The Pride of the Yankees (1942)
Review by Doc Ezra
Film:
DVD:

Written by Jo Swerling & Herman J. Mankiewicz, based on an original story by Paul Gallico
Directed by Sam Wood
Starring Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright, Walter Brennan, and Babe Ruth

Rating: NR

Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 format.

My advice: Rent it. Baseball nuts should already own it.

Lou Gehrig is easily one of the most recognizable names in baseball history. The original “iron man” of the sport, he held the record for most consecutive games played until Cal Ripken finally put it to rest a few years back. He was one of the only players to swing lumber with both the legendary “Murderer’s Row” of the 1920s and their “Bronx Bomber” successors. His tragic battle with an unknown disease was front-page news all over the country.

Pride of the Yankees relates his remarkable story, with a stellar performance by Gary Cooper as the Yankee Hall-of-Famer. It covers the tale of his early life as the poor child of immigrant parents, through his years at Columbia University, and finally into his career as a New York Yankee. Throughout the events of his life, Gehrig is portrayed as a stand-up guy.

The performances are outstanding, and despite the occasionally “gee whiz” simplicity of the dialogue, the movie really delivers an engaging look into the life of a sports legend. Cooper’s portrayal of the shy, unassuming Gehrig is amazing, and somewhat removed from the rugged tough guy of his cowboy roles. Wright holds her own with Cooper as Mrs. Gehrig, with some serious emotional range.

The surprise of the picture (and a sure box office draw when the film originally was released) is Babe Ruth as himself. One of a handful of authentic Yankees recruited to appear in the picture, Ruth gets the most screen time. He’s the gregarious joker that history records on screen as well, though the obvious pain in his face during the final scene of the film is telling with regards to how close The Babe was to Lou Gehrig.

The DVD is a nice treatment, with good video and audio. There are no extras, which is a bit of a disappointment. It’s not like there’s any dearth of information regarding Gehrig or his baseball career, and there’s even a fair amount of film footage of the man himself playing. There are so many possible extras that could have really made this a stand-out release, not to mention the wide array of baseball experts, film experts, and baseball film experts who could have been trotted out for a commentary track. Hell, go ask Cal Ripken what it was like to break Gehrig’s record. That would make for a few minutes of relevant and interesting bonus footage. Oh well. Chalk it up as another opportunity missed.

If you’re a fan of baseball or sports movies, you’ll probably want to pick this one up--it’s a classic, after all. For those more lukewarm about the genre, this one should still be a rental, if for no other reason than to see one of Gary Cooper’s best performances.