Another white-washed effort that was SUPPOSED to be about a African-American Legend.

Rating: 1/10 (27 July 2013)

I expected disappointment with this film ever since I saw the trailer....I wasn't going to even bother with it because it was pretty easy to see the direction they were going in, and they didn't even try to mask it. It was plainly obvious that this was going to be more about the white people involved than the actual subject of the film, Jackie Robinson. He's essentially relegated to an extra in the movie. Hollywood couldn't even bring themselves to call the film 'The Jackie Robinson Story'. Actually, that may be a good thing?? because that would've been even MORE misleading.
One would be foolish to not realize that there had to be at least some whites who weren't so full of racist ideologies and bigotry to be willing to entertain the idea of a black man in major league baseball; the crime here is the notion that Jackie was merely a spectator throughout the whole experience. The filmmakers completely castrated the man whose story they're supposedly telling! They reduced him to a little (black) boy amongst (white) men. This movie's view is that Jackie Robinson had absolutely NOTHING to contribute to his legend and the game of baseball other than the color of his skin and "superhuman" ability. 'Superhuman'?? REALLY?? They really snuck that in there like people wouldn't realize!
I refuse to believe that Jackie Robinson was nothing more than a toothless, ever-willing black man with an anger problem who just happened to be picked by some quasi-sympathetic, money-hungry white man to make history. We see nothing of Jackie coming up, honing his skills..we get no insight into the MAN. He plays second fiddle to Harrison Ford's character.....whose REAL motivation was only to get the "nigger-money". Jackie could do nothing himself, his hand was held and he was patted on the back by the few 'good white folk' who really 'cared' about him. When he was down and out from all the badgering by the racist whites, ol' Harrison Ford comes to the rescue, gives him a pep talk, hugs him, pats him on the back and all is well. GIVE ME A DAMN BREAK!! I truly am sick and tired of the same old racist, half-assed attempts by Hollywood when it comes to Black stories....in the end it's ALWAYS about white people! I rather they just don't even bother trying to tell a Black story at ALL....hell it's not like they tried here? But what else is new in white-controlled Hollywood?
Watching "42" only made me respect Spike Lee even more for what he accomplished with "Malcolm X" back in '92. He stood up and made a BLACK film about a BLACK hero from the BLACK perspective, regardless of the setbacks and drama he received from the studio....resulting in his best work and one of the greatest films of the 20th century. This is the worst kind of film, COMPLETELY misleading and white-washed to oblivion. One of the worst, most insulting films I've ever seen. I expected to get what I got, I just had no idea HOW bad and bold it could be.....bold in that the didn't even TRY. They put NO EFFORT into telling JACKIE ROBINSON'S story. This movie is nothing more than a slap in the face and another stark reminder to Black People that if we want our stories told, only WE can tell them if we want it told right....or in the case of "42", even told at all!
ZERO out of 10.