A League of Their Own

Rating:
Summary: A League Of Their Own
Review: Finally! A baseball film that guys & grils will BOTH like! This could pass for a touching family film, a sport movie, or a hilarious comedy. Featuring memorable performances by Tom Hanks, Gina Davis, and Madonna this funny film has a little something for everyone. Gina plays an awesome hitter, and you have to see Madonna run! The film is especially funny when Stu ball angel" comes along. One of the funniest moments is when the girls are on a bus, and Stu is running around, and nearly kills them because he puts his hands on the drivers eyes. Madonna gets up, gets a bat, and says "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to kill your son!" and chases him. A memorable baseball film that you'll love!

The story centers on Dotti (Gina Davis) and Kit (Laura Petti) Henson. Both are sited by a scout, and are asked to join an all womans baseball league headed by a chocolate bar king (Gary Mashall). There, they meet Mae Mortibito "All the way Mae" (Madonna), Doris (Rosie O'Donnell), and the other Rockford Peaches. The girl are headed by a drunk manager named Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks). The girls go through several personal problems, but still manage to put up quite a fight on the field. But, trouble starts when "the chocolate bar king" threatens to shut down the league next season.

Overall Grade: A+ (10+++)

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Perfect
Review: Fantastic is the only word that aptly describes A League of Their Own. Top notch acting, direction, and dialogue made this one of the best movies of the 90s, bar none.

Set during World War II, baseball comissioners find themselves in a crisis as the boys head off to war. Rather than leave the stands empty, they make the executive decision to recruit girls to play. Small-town Oregon sisters Dottie (Geena Davis) and Kit (Lori Petty) are picked up by talent scout Jon Lovitz (superb in a small supporting role). Once they're in, they meet several other colorful souls, including "all the way" Mae (Madonna) and loudmouth Doris (Rosie O'Donnell). Leading the team is down-and-out ball player Jimmy (Tom Hanks). We follow this hilarious group through a single season, which proves to be a humorous, heartwarming, and dramatic trip. Playing with sprained ankles, worrying about over-seas husbands, and sneaking out to party are all common place among the Rockford Peaches.

Everyone involved in this picture shines in their role, no matter how big or small. Davis and Hanks carry the picture effortlessly, playing off each other extremely well. Petty does a fine job as the little sister along for the ride. All of the girls on the team are fantastic, each bringing something a little bit different to contribute to the ensemble. However, the stars of this show are Madonna and Jon Lovitz. These two are lewd, crude, and absolutely hilarious. Madonna IS "all the way" Mae, and producers would have been hard pressed to find someone better for the role. It's too bad that Lovitz is only given roughly twenty minutes of screen time as the talent scout.

Director Penny Marshall does a fantastic job with her cast, crew, and photography. Everything seems to fall into place without any effort at all, but with the phenomenal cast, it's not surprising that this film was such a huge success.

Buy, do not rent this movie. It's perfect for young and old alike.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Movie for Women of All Ages
Review: I'm buying this movie now so that my daughters can watch it when they are old enough to understand it. Great examples of strong women and building team camaraderie. Besides this, it is a well-acted, well-directed movie. Everytime it comes on cable, my husband and I stop to watch it. I still cry at the same parts of the movie too even though I've seen it at least 10 times.

Rating:
Summary: Good-Looking 2-Disc Special Edition!
Review: The 2-Disc DVD Special Edition of 1992's "A League Of Their Own" (released on April 20, 2004) scores a grand-slam on my DVD Scorecard. Sporting a fun array of bonus features, a beautiful anamorphically-enhanced widescreen picture, and very clever menu screens, this DVD version of this timeless motion picture is a winner all the way around.

Although the film has a relatively-lengthy run time of 2 hours & 8 minutes, it never wears out its welcome or gets tiresome. The first-rate cast sees to that -- a cast that features the likes of Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Lori Petty, and Jon Lovitz.

Lovitz is fall-down hilarious as the scout who plucks Geena and Lori off of their Oregon farm to join the first professional girls' baseball league. He offers up one zinger after another during his short stint in this movie, such as his explanation to the other girls as to why he can't sign up second baseman Marla Hooch (who isn't likely to win the Miss America Pageant anytime soon) -- "You know General Omar Bradley? Well, there's too strong a resemblance."

DVD Special Features for the 2-Disc "Special Edition" ..............

>> A very nice 52-minute documentary on the making of the film, "Nine Memorable Innings", featuring new interviews with the cast and crew, and some behind-the-scenes footage.

