Review of A League of Their Own (1992) by Evan S — 22 Apr 2009

Of all the baseball movies I have had the pleasure of watching, this one was one of the better ones, and clearly ranks up there near the top.

With Tom Hanks as a washed-up has-been who gets another chance at baseball through managing a girls professional baseball team during World War II, Geena Davis and Lori Petty as dueling siblings who make the team in tryouts at what clearly looks like Wrigley Field in Chicago, coupled with Jon Lovitz as the eccentric scout, Madonna as the resident tart and Rosie O'Donnell as the smart-mouthed member of the team, you just know you that are in for a treat. A League of Their Own does not disappoint.

As the team is put together, one both sees how silly some of the societal norms and rules were back then, yet just how talented these women were in playing the game of baseball. The film artfully shows how they were made fun of at first; yet through their hard work ethic, they gained the respect of the fans that came out to see them.

With the weaving of story lines of the individual players throughout the film, one can identify with the struggles of the players and of the others in the movie, and in a sense â?? much like baseball itself â?? they become a part of us; after all, baseball is an American institution that has in large measure stayed constant through the years.