The power of a single scene

Rating: 8/10 (22 September 2013)

Although it is as close to an insult to pick out a single scene of a movie and recommend it on the basis of that, there is also some truth to that. Especially since the rest of the movie is decently if not revolutionary crafted, "42" written & directed by Brian Helgeland still earns repeated viewing because of one very powerful moment.
For the uninitiated I will not spoil it, just to say it is a brief confrontation between Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) and Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford) in the basement of a baseball park.
Those who've already seen the movie will know which scene I'm talking about. For in it Helgeland, Boseman and Ford manage to distill the importance of Jackie Robinson as a historic figure while showing him at his most vulnerable. And it is in that moment that all the strengths of the movie come to life because if the rest of the writing, acting and technical achievement hadn't been thought through this moment would ring hollow. But Helgeland and his collaborators have done a fine job in giving this American icon not only a fitting tribute but show him as the one thing all icons start out - a conflicted, strong, passionate and frail human being.
The main critic hurled at "42" is that it has played things too safe and by the numbers. But I believe it is this old-fashioned style that actually manages to bring out the most inspirational aspects of Robinson, the things he had to overcome and what his place in US history means.
Yes, this is an old-fashioned movie, but then again, baseball is an old-fashioned and timeless game.