>> 15 Deleted Scenes. Many of these cut scenes flesh out some of the movie's shorter scenes. Some very interesting stuff here too. You can play each of these scenes separately, or via a "Play All" option. And these can be played with or without a "Director's Introduction" preceding each clip from Penny Marshall. Total run time: 36:02 with intros, or 32:39 without them.

>> Commentary Track, with Director Penny Marshall and some of the cast members.

>> 3 Trailers -- Including the excellent and funny trailer for this movie, plus bonus trailers for two other sports films ("Brian's Song" and "The Natural").

>> Madonna Music Video -- "This Used To Be My Playground" (run time: 5:02).

>> Cast & Crew Filmographies (text only).

>> A French Language Track (in 2.0 Dolby Surround).

>> English Subtitles.

VIDEO -- The movie is presented on Disc #1 (which is dual-sided with no disc art), with Side A being the Widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) version and Side B being a Full-Screen (1.33:1) Pan-and-Scan version. Now why anybody on the planet would prefer the Full-Screen (aka: "butchered all to hell") variant is beyond my comprehension. (Especially a super-wide 2.35:1 ratio film like this one, where, in the 1.33:1 version you're missing about 45% of the screen image at all times.) But, to each his own. IMO, however, the Widescreen is the ONLY way to go here (or with any other movie, for that matter).

The Widescreen transfer here looks A-1. Very clear, no "jaggies" in the background that I could see, with great color.

AUDIO -- The box shows a "4.0 Surround" English audio track. But my Player reads the sound as "3.1 Dolby Digital". Kind of strange, I thought. But, regardless of the individual number of discrete channels here, it sounds great. The previous DVD version of this movie was done in 2.0 Dolby Surround; and this SE is at least up to par with that older disc, IMO.

MENUS -- A really well-done "baseball-themed" Menu design here. The "Scene Selection" screens are designed so that each scene choice looks like a baseball card, complete with an "AAGPBL" ("All-American Girls Professional Baseball League") logo in the corner. Also shown on each of the Chapter screens is a simulated "baseball card" featuring one of the "players" (or manager) that appears in the movie.

The Main Menu for disc #2, which holds all the bonus material, is cleverly laid out to represent a page of a newspaper, with the menu choices integrated into the "headlines" of the paper. Very cool. As is the disc art for the second disc, which is made up to look like a baseball.

This flick beckons to be viewed a minimum of once per year. And perhaps even more frequently thanks to this fine two-disc SE that is now available. It's a movie that is just plain fun to sit through. And that's not likely to change, even many years down the road.

"A League Of Their Own" will remain in a class all its own for a long, long time to come.

Rating:
Summary: Review - "A League Of Their Own" Excellent Movie!!!
Review: "A League of Their Own" (1992), directed by Penny Marshall, takes place during the World War II era. Since a lot of male baseball players were being drafted to the armed forces, an All American Girls Baseball League was formed to try to keep the prosperity of baseball alive in America. The two main characters Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis) and Kit Keller (Lori Petty) join up with a whole turnout of women including the flirtatious Mae Mordabito (Madonna) and the strong, bold Doris Murphy (Rosie O'Donnell), and experience life as a female athlete during the 1940's. Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks) is one of the male coaches hired to coach one of the all woman teams, and is one of the many that show transformation throughout the season.
This movie is full of stereotypical ideas of what a female should be, but that is not to say that the movie promotes these ideas. Some examples could be shown through the uniforms that the women are forced to wear, which consists of a skirt! As stated in the movie, the women are to act "ladylike" and are sent to a beauty school, where they are taught "ladylike" manners and are given makeovers. We see in Dottie Hinson, whose husband Bob Hinson (Bill Pullman) is away at war, the outlook of women back then as she almost quits the league by the final game because Bob returns from the war and Dottie's aspirations are to start a family and be a housewife. Even in Jimmy Dugan, the coach barely cares at first about the team and states "girls can't play baseball", and how he doesn't have a team of ballplayers, but a "team of girls". We see a transformation however in him that shows his true love of the game, looking past what gender roles were considered back then. Although there are many more, one last example discussed here is Marla (Megan Cavanagh), who is a better hitter than most men, yet is almost not allowed in the league because she is considered "ugly".
This movie was excellent. It shows how hard it was for women to be taken seriously outside of "housewife" labels that were bestowed upon them, yet it adds great humor throughout to make it a very entertaining, yet educational film!

