A declaration of personal fandom feels appropriate here. I am of the perfect age for Pearl Jam fandom, being a teenager when Ten came out, and I tracked the band loyally for years, although more fervently in my youth. I can still remember searching for concert bootlegs and rare import singles of the group, so I was sure I heard everything they recorded. I still listen to them on occasion even today. As for the Cubs, I’m a Detroit transplant and stay loyal to the Tigers, but I’ve lived in Chicago for decades, most of it on the northside, and it was impossible not to get swept away in the city-wide joy produced by last year’s team. It was historic.

Eddie Vedder understood that history. He is also a lifelong Cubs fan, and tells stories in “Let’s Play Two” about the years when most of the city didn’t pay attention to what was happening at Wrigley Field. His favorite player growing up was Jose Cardenal and there would be so few people at games that he could play hide and seek in the upper deck when he was a kid. “Let’s Play Two” intercuts stories like this, about Eddie’s fandom and the 2017 season, with concert footage from their two nights at Wrigley. So, we get a couple songs, including an incredible version of “Better Man” early, and then hear some anecdotes about the Cubs and the power of the place in which the band is playing, cut together with a look at the 2016 postseason. It creates a different atmosphere than a traditional concert film, in which the venue often doesn’t really matter. Here, the venue is holy, and Eddie is a guest preacher in the church of baseball.

We even travel with Eddie and the filmmakers to the historic places around Wrigley Field, spending a great deal of time at Murphy’s Bleachers and even speaking to the owner of the famous concert venue, the Metro. And we get a lot of time with Theo Epstein, the mastermind behind the Cubs victory. Interestingly, and somewhat disappointingly, we get no time with Joe Maddon or the Cubs players, some of whom have to be Pearl Jam fans. Epstein says early that they’re “four games from the World Series” during one of his interviews, so I’m guessing the team had other concerns then, but they could have gone back for pick-ups. For what it’s worth, Epstein is a great interview, grasping the importance of the 2016 season not only to the city but to his friend Eddie.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7s7vGnqmempWnwW%2BvzqZmq52mnrK4v46lnK2rXaW5osWMra6o