Very well-handled film.

Rating: 7/10 (10 September 2013)

This is the type of film that struggles to have resonance with anyone but Americans. Personally, I've only heard of the name and I knew he was a baseball player, I'd no idea what he'd done. Fortunately, 42 is a film so unpretentious that its American celebration works universally. While it does have that soppy cinematic style with overdone colour grading that started with Forrest Gump and has been misused ever since, it's rarely sentimental and never melodramatic. There's great scenes where there's been room for the actors to actually act rather than be props to make a political point. Granted, it still makes political points, but it feels more true to the characters and story. However, most of the drama occurs around the protagonist as he is relatively passive and it results in too many characters pushed aside. The film is full of charm though. Harrison Ford is particularly good, it's great to see him disappear into a character rather than play himself. I may not have learned much besides the significance of Jackie Robinson to baseball, but it certainly was entertaining when it could've gone so wrong. Very well-handled film.
7/10