The Pride of the Yankees

Rating:
Summary: Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig as True Hero
Review: There are movies that involve the audience about the life of its star and there are others that use gimmicks to hide the fact that the audience never gets to look at the star from the inside. In PRIDE OF THE YANKEES director Sam Wood gave us a movie that has already stood the test of time as one of the best movies to come out of Hollywood. The high quality of this film is mostly because of Gary Cooper's startlingly realistic portrayal of a baseball icon whose playing career overlapped the cinematic career of the film icon who played him. The audience sees the man in a way that the fans in the stands could not. Cooper carries the movie in the same way that he carries SERGEANT YORK, by his straightforward radiating of emotion that is often at odds with the face that says one thing but the eyes that say another.
The young Lou Gehrig starts off as a youth loving baseball so much that he has to hide his love from a mother who wants Lou to surpass Uncle Otto as a symbol of success. Lou hears his mother praise Uncle Otto and assures her that he will follow in his footsteps, but his eyes tell another story. In fact, throughout this movie, it is his eyes that speak more eloquently than anything else he can say or do. Lou winds up in Columbia on a scholarship, and during a frat party hazing designed to test his ability to endure a razzing, Lou retreats within himself until he can retreat no more. For the first time in this film, and very nearly for his entire movie career as well, Cooper shows the anger that we all knew lay buried deep. Cooper made a career out of rechanneling emotion into productive ends, and as Lou Gehrig, he can redirect his inner chi into belting baseballs over walls well enough to earn a tryout with the New York Yankees. By this time, the audience is hooked by their caring for a man who combines the best of the American ideals of hard work and talent with the self-effacing that marks most film icons of that time.
Theresa Wright plays first his girlfriend, then later his wife. She is simply wonderful as the cultured girl who falls for the small town hero. They poke fun of each other but the audience knows that what they are really saying is the Real Thing. Theresa Wright knows exactly when to back off and let Cooper be at center stage and when to interact with him to produce some truly stirring moments. There are two scenes that stand out as unforgettable, one with Wright, the other without. The first occurs when Lou has been playing poorly. He has been striking out, dropping easy catches, and running awkwardly. His teammates are puzzled and mix anger with concern. After a loss caused by his poor play, Lou sits on a bench, trying to make sense of a body that had never before betrayed him. As he leans forward to untie his laces, he continues to fall, rolling over onto the floor. His mates pretend not to notice. Lou says nothing but his face tells the audience all that they need to know. The fear that often bubbles just beneath the skin in many of Cooper's movies surfaces, and that fear clicks in the hearts of all. Later, when he has seen a doctor and knows that his illness, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, is terminal, he decides to hide this knowledge from his wife who nevertheless has already guessed the truth, but tries to hide that from him. There is a heartbreaking scene in which she tries to raise his spirits by donning a barker's hat and mustache. As she stares at him, she laughs. As she hugs him, her eyes reveal her own torment. Each actor is absolutely convincing in their respective attempts to hide what they know, while pretending all is well.
PRIDE OF THE YANKEES tells a story well-known to anyone who reads the sports pages. It features Cooper in center stage, with a supporting cast including Walter Brennan and Dan Duryea, both of whom interact credibly with him and Ms. Wright. This is more than a baseball bio of a man who hits it big in his game. It is more the story of a giant who continued to hit it big even after the fans have left the stadium.

Rating:
Summary: Don't colorize a great B&W classic
Review: 'Pride of the Yankees' is definitely one of my all-time favorite movies and would normally rank an easy five stars. BUT somebody had the misguidance to release this DVD as a COLORIZED title. Why, oh, why? Don't they realize that most movies made in black & white look better and much classier in black & white. Leave it alone for goodness sakes! That aside, Gary Cooper's performance as baseball great Lou Gehrig is among the best of his career. Teresa Wright is every bit his equal as his devoted wife. Babe Ruth himself even gets to act a little bit in the film. Director Sam Wood, who also gave us such masterpieces as 'A Night at the Opera'with the Marx Bros. and 'Goodbye, Mr. Chips'(not to mention co-directing 'Gone with the Wind'), balances the sentiment, humor, and drama just right. And yes, the ending tugs on your heartstrings like few movie endings can. The people at HBO Home Video have given us some beautiful B&W DVDs such as 'The Best Years of Our Lives' and 'Wuthering Heights'. I just wish they had been as generous with this title.

