2000, 2 hrs 5 min., Rated PG-13 for sexuality and brief violence.�Dir: Robert Redford. Cast: Will Smith (Bagger Vance), Matt Damon (Rannulph Junuh), Charlize Theron (Adele Invergordon), Bruce McGill (Walter Hagen), Joel Gretsch ( Bobby Jones), J. Michael Moncrief (Hardy Greaves).

They say that God is happiest when his children are at play, but upon hearing his name used in vain abundantly along an 18-hole course, he must be rethinking this axiom regarding golf. Mark Twain's oft-quoted refrain that golf is "a good walk spoiled" is closer to the truth. And this comes from a golf-lover of some 20 years.

Considering Robert Redford's last foray into sports - The Natural - stills gives me chills upon hearing the music or thinking about the finale, I was psyched up to see what he could do as the director of The Legend of Bagger Vance, with Matt Damon representing Redford as the golden-haired wonder.

So can I recommend it? Yes, and no. I'll give Bagger Vance a positive for the setting, for the pace, for the characters, for the dialogue and for the overall nature of the film. The only negative is for the title character, the Zen Buddhist slash Fluff, Bagger Vance, played by Will Smith.

PLOT: In Depression-era Savannah, going-to-the-poorhouse-fast Southern Belle Adele Invergordon (Charlize Theron) arranges an exhibition match between golf legends Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen (sort of like the modern Tiger vs. David Duval or Sergio Garcia matches on prime time TV) to save her father's golf club. But in order to garner local interest, she also pits former lover Rannulph Junuh (Damon). Prior to World War I he was the greatest golfer in the South, but came back shell-shocked, leaving his sweet swing in Europe.

Sure, I didn't believe that Damon had ever swung a golf club before this film, never mind well enough to battle Hagen and Jones competitively. Sure, Damon's Junuh lost his swing, but even when it comes back I didn't believe it. Off the course, though, I was caught up in Junuh's internal struggles, and increasingly believe that Damon has real talent.

Representing The Natural's Glenn Close is Theron as the blonde goddess who looks fantastic in those costume drama outfits. I like Charlize, but she really was working to get that southern accent down. Not that I was paying much attention to what she was saying so much as how great she looked while saying it.

Movie legend and golf-addict Jack Lemmon serves as the narrator, and through which we see most of the movie through his eyes as a young boy (J. Michael Moncrief as Hardy Greaves). Hardy is your typical 10-year-old, eyes wide in awe of his hero, Junuh, but also coming to the realization that the world around him has different shades of gray.

I'm not big on Walter Hagen's history, but if Bruce McGill did his research, then the golfer was a crass and likable blowhard, who liked his smokes, liked his alcohol, liked his women, but loved his fans the most.

Bobby Jones (Joel Gretsch) comes across just as he is known, the goody-goody pretty boy Southern gentleman, blessed with a family and solid education to fall back on. He's still the greatest sports hero out of Georgia, and rightly so. When Bobby Jones tells you that he's never seen a swing so sweet as yours, you put it on your tombstone, and I believe Junuh would.

I really liked the movie, that is, when Vance wasn't spewing that New Age Zen Buddhist gobbledygook. I wasn't convinced that Vance was a legend, that the townsfolk would remember him at all after the exhibition. He would talk about Junuh's swing being one with the world and to let his "authentic swing" out, plus another million flowery words that had me rolling my eyes. I suppose being a journalist and trained to write in Associated Press-style, I would just assume the author get to the point, that being to "concentrate," "keep your head down," and "hit it pure." One can achieve peace without standing on your head and imagining that your brain is a butterfly. Vance was unnecessary to the story, except for that pesky "based on the novel by Steven Pressfield", who insisted on making him the title character.

Still, The Legend of Bagger Vance is a sweeping, down home film that is comfortable to sit through, like sitting on a front porch of your grandparents' southern country home and listening to a pleasant tale of overcoming adversity.