Biopics on larger-than-life figures are always difficult, but they become nearly impossible to pull off when the subject is someone like Jackie Robinson, who is not just a Hall of Fame baseball player but a key fixture in the civil rights movement. Perhaps a fear of screwing up Robinson's incredible story is why writer/director Brian Helgeland tiptoes so cautiously through his life in 42, giving us the simplified, Disney version when there was room for so much more.
Robinson's journey is one of the most important in this country's history, and can never truly be diminished, but there's the feeling that the film is more Remember the Titans when it could have been Malcolm X. Newcomer Chadwick Boseman makes for an impressive breakthrough performance, and his gritty, smoldering portrayal presents Robinson as a simple man of many flaws, a quick temper most of all. Harrison Ford chomps his way through an engrossing turn as Brooklyn Dodgers owner Branch Rickey, who handpicked Robinson to be the first African-American to break the Major League Baseball color barrier. His reasons for doing so, “Dollars aren’t black or white. They’re green.”, only tell part of the story. Ricky is perhaps the most complex character of all, a man driven not just by money, but by faith and the desire to see real change in the world. He knows Robinson is tough and aggressive, but warns him to "have the guts not to fight back" against the ignorance and the threats of violence he's sure to face.
The film focuses its attention on 1945 and the first year in Robinson's legendary career. The world was just coming out of WWII, and seemed to be on the cusp of a social and racial evolution. But Major League Baseball was slow to follow suit, content with a status quo that saw many of the best African-American ball players relegated to the Negro Leagues. We see brief glimpses of his time in the minors, where he struggles to stay on an even keel even as his teammates and coach conspire against him. But we also see the incredible on-the-field achievements, from hitting a home run in his very first at bat, to learning new defensive positions at a moment's notice.
Helgeland, best known for his work on L.A. Confidential, has so much reverence for Robinson that the script is too fawning. Claims of Robinson being "superhuman" at every minor achievement are a constant problem, actually deflating his accomplishments of much of their majesty. At the same time, the actual trials, tribulations, and threats of violence against his family are largely skirted over. Alan Tudyk spices things up as the odious Philadelphia Phillies manager Ben Chapman, who drilled Robinson with racial slurs until his antics became a public embarrassment.
Robinson's teammates, including Lucas Black as Pee-Wee Reese and Hamish Linklater as Ralph Branca, go through the expected transition from skeptics to full blown supporters. It's nothing especially deep, but their evolution feels natural, spurred on by Robinson's obvious athletic ability and strength in the face of overwhelming odds. At the center of it all, Boseman stands as the triumphant, stoic figure, who gets a lot of touching moments with Nicole Beharie as Robinson's wife, Rachel Isum. The nature of Robinson's personality prevents us getting too deep a sense of the man inside, but Boseman does a terrific job of saying a lot with a minimum of dialogue. Ford has grizzled charm in spades as Rickey, and Christopher Meloni adds a touch of wry humor as the Dodgers adulterous manager Leo "The Lip" Derocher.
The baseball scenes are so authentic you can practically smell the fresh cut grass and piping hot peanuts. Less convincing is Helgeland's simplified, paint-by-numbers approach to the story of a complicated figure. For those who may not be as familiar with Robinson, 42 will make for a decent introduction. He deserves a film big enough and bold enough to contain the scope of his impact.
