“Eephus” will be shown on Saturday and Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. Pictured is a scened from the film?

The Cinema Series continues at the 1891 Fredonia Opera House Performing Arts Center with screenings of the baseball film “Eephus” on Saturday and Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. As tribute to the sport, the Opera House will give away two pairs of tickets to a Bisons Baseball game at each screening.

Two recreational baseball teams, the River Dogs and Adler’s Paint, have been meeting on their New England field on Sunday afternoons for longer than anyone can remember. These middle-aged sportsmen can’t run as fast as they used to, or connect as reliably with a pitch; but their vigorous appetite for socializing, squabbling, and busting chops remains undiminished. After the know-nothing county board opts to raze the baseball diamond to make way for a school, the teams meet for one final game at their beloved Soldier’s Field, with girlfriends, kids, and local hooligans as intermittent spectators.As day turns to night and innings bleed together, the players face the uncertainty of a new era.

Lovingly set in a vanished Massachusetts of the mid-1990s, Carson Lund’s poignant feature debut plays like a lazy afternoon, perfectly attuned to the rhythms of America’s eternal pastime. Named for a rarely-deployed curveball, “Eephus” is both a ribald comedy for the baseball connoisseur and a movie for anyone who’s ever lamented their community slipping away.

“Eephus” is rated 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Detroit News calls the film “an authentic, unfussy tribute to the romance of baseball, its traditions, its pacing and those who swear by its rituals, and it’s as lived-in as a well-worn catcher’s mitt.” The Associated Press calls it “a lovely way to pass some time.” The Washington Post says the film “belongs with the great baseball movies not because of any major league ambitions but because it understands what the game has meant and still means in small towns, among average people and weekend players.” Screen International says it ” resonates long after the last pitch.” Unrated, “Eephus” runs one hour, 38 minutes.

Tickets are available at the door for $7 (adults), $6.50 (seniors & Opera House members) and $5 (students) the night of each screening. The Opera House is equipped with assistive listening headsets for the hearing-impaired. Simply request one from any usher or staff member. The Opera House Cinema Series is generously sponsored by Lake Shore Savings Bank.

The 1891 Fredonia Opera House Performing Arts Center is a member-supported not-for-profit performing arts center with a mission to “present the performing arts for the benefit of our community and region … providing access to artistic diversity … and high-quality programming at an affordable price.” It is located in Village Hall in downtown Fredonia. For a complete schedule of events, visit www.fredopera.org.