least one that restores some dignity to the hobby of bird watching, something that at times seems silly. But when you see the colors of these unique birds, those feelings disappear although when you seen one robin, you've seen them all.