Rating:
Summary: A League Of Their Own (1992)
Review: What an amazing movie! This has to be my favorite Madonna movie, other than Body Of Evidence. It features an all star cast: Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Lori Petty, Rosie O'Donnell, Jon Lovitz, Garry Marshall, and Bill Pullman.

Geena Davis stars as Dottie Hinson and Lori Petty stars as Kit Keller, two adult sisters who play baseball on a minor team in Oregon of 1943. Dottie is a married woman, whose husband, Bob Hinson (played by Bill Pullman) is overseas fighting in the war that was going on at the time. Dottie is an excellent ball player. Kit is a bitter person who is always being treated like crap. After a game, the two are in their barn milking cows, where a scout by the name of Ernie Capadino (played by Jon Lovitz) walks in and offers them a to try out for the All American Girls Professional Baseball League (A.A.G.P.B.L.). Dottie wants nothing to do with it, but Kit knows that this could be big chance for the both of them, so Kit talks Dottie into going. While on the way to Chicago for the try outs, they pick up Marla Hooch, who is an excellent batter. The three finally make it to Chicago. While getting ready to try out, they meet gal pals Doris Murphy (played by Rosie O'Donnell) and Mae Mordabito (played by Madonna). They all are chose to a team: The Rockford Peaches.

Tom Hanks is in the role of Jimmy Dugan, who is a washed up ball player, who is called by Walter Harvey (played by Garry Marshall) to coach the Rockford Peaches.

The Peaches become a smash, winning every game there ever is, all because of their most popular play, Dottie. Kit is angered at this and is traded to another team: The Racine Belles.

The Peaches finally make to the last game of the season. Their opponents: The Racine Belles. Dottie and Kit are up against each other for one final time. Who will win the championship? The Peaches? Or The Belles? Watch this amazing movie, based on the actual events of the A.A.G.P.B.L. This is a movie that is guaranteed to make you watch it over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful movie, lacking DVD.
Review: For a girl that doesn't watch baseball, this is still one of my all time favorite movies, and a DVD I simply had to have when I started collecting.

'A League of Their Own' is the true story of a woman's baseball team that was started during WW2 when all the men went overseas. It's told from the perspective of Dottie (Geena Davis), a reluctant farmgirl whose husband is currently serving in the war. When the wisecracking baseball recruiter (played by Jon Lovitz, and he's brilliant!) shows up at her doorstep, Dottie originally says no, but her younger sister Kit (Lori Petty) coaxes her into going, and soon they're Rockford Peaches and playing ball.

Now, admittedly I'm not a big Madonna, Tom Hanks, or Geena Davis or even baseball fan. But it's obvious their hearts were in this film, because it's acted perfectly and I couldn't improve on it at all. Tom Hanks plays the drunken manager of the Peaches, and he pulls it off so well you question his sobriety in real life! This movie is very heartwarming, definitely a feel-good and tearjerker (for the girls). Guys may find this a bit too 'chick-flick' for their tastes, but parents will like it as a movie that encourages girls to be all that they can. It's a longish film, so be prepared for a good sit.

On to the DVD. That's the *only* reason this movie lost that star for the rating. First of all, the cover. Madonna is on the cover, but those that are diehard Madonna fans will find that her part is not nearly as big in this movie as she's billed. Rather, it follows Geena Davis's character (and thus her sister Kit), and it's Lori Petty who should have been on the cover instead of Madonna, simply in terms of who had the bigger role. Ah well.

Also, there are ZERO DVD extras. Zero. Zilch. To make up for this, it's one of the most reasonably priced DVDs I've seen out there, and the picture quality is really great.

If you're looking for this movie to add to your DVD favorites, go ahead and buy it, but be aware that there's no extras. If you're looking for it just to watch, you might consider the VHS version instead.

Rating:
Summary: I think this is a great movie!
Review: Well I'm biased because my cusin is in this movie. He dances with madonna in the bar sceen.. But I still think that it's a good movie.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful movie, a must see for anyone
Review: A League of their own is a terrific film. With plenty of laughs, and heart. It is a tale about two sisters who get to play in the women 's baseball team during WW2.
Penny Marshall does a good job with the action scenes, and the overrall light tone of the film. The real triumph of the movie is the perfect casting
Geena Davis plays all star catcher Dottie Henssion to perfection. She's very enjoyable and her chemistry with Hanks is unbelieveble.
Next Tom Hanks plays washed up player turned coach Jimmy Dugan. He's funny, and delivers the most famous line " there's no crying in baseball" wonderfully. Rosie O'donell plays the funny, talented player Dorris who's best friend is the infamous Mae played by Madona who does a good job in her usual typcast part.
The standout { and suprise} of the cast is Lori Petty who plays the tough,and fiesty Kit Keller Dottie's younger sister. She's plays the part with sas and spunk and deserves more credit for the performance then she seemed to get. Also the two sisters chemisrty is also great, which is pivital to the running of the film.

