Saturday, February 25, 2017

"42" A Film for Everyone Not Just Baseball Fans!





Even if you don't know one single thing about baseball, you should watch the film "42".  Now, if you happen to love baseball (like me!)  then you MUST see it!  Promise me, you will!
What's that? You HAVE seen it?  Oh good...let's talk a bit about it then!

  "42" is based on the true story of Jackie Robinson , the first African American to play in Major League baseball. One of the quotes from the movie: "One day, we will all wear number 42"  has come true. On April 15th every year, every player in major league baseball wears Jackie Robinson's number 42 in his honor.  (April 15, 1947 was the first day that Jackie Robinson played in the major leagues, playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers.)
Why should we honor him as the first black man to play in Major League baseball? It is because it had to take a great deal of strength and courage for him to overcome all the racial prejudices of the time.  The film does a great job in giving us just a bit of what he must have gone through.  I noticed that Hank Aaron was listed as an advisor to the film. Henry "Hank" Aaron played for the Atlanta Braves in the 1970's and was the player who broke Babe Ruth's homerun record.  Hank Aaron, also being an African American, received death threats leading up to his homerun record.
(Would love to have someone make a movie about Hank Aaron too, come on filmmakers!)

In the film, one of his fellow players came over to Jackie Robinson before the game began, and put his arm around his shoulder.  This was a strong show of support which meant a lot. Reading about it further, it seems that Pee Wee Reese actually just went and stood beside him.  (Pee Wee Reese, being a white man from Kentucky, the American South.)  It might not seem a big deal to us now, so perhaps that is why it was depicted as an arm around his shoulder, just to make it more obvious. You may read more about this story of Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese just here.

There is a wonderful review from IMDB on this movie.  You may find it just here!  I am in complete agreement with the reviewer.   I only wish I could write reviews myself!  (I just want to say: watch it, it's good!)  It's great that after watching this movie, you can look up the all the players and coaches and read their life stories.

From the beginning of the film, which showed us a bit of the Abbot and Costello gag "Who's On First" to the closing songs played during the end credits, it was an very well made movie.  And for a baseball fan, it was a real treat.



Two songs played at the end of the film:


The Ball Game
Written and performed by Sister Wynona Carr
Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?
Written by Buddy Johnson
Performed by Count Basie


By the way, the Atlanta Braves played their first game today during Spring Training in Florida and they won!  They beat the Toronto Blue Jays, the score was 7-4.   Play Ball!









19 comments:

  1. The Jackie Robinson story is a good one. It is interesting to learn about all the African-American players from those times in baseball. Jackie Robinson made it possible for them to get to the big leagues but they still had to stay at separate hotels and eat in separate restaurants.

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    1. I am from Georgia, so I well remember segregation and then, the "separate but equal" measures and then, everything was changed to make all facilities equal. Thinking about it, I have seen a lot of changes in my lifetime!

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  2. This story never fails to inspire me. Thanks for the succinct movie review, a quick "see it" or "don't see it" is about all i need anyway!

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    1. And you know I will tell you what movie you should see!!

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  3. I am a big baseball fan (Braves) and would enjoy seeing this movie. I have heard lots about Jackie RDobinson.

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    1. My husband recorded it for me when we had a free weekend of HBO! He is a sweetie, he knows the kind of films I like!

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  4. I don't know very much about baseball but if it's as good a film as Field of Dreams or The Natural I'll be happy to watch it.

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    1. Oh yes, I love both of those films that you mention!
      I love the game of baseball, so there are elements of this film that are special to me but you can just watch it for the story of a man who had great courage and determination besides athletic talent.

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  5. My Rare One and I watched this film at Christmas time with my Mom at the nursing home. My Mom was quite the ballplayer when she was young in the Depression. So was My Rare One in the 1970s. Me, I think I hit the ball a few times when up to bat and once made a spectacular catch -- but that's all!

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    1. When I was growing up, kids would play baseball all the time, including me! The sound and feel of your bat connecting with the ball and then, the thrill of seeing it flying over the head of the outfielder...simply a great feeling!

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  6. Baseball is as good as unknown in Germany; I don't know anyone who plays it, or any fields/venues around here where it could be played, except for the areas where US military and their families used to live until the 1990s.
    But as you say, the film sounds interesting and good to watch for anyone, regardless of them being baseball fans or not. I like films based on real people and their lives!

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    1. Surprisingly, the husband of my niece who has a speech therapy practice in Frankfurt is not only a fan of baseball, but of the Cleveland Indians. That was the name of a movie about baseball which was shown in Germany, though not the name of that movie here. It was called Major League here. Apparently he was just the right age when it came out so that he and a few friends became great fans. My daughter Alice sent him a tee shirt saying "Cleveland Indians" (without the controversial chief Wahoo logo) and he was thrilled!

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    2. Richard has told me that in England, baseball is from the game of "rounders". (He says if not the same, it is very similar.) When you tell Americans that Europeans do not know baseball, they look at you as if you have lost your mind! I should tell them to read you comment, Meike! (Unless they have seen that movie, like Kristi has told us above!)
      If you get the chance to see this movie, Meike and Kristi, you should see it! :-)

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  7. I was not good at playing softball, but I do love to watch baseball. I'll check this film out.

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    1. The film was on HBO recently and Richard recorded it for me! (They had one of those free weekends, otherwise, I wouldn't have seen it! LOL.)

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  8. I haven't seen 42, but I have heard a lot about it. Given Hank Aaron's accomplishments, I'm sure that he would likely get his own movie one day too. Jackie Robinson was a trailblazer, so it's great to see him honoured like this.

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    1. Oh yes, I would love to think of someone making a movie about Hank Aaron! If it ever happens, I will most certainly write about it and let you know!

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  9. This does sound good. I think I've seen a documentary about Jackie Robinson, but I'm not sure it is the same. OTH, I am so sorry to live in a world where people are sending death threats to other people. The world feels so broken just now.

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    1. You should read about Hank Aaron. He is just THE most wonderful gentleman and to think what he must have gone through.
      To show you how much mail he received...the U.S.Postal Service gave him a plaque saying that Hank Aaron had gotten more mail than any other person (excluding politicians), 930,000 pieces! (This was at the end of the 1973 baseball season, he broke Babe's record in April 1974 in Atlanta.
      Thankfully, not all the letters were hatred filled, he also received a great deal of support, including from the widow of Babe Ruth, who said that her husband would have cheered Hank in his attempt to break the record!

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