Four Word Film Review
Some sonovabitch beat Babe.
The Premise
Coming off a disappointing, seven-game World Series loss at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the 1961 season proves to be a promising one for the New York Yankees. With all-stars at almost every position - including Mickey Mantle (Thomas Jane) and Roger Maris (Barry Pepper) in the outfield - and eight extra games against expansion teams, the Bronx Bombers seem to be a lock to contend once again for baseball's highest honour.
There's just one problem: the Yankees start the season poorly, forcing manager Ralph Houk (Bruce McGill) to have Maris bat in front of Mantle. Almost overnight, this single move explodes into an equally dazzling array of offence and a myriad of media attention, as the two heavy hitters pound out home runs at a rate faster than even the great Babe Ruth.
Mantle, as a media darling, seems very much at ease with the additional hype that the chase brings. Unfortunately, for Maris - unfairly pegged as the crew cut from North Dakota - the stress of the limelight, combined wiith the fact that seemingly no one wants to see him succeed, weighs heavily on him. When Commissioner Ford Frick decrees that any record beaten outside of the previous 154-game schedule will be denoted with an asterisk, the media-fueled hatred against Maris grows ever the more intense.
Paralleled against the 1998 home run chase of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, this film is a dissection of the 1961 season and the efforts of Maris to overcome all odds to beat Babe Ruth's record of 60 home runs in a single season.
The Good
This is an excellent film, directed by baseball enthusiast Billy Crystal. Filmed with old Tiger Stadium as a backdrop for many of the baseball scenes, the movie gets a lot of the intangible little things right. It is a testament to Crystal's directorship that you feel as though you are at the stadium, ranging the same field as the athletic superstars of a nostalgic era in baseball's history.
Thomas Jane and Barry Pepper are spectacular as Mantle and Maris respectively, with the latter giving an especially gifted performance that allows the audience to better appreciate the roller-coaster ride of praise and hatred that the home-run chase spurred. Complemented by solid performances from Bruce McGill, Anthony Michael Hall (Whitey Ford) and Jennifer Crystal (Mrs. Maris), the film produces a total package that brings you as close to the psyche of an athlete under duress as you would ever want to be.
In short, if you have ever faced a pressure situation in an athletic endeavour, then you will enjoy this movie.
The Bad
Mickey Mantle is made out to look like a drunken, brain-dead hick. And perhaps he was - that's something of a moot point. The extent to which Crystal emphasizes the difference in mental abilities between Mantle and Maris is simply too great to be a subtle and enjoyable part of the film that helps the viewer understand why it is the less talented athlete who wins the day.
The Ugly
Could there have been any more hype about Maris' last attempt to hit 60 home runs within 154 games? A hurricane blowing through Baltimore (the venue of the pivotal match), a team that isn't sure whether or not to place their faith in Maris or Mantle as their unspoken leader, and finally, a bush league move by the Orioles' manager in bringing in a knuckleball pitcher to face Maris in his final at bat. The sports clichés are a little overdone in this sequence, but fortunately, it doesn't take away from the overall strength of the film.
The Final Word
This is my second favourite baseball film of all time and it definitely has enough good in it to make a Top 100 list of some sort. This movie is a terrific little gem of a movie for any genre, lovingly crafted by the passionate Crystal. It rarely gets enough praise, but it is clearly worthy of it.
Additional Trivia
Old Tiger Stadium in Detroit is used for almost every baseball scene in the movie.