Overall this is a great film for everybody. Plus the DVD is packed with plenty of features for extra enjoyment. Thisis a MUST have DVD

Rating:
Summary: Good-Looking 2-Disc Special Edition!
Review: The 2-Disc DVD Special Edition of 1992's "A League Of Their Own" (released on April 20, 2004) scores a grand-slam on my DVD Scorecard. Sporting a fun array of bonus features, a beautiful anamorphically-enhanced widescreen picture, and very clever menu screens, this DVD version of this timeless motion picture is a winner all the way around.

Although the film has a relatively-lengthy run time of 2 hours & 8 minutes, it never wears out its welcome or gets tiresome. The first-rate cast sees to that -- a cast that features the likes of Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Lori Petty, and Jon Lovitz.

Lovitz is fall-down hilarious as the scout who plucks Geena and Lori off of their Oregon farm to join the first professional girls' baseball league. He offers up one zinger after another during his short stint in this movie, such as his explanation to the other girls as to why he can't sign up second baseman Marla Hooch (who isn't likely to win the Miss America Pageant anytime soon) -- "You know General Omar Bradley? Well, there's too strong a resemblance."

DVD Special Features for the 2-Disc "Special Edition" ..............

>> A very nice 52-minute documentary on the making of the film, "Nine Memorable Innings", featuring new interviews with the cast and crew, and some behind-the-scenes footage.

>> 15 Deleted Scenes. Many of these cut scenes flesh out some of the movie's shorter scenes. Some very interesting stuff here too. You can play each of these scenes separately, or via a "Play All" option. And these can be played with or without a "Director's Introduction" preceding each clip from Penny Marshall. Total run time: 36:02 with intros, or 32:39 without them.

>> Commentary Track, with Director Penny Marshall and some of the cast members.

>> 3 Trailers -- Including the excellent and funny trailer for this movie, plus bonus trailers for two other sports films ("Brian's Song" and "The Natural").

>> Madonna Music Video -- "This Used To Be My Playground" (run time: 5:02).

>> Cast & Crew Filmographies (text only).

>> A French Language Track (in 2.0 Dolby Surround).

>> English Subtitles.

VIDEO -- The movie is presented on Disc #1 (which is dual-sided with no disc art), with Side A being the Widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) version and Side B being a Full-Screen (1.33:1) Pan-and-Scan version. Now why anybody on the planet would prefer the Full-Screen (aka: "butchered all to hell") variant is beyond my comprehension. (Especially a super-wide 2.35:1 ratio film like this one, where, in the 1.33:1 version you're missing about 45% of the screen image at all times.) But, to each his own. IMO, however, the Widescreen is the ONLY way to go here (or with any other movie, for that matter).

The Widescreen transfer here looks A-1. Very clear, no "jaggies" in the background that I could see, with great color.

AUDIO -- The box shows a "4.0 Surround" English audio track. But my Player reads the sound as "3.1 Dolby Digital". Kind of strange, I thought. But, regardless of the individual number of discrete channels here, it sounds great. The previous DVD version of this movie was done in 2.0 Dolby Surround; and this SE is at least up to par with that older disc, IMO.

MENUS -- A really well-done "baseball-themed" Menu design here. The "Scene Selection" screens are designed so that each scene choice looks like a baseball card, complete with an "AAGPBL" ("All-American Girls Professional Baseball League") logo in the corner. Also shown on each of the Chapter screens is a simulated "baseball card" featuring one of the "players" (or manager) that appears in the movie.

The Main Menu for disc #2, which holds all the bonus material, is cleverly laid out to represent a page of a newspaper, with the menu choices integrated into the "headlines" of the paper. Very cool. As is the disc art for the second disc, which is made up to look like a baseball.

This flick beckons to be viewed a minimum of once per year. And perhaps even more frequently thanks to this fine two-disc SE that is now available. It's a movie that is just plain fun to sit through. And that's not likely to change, even many years down the road.

"A League Of Their Own" will remain in a class all its own for a long, long time to come.