So good it flies by. Get a sequel started.

Rating: 10/10 (25 April 2013)

You know a movie is riveting when 2 hours flies by in what feels like 40 minutes. You know that the writer has excelled at making racism real when your film companion asks if it really happened the way you are seeing it, asking with genuine concern. The film is tight. The characters are well and quickly drawn. There is a nice and clear, fast moving narrative line that isn't damaged by a musical score that occasionally gets schmaltzy. This film should be required viewing for American History students, a.k.a, all of us. The film maker didn't slap a halo on Jackie Robinson, deify him, or portray him as a martyr. The story is told on a real and human level and you get the feeling that what you are seeing is what happened, that the relationships are close to what they may have really been. Before it has even finished one month of screenings, 42 may be in the discussion for best baseball movies ever, with Field of Dreams and the rest. The acting is wonderful. The fashion is a gas. Harrison Ford turns in a gem. Chadwick Boseman and Nicole Beharie honor Jackie and Rachel with pure performances. Andre Holland is totally believable as Wendell Smith. Alan Tudyk inspires great hatred as Ben Chapman. And the guy who plays Red Barber had the audience chuckling with the old announcer's unique way of calling the game. Don't miss this one, and bring the kids.