Rating:
Summary: Courage and Heroism in Perfect Form
Review: "The Pride of the Yankees" is without a doubt one of the best baseball films of all time. Why? Because it isn't just about baseball. It's about a real person seeking that seemingly impossible American dream and capturing it, only to lose it all too soon. Cooper plays Gehrig with so much heart in this film, that the movie almost seems unreal due to the fact that Gehrig was such a good person, both as a human and as a star athlete.

There are few professional athletes in the world who show so much character and so much love to others as Gehrig did. He faced death with honor and courage. He was and is a true hero. If you're looking for an athlete for your children to look up to, pick the "Iron Man of Baseball."

This film does exceptionally well in capturing the heart and soul of Gehrig. It is a great family film and I highly recommend it. Gehrig might have been in Ruth's(and later, DiMaggio's)shadow, but he was so much bigger than these guys. He was honest, hard-working, and approached people long after the cameras were gone.

Add this one to your collection. It's a keeper, even if you don't know the difference between a baseball and a ball of yarn.

Rating:
Summary: Sentimental, dated, yet effective
Review: Gary Cooper was one of the true giants in Hollywood and it's his performance which defines this movie. It's interesting to note that Cooper was physically all wrong for the part. He was 40 years old, too tall, too thin and he was so inept at swinging a bat left-handed that they actually filmed him right-handed, transposed the number 4 on his back and flipped the film (a true story). Watch him running around the basepads... the actual baseball portions of this film are not high quality or believable. This is a small criticism, since the baseball shots are relatively few.

However, the human story, however sentimental, is told with dignity and some brilliant acting. Babe Ruth appears as himself, and the Babe gives a truly fine performance; he had indisputable talent on the big screen. Watch the hat-eating scene, it's fabulous. One wishes that the screenwriters would have focused on Babe a little more often. Walter Brennan is outstanding, as always, and Teresa Wright is suitably cute and winning as the dying hero's wife.

There are some extremely dated scenes in the movie, especially the lengthy, boring dance sequence. Fast forward through that one. Lou's parents are also a little annoying at times, especially his whining mother. The ending of the movie is a tear jerker, as Cooper delivers Gehrig's farewell speech in a beautifully understated manner. Interestingly enough, when Coop entertained troops in WWII in the Japanese theatre, the boys always wanted to hear him deliver this speech, and he did so.

This is a winning movie and one which showcases the incredible talent and courage of Lou Gehrig.

Rating:
Summary: The story of Lou Gehrig and the classiest sports biopic
Review: There are all sorts of little imperfections in the 1943 film "The Pride of the Yankees." The screenwriters rearranged Lou Gehrig's famous farewell speech at Yankee Stadium so that the best line, "Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth," becomes his exit line (it was the second line in his speech with his actual last line being ""So I close in saying that I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for"). Gary Cooper had enough problems batting right-handed let alone left-handed like Gehrig, so the actor work a uniform with "KROY WEN" on the front, ran to third base when he managed to hit the ball, and then they reversed the print. Gehrig is shown wearing his famous number 4 when the Yankees play the World Series, but that happened in 1926 and 1928 while the Bronx Bombers did not start wearing uniform numbers until 1929 (Gehrig batted cleanup and was 4, Babe Ruth batted in front of him and was therefore 3). The film talks about how Gehrig won the Triple Crown on the day he was married but Gehrig won the Triple Crown in the 1934 season, the year after Lou and Eleanor were married in 1933.

But none of that really matters because "The Pride of the Yankees" remains the standard by which all sports biopics, whether of baseball players or anyone else, are judged. Even those who were not weaned and raised on baseball know that the title character is going to die of Lou Gehrig's disease and the film takes full advantage of that foreshadowing: when Gehrig gets into his first game and refuses to come out after being hit in the head by a thrown ball, manager Miller Huggins asks, "What do we have to do to get you out of the game? Kill you?" Irving Berlin's song "Always" becomes a recurring musical theme throughout the film, another reminder of Gehrig's mortality.

