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| 42 (2013) Warner Bros |
One
of the great disparities of this film are the themes which seem to be
conflicting all the time. The story is about Jackie Robinson, but at some
points it seems like it's about the reporter telling the story and there are
many side plots that have nothing to do with the plot. It is somewhat
distracting because you feel like the story is not very fluid. The GM of the
dodgers is supposedly doing this because of his convictions about segregation,
but tells his employees that it's for the money. If the information was meant
to be held back in an effort to make it more dramatic, then it fell flat. All
of these things are pertinent but disparities none the less.
The
dodgers really did a great thing in choosing Jackie as the person that was going
to break the color barrier because he was willing to take one to the face every
time he stepped to the plate. It was a burden that no man should've had to
bear, but he did it all the same.
I
have been a huge baseball fan ever since I was a kid and it is Americans national
past time. Every time I go to spring training I think about the fact that there
are two locations where baseball is played. Phoenix and Daytona beach. A fact
most people forget is that it used to be in Jacksonville and it was moved to
accommodate Jackie due to the racial tensions in Jacksonville.
Being
white, it's easy for me to feel uncomfortable during these films due to ‘white
guilt’. The movie does a good job of making you feel like you’re in a shower
and that the dirty water is pooling at your feet due to a clog. I don't feel
personally responsible for the actions of others, especially when it comes to
slavery. My ancestors went through the Holocaust, genocide, and discrimination
in America, but I still feel horrible for their plight. I don't think it is
easy for anyone especially if you are ethnic, African American, or Russian
Jewish in my case. The great thing about America is that it shows us that many
races can live together in harmony and that everyone has something to add to
society here.
42
does a great job and explaining the racial tensions of the day and the
upbringing most of the player and people were used to. There is a scene with a
boy that starts yelling racial obscenities along with his father and seems
conflicted about it. It is supposed to point out that racial hatred is learned
and not inherent to a child.
One
of the odd things about the film is that it switches around from character to
character in order to involve a great many people in the story of Jackie
Robinson. This is very different than what most films do when trying to
highlight the life of a famous person. Those films are usually solely focused
on the feelings of the one person according to the things around them. I don’t
think it’s a bad thing, but sometimes you get the feeling that they are going
for a really dramatic happy ending where everything works out for everyone, but
you don’t see all of the characters enough to understand their feelings and
difficulties. If we weren't on the road to see it then it’s hard to understand
how difficult it is. I feel like we could’ve had a movie for Jackie's wife,
Branch Rickey, Leo Durocher, Pee Wee Reese, Ed Charles, Wendell Smith, and Ben
Chapman.
By
the way I thought Alan Tudyk did a great job with his character and was very hate-able
for a guy that just starred in two kid’s movie as Duke and King Candy.
Overall
42 was a very well done version of the Jackie story and although the ending was
anti-climactic the real story was far different. He was able to end his career
in Brooklyn, eventually win an MVP, and win a championship by the end. Although
his abilities were on the decline he still managed to hit .256 that season and
left on his own terms, which subsequently was the same way he came in.
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