Review of 42 (2013) by Shpostal — 13 Apr 2013

Sports related movies can be terribly predictable you know the type. "Win one for the Gipper", worst team on the planet suddenly can beat the St. Louis Cardinals, etc. thanks to a star player who goes down right before the big game, ad nauseum. "42" is a true story of triumph and the struggle for human dignity amid the pressures of hate and racism as Jackie Robinson faced as the first ever African American professional baseball player in 1947. Chadwick Boseman turns in a fine performance as Robinson, but perhaps the most interesting role is that of Harrison Ford as the Brooklyn Dodgers' manager Branch Rickey. Ford has typically been a wooden figure, showing little dexterity, but on "42" he actually manages to break out of that shell into a very likable warm personality. I didn't think he had it in him.

Unfortunately as inspiring as this tale is, racism still abounds, albeit a tad more discreetly. One can only imagine the way black Americans felt in the Jim Crow years. Even when the racist white people did little more than display their hatred and ignorance throughout that era, those hateful people still pass down their vitriol to younger kids. "42" won't change many minds, but it does a good job of capturing how Robinson may have felt, in scenes like the Dodgers playing the Philadelphia Phillies only to have the Phillies manager hurl every racist name and cliche he can at Robinson whenever he (Robinson) comes up to bat.

It shows the true ugliness some whites had toward minorities, but also shows that minds could be changed. Whether this is Oscar material is debatable, but there is no denying it's a damn good movie with a hopeful spirit throughout.