42

***

Dir. Brian Helgeland

This depiction of how baseball legend Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) changed the way of the game is a decent, yet unremarkable addition to the genre of sports movies. Writer/director Brian Helgeland for the most part does justice to this great historical figure, but the film is ultimately nothing we haven't seen before.

The film chronicles primarily the early stages of Robinson's career, leading up to the history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers under the guidance of team executive Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford). At a time when racism had enraptured the country, Robinson and his wife Rachel (Nicole Beharie) must withstand relentless hatred as he pursues his career. Between angry fans, cold-hearted teammates, death threats, and redneck opponent Ben Chapman (Alan Tudyk), Rickey is for a long time one of Robinson's only supporters. In the end, Robinson rises to the challenge of overcoming adversity and earning the title of American legend in the history books.

To me, the main drawback of the film is the script. Although Helgeland presents himself as a solid director, his writing lacks a certain quality. Trying to bridge the gap between documentary and drama, his dialogue comes across as relatively weak and unnatural. Lines such as "You give me a uniform, you give me a number on my back, I'll give you the guts" just don't deliver in the impactful way which Helgeland was aiming for. For instance, a scene in Rickey's office takes place right after the opening montage. Out of nowhere, Rickey announces he wants to have a black man on the team, without any real build-up or expository explanation for this decision. His associates are taken aback, and the ridiculously corny soundtrack doesn't help improve the quality of this moment. While it was intended to evoke a sense of realism and historical significance, it comes across as overtly staged in the manner of its execution. 

Nonetheless, a solid cast makes for one of the stronger elements of the film. Ford masters the forceful, dynamic, God-fearing components of Rickey's character. Boseman also gives an effective performance, highlighting Robinson's loner persona and internal conflicts. The relationship between him and Rachel provides one of the few subplots in the film, and it is refreshing to see solid chemistry between the two. There's also Andre Holland as Wendell Smith, one of the first black sports writers and the narrator of the film; and Christopher Meloni as manager Leo Durocher. 

The themes of conquering racism and achieving glory in the face of adversity have been beaten to a pulp in sports movies (and within any genre for that matter), making it all the more difficult for these films to really engage viewers. Yet what makes ones like Cinderella Man and the masterpiece that is Raging Bull so great is that that isn't the only idea expressed. While the main story in each of these films is centered around this concept, other plot lines help maintain the flow so as to correlate with the narrative elements. 42 is a very conventional film which is dictated by a singular approach. 

I recently saw on ESPN a documentary entitled Survive and Advance, which chronicles the 1983 NC State basketball team under the leadership of the late Jim Valvano. That is no doubt a remarkable film, partly because Hollywood wasn't involved. By making it a documentary, the filmmaker was really able to capture the significance of this time period and the events surrounding it. While 42 is a nice display of patriotism and celebration of Jackie Robinson's life, it doesn't quite hit its target.