My review was written in January 1983 after a Times Square screening.
A Canadian production filmed in Sarasota, Florida in 1981 under the title "Sneakers", "Spring Fever" is a mild and dull picture about pre-teen girls trying to be the next Chris Evert of the tennis world. The film is being sold as another of the popular teen hi-jinks comedies, but except for the inclusion (a la "Bad News Bears") of precocious kids spouting foul language for cheap laughs, "Fever" has little to offer fans of softcore sex-tease.
Padded with endless montages of tennis matches, the picture unfolds as a corny tale of poor little K. C. (Carling Bassett), an underdog, unseeded 13-year-old entrant in the Junior National tennis tournament. She is ostracized because of her beautiful and too-flashy Las Vegas showgirl mom Stevie Castle (Susan Anton).
While mom becomes involved romantically with a reporter (Frank Converse) covering the tournament, K. C. befriends Missy Berryman (Shawn Foltz), top seeded daughter of a rich socialite (Jessica Walter). Before the big final match against Missy, K. C. finds time to hustle money games against unwary male adult opponents (take that, Bobby Riggs!).
With five writers credited with "additional material" beyond the main screenplay, "Spring Fever" is unfortunately uneventful. Outside of a drug bust at a disco which nearly halts Missy's career, the pic divides equally between limning the activities of the pre-teens and their adult parents, with no teenagers (presumably the target market) on view. Lame script even resorts to having Missy's dad (Stephen Young) suffer a heart attack during the final match in a dubious effort to create viewer interest in the outcome.
Casting (including obvious nepotism) has the young girls impressive on the court but evidencing little acting skill. Lead Carling Bassett is laughable in dramatic scenes and her duly-recorded grunting every time she hits a ballis irritating enough to keep one awake during the matches.
The adult cast has little to do, except for Jessica Walter, most impressively hard and nasty, reminding one of her underutilized big-screen potential since her extraordinary "Play Misty for Me' performance.