In many ways "The Pride of the Yankees" is more of a love story than a baseball theme. It starts off as a rags-to-riches story, where Gehrig's mother (Elsa Janssen) insists her son will be an engineer and does want him wasting time playing baseball. Eventually the fame and money opens her eyes, but then Lou meets Eleanor Twitchell (Teresa Wright) and has a new "best girl." One of the most impressive aspects of this film is how it touches on the two darker sides of the Lou Gehrig story, the friction between his overbearing mother and his society wife along with the strained relationship that developed between Gehrig and Babe Ruth. The film really only touches on these aspects and Ruth, playing himself, is usually a smiling figure when he shows up on screen, except for when Gehrig is eating his new hat and he is listening to Gehrig's farewell speech.

Cooper was nominated for an Oscar for his performance and even though he is rather awkward and a bit old for the role, he captures the essential dignity and class of Gehrig. It makes sense that one American icon is being played by another. Having been nominated of a Best Actress in a Supporting Role Oscar for "The Little Foxes" in 1941 she received another nomination in that category in 1942 for "Mrs. Miniver" and also one for Best Actress that same year for "The Pride of the Yankees." Wright won for "Mrs. Miniver" and lost out to Greer Garson for Best Actress (because of the war the Oscars were made of plaster for the first time, but were replaced by "real" Oscars when the war ended). "The Pride of the Yankees" was nominated for 11 Oscars, including Best Picture, but only won for Daniel Mandell's Film Editing.

Walter Brennan as sportswriter Sam Blake and Ludwig Stössel as Pop Gehrig provide a lot of the comic relief in the film. Brennan's role is rather low-keyed for him while Stössel has several fine moments where he tries, usually without success, to stand up to his wife. Appearing as themselves are Yankee players Bill Dickey, Bob Meusel, and Mark Koenig, and the familiar voice of Bill Stern makes it on screen as well.

Gehrig's tragic death at the age of 38 makes all of his records even more astounding given that his career was cut short. Sportswriter Jim Murray once described the tall, strong Gehrig as a "Gibraltar in cleats," and "The Pride of the Yankees" provides a sense of that. For me the most poignant scene comes before Gehrig enters Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939, when he encounter 17-year-old Billy (David Holt), the lame boy in the hospital (Gene Collins) for whom Gehrig hit two home runs in a World Series game in the film's most extended baseball sequence. The irony that Gehrig could inspire Billy to rise up and walk but Fate had conspired to strike down the Iron Horse who played in 2,130 is enough to reduce most of us to tears before Gehrig ever steps to the plate for the last time to talk about how lucky he is.

Rating:
Summary: Nostalgic Eye for the Baseball Guy
Review: I hate people that can't seem to enjoy an old fashioned good feeling movie and call it sacharine because it has a happy ending. Which is why I am a little embarassed to give Pride of the Yankees just three stars. But the truth is that I really had to fight hard to surpress a smile at the level of schmaltz in this film that I didn't recognize when I saw this as a boy.

Gary Cooper plays Lou Gehrig with a childlike naivete which I know was charming in its day but today it feels like you would have to lock someone up who was his age and still that childlike. And I really did want to play along with the most classic scene in the film but found it funnier than any campy parody I have seen over the years. The little boy in the hospital who is sitting by the radio because the Babe and Lou promised him they would each hit home runs form him. "Little Billy" sits in pajamas in the hospital by the radio. He listens earnestly with a expectant vapid open mouth expression waiting. Its as if his ability to ever walk again hung on the success of that hit. Bottom of the sixth Gehrig disappoints by striking out for his second time in a row still one short of the two promised home runs, you can tell the kid is thinking "Damn" but instead says "Golly"! I am glad I wasn't drinking anything at the time because it would shot through my nose trying to hold back the laugh. Pride of the Yankess does hearken back to simpler times but is perhaps so gentle and guileless it crosses the line into accidental comedy.

However I did very much enjoy the relationship between the two competing sportswriters who mock each others favorite players much like Statler and Waldorf the two old geezers in The Muppet Show. Walter Brennan plays writer Sam Blake who roots for Lou and does a wonderful job. He is so slender of build here he is almost unrecognizable in this role.

I am sure most people will have a fine time enjoying this film and Lou Gehrigs touching farewell speech.

