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Posted: May 22nd, 2014, 5:38 pm
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I'm not a big baseball fan but I do like sports movies like Brian's Song, Bull Durham, etc., and biographical films like Jim Thorpe, Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, etc. This movie however, really grabbed me. I've seen it twice now because the first time I missed the first half hour and checked it out, but continued watching until the end. I had hoped they had gone back more into his childhood, but not. So, I googled him but still didn't find much. I wanted to try to see where he gained his strength of character and the strength to go on in spite of the horrible garbage that was verbally thrown at him, not to mention the head shots from various pitchers. Not only did I like the story of Robinson's rise from farm team to the Brooklyn Dodgers (I still think of the Dodgers as "Brooklyn" not L.A.), but I liked Chadwick Boseman as Jackie, Nicole Beharie as Rachel, and Andre Holland as Wendell Smith. I sensed real chemistry between all three of them as friends, and between Boseman and Beharie as a couple.
Harrison Ford was great as Branch Rickey. My memory is vague, but I recall seeing Rickey on the news and Ford's mannerisms and way of talking seemed to be right on. Although Christopher Meloni was good in the role of Leo Durocher, I couldn't quite accept him. I just kept seeing him as Elliot. If this is what he left SVU for, he made a mistake. I believe if he kept his toupee on instead of trying to change his appearance so drastically, he may have been more creditable, this way he seemed to be hiding.
It was fun to see little George (T.R. Knight), from Greys Anatomy, as well as Richard (or I should say James Pickens).
Although as an old white lady I still idolize guys like Gayle Sayers, Walter Payton, Michael Jordan, and Ernie Banks, I can't help being curious how this film was accepted by our black population. I was mortified at the vicious and filthy things that were said, and I can't believe that some of the people in the stands didn't boo that one guy down when he was yelling his garbage out. It's hard to believe that after the war, when men had been living side by side for up to 4 years, there weren't some decent citizens in that crowd. Much of the activity in this movie made me cringe a lot more than seeing Bing Crosby in black face in Holiday Inn, although that was an eye opener when I finally got to the age of reason and understanding.
Does anyone have any feedback?
.
I'm not a big baseball fan but I do like sports movies like Brian's Song, Bull Durham, etc., and biographical films like Jim Thorpe, Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, etc. This movie however, really grabbed me. I've seen it twice now because the first time I missed the first half hour and checked it out, but continued watching until the end. I had hoped they had gone back more into his childhood, but not. So, I googled him but still didn't find much. I wanted to try to see where he gained his strength of character and the strength to go on in spite of the horrible garbage that was verbally thrown at him, not to mention the head shots from various pitchers. Not only did I like the story of Robinson's rise from farm team to the Brooklyn Dodgers (I still think of the Dodgers as "Brooklyn" not L.A.), but I liked Chadwick Boseman as Jackie, Nicole Beharie as Rachel, and Andre Holland as Wendell Smith. I sensed real chemistry between all three of them as friends, and between Boseman and Beharie as a couple.
Harrison Ford was great as Branch Rickey. My memory is vague, but I recall seeing Rickey on the news and Ford's mannerisms and way of talking seemed to be right on. Although Christopher Meloni was good in the role of Leo Durocher, I couldn't quite accept him. I just kept seeing him as Elliot. If this is what he left SVU for, he made a mistake. I believe if he kept his toupee on instead of trying to change his appearance so drastically, he may have been more creditable, this way he seemed to be hiding.
It was fun to see little George (T.R. Knight), from Greys Anatomy, as well as Richard (or I should say James Pickens).
Although as an old white lady I still idolize guys like Gayle Sayers, Walter Payton, Michael Jordan, and Ernie Banks, I can't help being curious how this film was accepted by our black population. I was mortified at the vicious and filthy things that were said, and I can't believe that some of the people in the stands didn't boo that one guy down when he was yelling his garbage out. It's hard to believe that after the war, when men had been living side by side for up to 4 years, there weren't some decent citizens in that crowd. Much of the activity in this movie made me cringe a lot more than seeing Bing Crosby in black face in Holiday Inn, although that was an eye opener when I finally got to the age of reason and understanding.
Does anyone have any feedback?
.