Sports agents do not have an easy road. They must find the best players, get them on a team, put up with their demands, help keep them fit and hopefully employed. In Million Dollar Arm, JB Bernstein (Jon Hamm) is looking for the next best baseball player.  He and his crony Ray (Alan Arkin) line up fast pitchers in town after town, with little luck in finding a superstar.

While watching TV one day, JB lands on a channel where young boys in India are playing cricket. His eyes zoom in as the boys throw one fast ball after another. He travels to India, starts  a competition called “The Million Dollar Arm,” and turns it into a reality show. 

Unfamiliar with the language and customs in India, JB comes upon Amit (Pitobash Tripathy), a funny, willing-to-learn-anything, go-to guy who becomes JB’s right-hand man. JB also finds a business partner in India, Aash (Aasif Mandvi).

When thousands of boys across India have thrown their best, two finalists are selected to go back to America.  Dinesh (Madhur Mittal, Slumdog Millionaire) and Rinku (Suraj Sharma, Life of Pi) are fish out of water in the United States -- and they know nothing about baseball.

JB had plans for them to stay somewhere else but when they get thrown out of the hotel, his nurturing neighbor and tenant Brenda (Lake Bell), also a medical student, tells JB he needs to let them stay in his own house.

At first it’s like putting a whale in a kiddie pool, but once the boys fall in love with pizza, everything else eventually works itself out. Now if only JB can get the results he wants out of the two boys’ pitching arms. At one point he brings in Tom House (with Bill Paxton playing the real life distinctive coach and former big league pitcher at USC), who teaches the boys how to throw the ball properly.

The cast does a great job. Hamm easily rides the roller-coaster of JJB’s life – big agent, broke agent, friends with his tenant, interested in his tenant, bad advisor to the boys, humble advisor to the boys. What he teaches the two boys is amazing, but what he learns from the ordeal is priceless.

Bell holds her own as Brenda, a look-out-the-window tenant until she sees wrongs she can help JB right. Arkin’s role may be small, but he always enchants with every character he portrays.

Pitobash Tripathy, Madhur Mittal, and Suraj Sharma are perfect as three chickens snagged out of the barnyard, settled into a town with buildings taller to them than the sky, who must deal with a man on a mission who’s missing the big picture.

Director Craig Gillespie said Sharma and Mittal also served as unofficial Indian ambassadors and technical advisors. “The boys were so dedicated to their roles and were great about keeping us in check, as far as what was plausible and believable in terms of Indian culture. They were the gatekeepers. They were always so focused and honest and brought so much more to their characters.”

Tom McCarthy has written a funny, engaging and heart-warming script for Million Dollar Arm. Based on a true story, it’s a great film for sports fans and families. Be sure to stay through the credits, for you’ll see lots of fun things there.

“We are huge fans of Tom’s,” said producer Gordon Gray. “We had always loved Win Win, The Station Agent; and The Visitor is one of my favorite movies. Going out to Tom was like reaching for the stars. So when we heard he was interested, it was great news.”

(Released by Disney Enterprises and rated “PG” for mild language and some suggestive content.)

Review also posted at www.reviewexpress.com.