A League of Their Own

Rating:
Summary: My Absolute Favorite
Review: This has alway been my all time favorite movie! I remember my mom and I were in Blockbuster Video store when I was nine, and she and I couldn't find anything. Then, she saw "A League of Their Own," she told me that I would love this movie. And boy was she right. I have seen this movie over 50 times, I know the entire dialogue, the songs, every moment, I can rehash line for line right now if I wanted to. I think this movie had the most well-rounded cast in over a decade. Geena Davis was amazing as Dottie Henson; a person who loved the game very much, although she tried to pull off that she didn't. Lorri Petty's best role to date, as Kit Keller, Dottie's younger sister, whom is always stuck in Dottie's shadow. The chemistry between Petty and Davis is amazing, they work so well together, they were extremely believable. Tom Hanks was fantastic as the alcoholic, ex-baseball star Jimmy Dugan, which of course, his classic urinating seen is a total laugh. Madonna and Rosie had made the laughs of the film, they were wise cracking and hilarious.

I can go on and on about this film, and the problem is, I can't quite articulate how much I love this film, and why I love it so much. I've cried many times, especially the scene with Betty "Spighetti" and at the end of the World Series. I love this film, Penny Marshall is a Goddess. She chose the perfect actors, and the perfect score, especially Madonna's "Playground" which still makes me cry at the ending sequences. This movie observes a part of history that is ignored. Many to this day, have no idea about the professional baseball league, grant it, this movie "idealized" what really happened, but it made you proud. I think this is still a must-see of a movie, it is still my all-time favorite movie, and it has been for 11 years.

Rating:
Summary: between drama&comedy is a thin line, here's proof!
Review: Many Hollywood celebs have said in interviews that comedy and drama lies close together, this movie is definately the proof of that.
Baseball is not the national sport here in the Netherlands, and many Dutch people don't even know the rules of the game.
Although I know the rules, I wasn't exactly planning to watch this movie because I'm not so interested in this sport.
However, since I'm a huge moviefan, I was willing to give this one at least a chance, because I like other Penny Marshall movies like AWAKENINGS, BIG, RENAISSANCE MAN, and I for one think that Penny is a great director.
I wasn't sorry at all to watch this movie, and I really was touched by it.
I've seen it over 20 times, and I still enjoy it.
There is superb acting by Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna and Rosie O'Donell. Not to be missed Jon Lovitz with great jokes.
I was laughing my rear end off when I saw the look on Jon Lovitz' face when the ugly man-like girl had a try-out.
But that's one of many times that I had to laugh with this great comedy.
And what I think makes the movie very strong is that one moment you're laughing very loud, and the next you want to cry, especially when Tom Hanks graps the bad-news-telegram from the postman, and walks towards one of the girls with the bad news. And they all know what the telegram says.
That's a very good scene, and wonderfully edited.
What also was great is the black&white news about the baseball stars changing to color to characters in this movie. It was more like an objective view changing to a subjective view; well done like this, very creative!!
The photography is magnificent, and the soundtrack (Madonna's this used to be my playground) really touches you, especially with the older characters in the picture during that music.
The characters have depth because of Penny's attention to detail; for instance the ugly girl's father explains that she's so man-like because he raised her as a boy. And his confession makes you feel sorry for this girl, instead of judging her like Jon Lovitz for her looks (another change of feelings).
Tom Hanks is also great as the coach, and Penny changes your feelings for him also during the movie; first you hate him, than you love him. Way to go Penny for making a magnificent emotional comedy-drama, which didn't get the credit (here in the Netherlands) it deserves!!!
A must see for everyone!!! After all, who doesn't like to laugh; and these jokes make everybody laugh! And above that it's a great experience when a movie plays (in a positive way) with your feelings like this one; and believe me -after seeing lots of movies of all kind of genres- movies that touch you are very rare.
The story being of baseball doesn't make this an Americana movie, but a movie non-Americans can enjoy as well, so for the non-Americans this is also a must see!!!

Rating:
Summary: Very Good movie-horrible ending
Review: This was on its way to being a superb movie until the ending left us with the message that lying is the best way to deal with a problem and that ignorance and selfishness should be rewarded.

Rating:
Summary: Great acting, supreme comedy
Review: When the men go off to war, somebody's gotta play baseball! Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Rosie O'Donnell, and Madonna SHINE in this 1992 classic. Great movie for all ages, and a definite must-see. I'd recommend this movie to anyone who likes the idea of women in major league baseball, or comedies. Great movie, 4 stars.

Rating:
Summary: "THERE'S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL!!!"
Review: The girls of the All American Girls Baseball League were an impressive bunch. The league, formed to fill the gap left by the canceling of the Major League season while the players were at war, was not the most popular idea at its inception. . . The story is good. Have no doubt, this movie is not a "guy" picture, but it is a great "date movie."

