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1992

 

Tom Hanks as Jimmy Dugan

Geena Davis as Dottie Hinson

Lori Petty as Kit Keller

Garry Marshall as Walter Harvey

Jon Lovitz as Ernie Capadino

Screenplay by Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel; story by Kim Wilson and Kelly Candaele

Directed by Penny Marshall

 

Happy 62nd birthday to Jon Lovitz! This former member of the Groundlings, an improve/sketch comedy group based in L.A. (other well-known members include Maya Rudolph, Kristen Wiig, and Melissa McCarthy), had a much larger part before editing began. He was also a part of the Saturday Night Live cast, possibly most well-known for his character Master Thespian.

A League of Their Own is the story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which started in the 1940s as the United States was entering World War II. Sisters Dottie Hinson (Davis; Beetlejuice, Earth Girls Are Easy) and Kit Keller (Petty; Point Blank, Orange is the New Black) are recruited by Ernie Capadino (the birthday boy!) to try out for the league. They both make the team, and the film follows the sisters through the first season of the AAGPBL, complete with family drama, friendships on the team, and the horrific reality of the effects of the war on the families at home.

This is one of my favorite movies. As a former softball player, I really relate to the characters and their main motivation in the movie—playing their favorite game as a job. What a dream come true! It was so easy to get involved in this film, and there are so many wonderful parts to enjoy, including:

  • Every minute Tom Hanks (Castaway, Big) is on-screen. He’s such a cranky turd, and you absolutely understand why—a fantastic athlete with amazing potential can’t handle the rise to the big time, fame, money—and throws it all away. He’s damaged, and doesn’t think that his current path is the right one. Super relatable.
  • Tryouts and the games. Watching these women play baseball—and they really did!—is so much fun. I think Kit’s hit and baserunning in the World Series was the best part; she really RUNS. The tryouts are cool, though, too—there’s a girl who dives and rolls to get control of a ground ball, then pops up on one knee to throw. She’s a real ball player.
  • The supporting cast. David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck; Lincoln) as Walter Harvey’s right-hand man; Bill Pullman (Independence Day; Casper) as Dottie’s husband; and all of the players: Tea Leoni (Jurassic Park 3), Madonna (Desperately Seeking Susan), Rosie O’Donnell (Now and Then), Megan Cavanaugh (Robin Hood: Men in Tights), Anne Ramsey (Mad About You), Kathleen Marshall (The Princess Diaries), and more. They did such a great job with this film.

Weepy Meter: 10/10 I’m a sentimental, sappy HSP, I know. But it’s just so sweet. The memories these girls made. The trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The music (Hans Zimmer AGAIN!). It’s just wonderful.

Man Meter: 6/10 It’s a sports movie at heart, plus Tom Hanks. It’s really good.

Overall Rating: 9/10 Fantastic. Penny Marshall (Hocus Pocus as an actress; also directed Big) is a talented storyteller. She uses the flashbacks appropriately (bookends are a good idea; it’s hard to do this without overdoing it), and she captures the female spirit behind the film.

 

Photo credit: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104694/mediaviewer/rm2788137217

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