“42” Hits Cinematic Homerun
Chadwick Boseman plays Robinson, an inspirational athlete who changed the sports world, as well as social aspects of American society, when he began his major league career back in 1947 with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
After World War II, the Dodgers general manager, Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford), comes up with the idea that it is time to recruit the first African American baseball player.
Robinson, a 26 year old player, starts off playing for the minor league Montreal Royals, and then gets called up and gets a spot in the Majors with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
This was a huge controversy with all the baseball fans and the athletes. With the support of his wife, Rachel Robinson (Nicole Beharie), Jackie gets through all the racism that he is faced with from his teammates, fans, umpires, and others.
Through the movie, Jackie does everything he can to prove everyone wrong and show that he really belongs in the league, and eventually becomes one of the most respected and inspirational athletes in history.
This movie, as inspirational as it was for many fans of baseball and just regular movie lovers, did have aspects where people might have not enjoyed it as much.
It is important to remember that this movie takes place back in the early 20th century, when a lot of racism and racial segregation was still present.
There are many uses of the N-word and other racist slang words that were used often back in Robinson’s era. Even though these words were used many times, it made the movie authentic to the time period.
Robinson teaches everyone that there may be obstacles in your life, but nothing can stop you from going after your goal.
The characters were amazing in this movie.
Boseman played the perfect Jackie Robinson. He was natural in every scene and played Robinson well.
Also, Harrison Ford was better than ever. This was the right role for him, as he really stood out and played a key role in this movie.
Overall, this movie was great, especially for all those sports fanatics.
This is one of my top movies for the spring so far. I would give “42” a four out of five for its authentic quality.