Gina Davis, Tom Hanks, and Lori Petty are all really amazing actors. Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell make great supporting cast members. Hey, it is a movie that Madonna didn't kill! The story is special and rather touching. There is good suspense in the movie. Generally, I am remarkably anti-suspense as I find it rather annoying. It is present in this film at times, but never long enough to become annoying. . .

I have never been a huge baseball fan. But I must admit; I love baseball movies. There is something special about baseball that makes the movies great. Don't get me wrong, bad baseball movies exist, but for someone who is not a fan of the game, I can get behind movies about the game. "A League of Their Own" is no exception to this logic. There was a purity to the game back then.

epc

Rating:
Summary: Completely HALARIOUS! A must have!
Review: I t seems like only yesterday when I was in 2nd grade, and the movie "A League of their Own" was a hit in theaters. Why was it a hit, you might ask? I myself think that it's because "A League of their own" attracks a wide audience range. I saw this when I was little, but adults enjoy it as well. It can be told as a sports story, but also includes love stories. It also is good for World War II buff's because (most of) it takes place in the WWII era. The story begins with Dotty Hensen (Geena Davis) who is then an older grandmother. She is invited to a new Hall of Fame dedicated to the Women's Baseball League. When coming into the field to meet her old teammates, she starts to remember everything that happened. That's when the movie flashes back in time and the main story takes place. Dotty is invited to play for a new league of Women's Baseball, since the men are at war. She accepts, only if her kid sister Kit (Lori Petty) can come along. Finally they both try out and get into the same team, Rockaford Peaches. Jimmy Doogan (Tom Hanks) is the team's coach, and doesn't exactly like the concept of coaching girls baseball. From then on, friendships grow among the players and historical instinces occur. Overall, I'd reccomend "A League of Their own" to fans of movies in general. The acting is great. Madonna (Mae) and Rosie O'Donnell (Doris) also make this movie funny. This is one of the best movies of the 90's, and no one's collection is complete without it.

Rating:
Summary: For Love Of The Game
Review: This movie is the perfect chick flick, if we might even attempt to taint it with that moniker. If not every rugged female wants to drive her convertible over a cliff a la 'Thelma and Louise' to prove her gumption and independence, then she should pick up a baseball and fire a strike. There's something about being empowered by baseball and playing it just as hard and tough as the boys -- much less facetious than the usual wimpy challenges women face in chick flicks. Having played fast-pitch softball competitively for the last 15 years, there's a dugout somewhere in my heart for this movie.

Rating:
Summary: GREAT MOVIE BUT NO EXTRAS ON THE DVD VERSION
Review: This is my hands-down, all-time favorite movie, but the DVD is a huge disappointment because it contains no extras, and if a movie ever deserved to have extras, it's this one. This movie was absolutely crying out for extras and who knows why there aren't any, but there aren't. They should re-release the DVD version with the extras this time. The movie is absolutely great but a let down on the DVD end for this reason and that's why I gave it only 3 stars.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome Movie!!!
Review: Great movie for the entire family. It's about girls playing baseball during the war while the men are away. It's a must see. Watch once or again and again!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent family entertainment (with OLDER kids)
Review: .
As the studios release more and more back catalog material, dating back to before there was a PG-13 rating, it's tough to find suitable movies for the under 13's. Our 9-yr old daughter has enjoyed watching this with us at least twice, and I have no doubt that we'll watch it frequently enough to justify owning rather than renting.

Where we've been somewhat burned by forgetting how old pre-PG-13 PG movies could be, this is not at all a question for us. Madonna plays a character who is adventurous, but her quips (such as a tight dress whose disomfort won't be an issue because she's "not planning on wearing it that long") pass too quickly for them to register.

But in no stretch is this just a movie for the pre-teens. The performance of Tom Hanks is absolutely terrific, and Geena Davis and Lori Petty make two very competitive sisters come to life. Jon Lovitz is hilarious as a scout, and Rosie O'Donnell is great as Madonna's comic foil. The writing is spot on in providing these actors turf to chew (who will ever forget "there's no crying in baseball!"?), and the story is very pleasant, and a little inspirational even.

The only part I don't like (and others may disagree) is the modern sections at the beginning and the end which set the stage for reminiscing about the league. To me (ok, I'm a guy, crush a beer can on my forehead) the time during those sections feels very slow, and the actors (different actors from the bulk of the movie) seem stiff.

Thankfully, though, Hollywood has changed names while retaining some of the negative traits of the characters. Tom Hanks' character is based on that of Jimmy Foxx, a tremendous hitter who hit over 500 home runs, but whose career was cut short by alcohol. That aspect is here, and it's strong, although they have changed Foxx's name to Dugan.