Rating:
Summary: Courage and Heroism in Perfect Form
Review: "The Pride of the Yankees" is without a doubt one of the best baseball films of all time. Why? Because it isn't just about baseball. It's about a real person seeking that seemingly impossible American dream and capturing it, only to lose it all too soon. Cooper plays Gehrig with so much heart in this film, that the movie almost seems unreal due to the fact that Gehrig was such a good person, both as a human and as a star athlete.

There are few professional athletes in the world who show so much character and so much love to others as Gehrig did. He faced death with honor and courage. He was and is a true hero. If you're looking for an athlete for your children to look up to, pick the "Iron Man of Baseball."

This film does exceptionally well in capturing the heart and soul of Gehrig. It is a great family film and I highly recommend it. Gehrig might have been in Ruth's(and later, DiMaggio's)shadow, but he was so much bigger than these guys. He was honest, hard-working, and approached people long after the cameras were gone.

Add this one to your collection. It's a keeper, even if you don't know the difference between a baseball and a ball of yarn.

Rating:
Summary: "The Luckiest Man.........................."
Review: The Pride Of The Yankees, was released in 1942. A year after Lou Gehrig passed on. Gary Cooper plays 'The Iron Horse' who came up in 1925 and played over 2000 games, never missing one. The film begins with Lou as a boy growing up playing ball. But he is not just any ball player. Right away a talent is recognized, he has power among other things. Lou is the son of immigrated parents who want to see there only living child make it in America. Lou's mother wants him to become and enginer. He can make money, support a family and live a better than average life. Lou doesn't want to, but tries to go with his mothers wish. College is just something in the way of playing for the Yankees. Along the way the film shows Gehrig's transformation from a boy into a fine ball player. He has to deal non-stop with his mother and her DREAM of him going to some kind of university. But his dream is shown to be some place else. Gehrig goes back to the Bronx in 1925 and never looks back. The Babe and Gehrig will go to war on offensive stats (yet share a mutual respect for one another) for the next decade and Lou would go after more when Ruth retires. Along the way in the film we meet Lou's future wife Eleanor. She will be the center of his life and him hers. The film captures the true character of Gehrig and his ups and downs in life. Dealing with everyday opsticles, he does it with class. Walter Brennan plays a always going after it sports writer and several real life Yankee players play themself. Nonetheless no one plays Ruth, except for himself. And does it well. The film captures a life filled with dreams to achieve and that are, a sport that truely is the greatest and a man who shows the true meaning of the human spirit. Gehrig is brilliantly played by Gary Cooper who won an Oscar nomination (and should have one.) Anything less than great would not have done this film and the life of Gehrig justice, yet it does just that. Being a life long Yankees fan, I don't like this film because it deals with the team, although it's a plus. It's the depth that it takes you too. How a man who had nothing early in life, left with it all and no less a great story of Gehrig's wonderful yet short life! Nominated for 11 Academy Awards, it won for Best Editing. It should have won many more, but it doesn't have to win any awards to be effective!
Grade:A

Rating:
Summary: Not Up to Hype, But Good
Review: This movie is good, but nowhere near where the hype has put it. I am a Yankees fan, so I appreciated many aspects of it. However, some of it was too long (some looong dance sequences that might have been entertaining 50 years ago, but not now). It was good to see Babe Ruth as himself. The story was informative and accurate. The emotional aspect was present but not real strong or overwhelming. Still, it was not up there with other five-star movies.

Rating:
Summary: Remember the "Iron Man"
Review: Gay Cooper captures The Iron Man and did the job well.

Here is the full text of Gehrig's speech:

'Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for 17 years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans. Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day?

Sure I'm lucky. Who wouldn't consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball's greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow, Miller Huggins? Then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology, the best manager in baseball today, Joe McCarthy? Sure I'm lucky. When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift - that's something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies - that's something.

When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter - that's something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body - it's a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed - that's the finest I know. So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for. Thank you.'

If you wish to honor the memory Lou Gerhig, go to [website] and make a donation to MDA. Gerhig died from ALS which is one of the more than 40 neuromuscular diseases that MDA fights to cure. There is nore cure for ALS at this time.

Michael