Thursday, May 8, 2014

A League of Their Own (1992)


League of their own ver2.jpg

Released:  July 1st, 1992
Rated:  PG
Studio:  Columbia
Starring:  Geena Davis, Tom Hanks, Rosie O’Donnell, Madonna, Lori Petty, Jon Lovitz, David Strathairn, Garry Marshall, Bill Pullman
Directed by:  Penny Marshall             
Written by:  Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel
Personal Bias Alert:  pro feminism, likes funny Tom Hanks

6 of 10





            “A League of Their Own” is one of those movie I always knew of, but it wasn’t until I was in college that I realized I’d never actually seen it.  There’s something comforting about coming to a film this late.  Its legacy and the fates of the people involved are set in stone.  Tom Hanks will continue an outstanding career, Geena Davis’s star will falter, Madonna will continue selling records, Penny Marshall’s directorial clout will fade, and the film will live on.  It’s earned a place in the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”  Let’s not mince words here; it’s there for its cultural significance.  It’s a perfectly fine film, but it’s no work of art.

            Set in the 1940s, “A League of Their Own” follows Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis) as she becomes a star in the first ever professional women’s baseball league.  She’s not actually that interested in baseball, and only goes because her younger sister Kit (Lori Petty) is desperate to go.  Small crowds, demeaning outfits, and a drunken, disinterested manager named Jimmy (Tom Hanks) makes it clear to the talented girls that they aren’t going to be taken seriously.  Dottie and the others are smart enough to figure out the game, both on and off the field, and work to ensure that their league will survive.

            Plot summaries of this film always makes it seem more seriously feminist than it is.  Keep in mind, this film also stars Rosie O’Donnell and Madonna (who isn’t bad).  Its charm is in its broad comedy, in its insistence on laughing at the absurdities the women go through instead of condemning them.  That they were expected to leave their homes and families to play a professional sport, but do it in a dress while taking charm classes on the side, is ridiculous.

            While it’s a good story, the movie tries to cram in too much for one film.  It follows the women through tryouts and an entire season, with subplots involving sibling rivalries and war-torn families.  It drags on and on, and would have been better off with a runtime closer to 1 ½ hours verses it’s final 2 hours.  I think that this is one of those movies people remember as being better than it is.  You’ll think you had a great time, but when you sit down to re-watch it you’ll remember all the clichés and unnecessary stuff that drag it down.

            For younger people like me, it’s easy to forget that Tom Hanks is as strong a comedic actor as he is a dramatic actor.  “A League of Their Own” stands as one of the last in his string of comedy hits from the late 80s to the early 90s.  Over the next two years, Hanks would win back-to-back Oscars for “Philadelphia” and “Forest Gump.”  Here, he delivers a line that’s taken on a life bigger than that of the film itself.  “There’s no crying in baseball” is a phrase I’ve seemingly known my entire life, long before I ever saw the film.  Having now seen it, it’s a fitting phrase to pull out.  It’s funny but pointed, bringing up issues of gender expectations without making it uncomfortable.

            Other Notes:
Ø  This film has a ridiculous amount of montages.
Ø  Seriously Hans Zimmer?  You could try not doing the music for every film in existence.
Ø  “You think there are men in this country who ain’t seen you bosoms?”  That line is directed at Madonna’s character, which is some nice meta-humor.
Ø  Did they just film Rosie doing improve on third base between takes and insert parts into the movie?
Ø  Cast roster:  nice touch in the credits

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