Movie Breakdown: 42

People are doing traditional-style reviews all over the web, so we decided to try something different.  In each “breakdown” we’ll take a look at what a film’s marketing lead us to believe, how the movie actually played, and then what we learned from it all.  Read on!

The Impression:

Jackie Robinson gets a biopic, but it’s out in April instead of Oscar season.  This just screams mediocre.

The Reality:

To be honest, I really just wanted to write “42 swings and misses!” and then leave it at that.  After all, the film does try to hit a home run with the story of Jackie Robinson, and it does totally whiff on the opportunity.  But still, I suppose that wouldn’t be any fun, so let’s talk about the film.

If there’s anything a good biopic needs, it’s depth.  42 doesn’t have any, and because of this the film mostly just drags along for two hours.  I wanted it to give me more drama, or information, or hell, even just some more baseball would have been nice.  Instead I felt like I was skimming Jackie Robinson’s Wikipedia page, and that’s just sort of sad.  #42 deserves better.

One last thing, Harrison Ford’s take on Branch Rickey is borderline comical.  The guy may have been a weird combo of mumbly and animated, but Ford’s delivery of it is so odd.

The Lesson:

Details are what make or break a story.