evanston_dad There is a certain kind of movie prevalent during the WWII years that takes any subject matter and turns it into a bland, palatable rallying cry for American heroism. I can understand why these films exist and what role they played in keeping up the morale of a war-weary American public, but they age terribly and are almost impossible to enjoy now. They're so insubstantial in their efforts to avoid any kind of dramatic conflict that they threaten to dissolve right off the screen as you're watching them."The Pride of the Yankees" is one of those movies. It's nominally a biopic about famed major league baseball player Lou Gehrig. But it's really just an excuse to peddle in some pandering American hokum. As portrayed by Gary Cooper, Gehrig is a boring simpleton. As far as this movie is concerned, he was just some random guy who was good at baseball and then died of something. We get no sense of his contribution to the sport, and his disease and death is treated so vaguely by the screenplay that the tragedy of it doesn't hit home either. Almost nothing of consequence happens over a run time of 2+ hours.I've decided that Sam Wood was the most boring director to be produced by the Hollywood studio system. Good God, this man could not put together a compelling shot if his life depended on it. This entire film consists of static shots of two or three people standing in place looking at each other and talking, followed by another scene filmed the same way. Shouldn't a movie about a sport move at least a little?The Academy went ga-ga over this film at the time, giving it 11 Oscar nominations, second only to "Mrs. Miniver" that year. Its sole win was for Film Editing, which I guess is the one award I could somewhat justify, since editor Daniel Mandell had to make it look like Gary Cooper was seamlessly integrated into baseball games. Otherwise, it was undeserving of every other nomination, which included Outstanding Motion Picture, Best Actor (Cooper), Best Actress (Teresa Wright, playing one of Oscar's favorite types, the nobly loyal wife), Best Original Motion Picture Story, Best Screenplay (when these were considered two distinct categories rather than being bundled under Original Screenplay), Best Art Direction (B&W), Best Cinematography (B&W), Best Dramatic or Comedy Score, Best Sound Recording, and, perplexingly, Best Special Effects. Grade: D+

zardoz-13 Lou Gehrig had been dead less than two years when The Samuel Goldwyn Company produced a biographical account of the New York Yankees' first baseman's life with Gary Cooper cast as 'the Iron Man.' "Kings Row" director Sam Wood and "It's A Wonderful Life" scenarist Jo Swerling with "Citizen Kane" scribe Herman J. Mankiewicz adapted Paul Gallico's story about Gehrig's rise from humble origins as the son of Teutonic parents in New York City to a baseball superstar. Although it received eleven Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor, "The Pride of the Yankees" only won Best Editing. One look at this movie and you know that the Goldwyn Company lavished prestige on it. Rudolph Maté's black & white cinematography is first-rate, and most of the technical values are above par. The cast is good, too, with Teresa Wright playing Gehrig's wife, and Walter Brennan is fine as Gehrig's publicist. The real standout here, however, is none other than home-run slugger Babe Ruth. He seems like a genuine natural. Nevertheless, despite its superlative production values and cast, "The Pride of the Yankees" takes its own sweet time, and the film seems to drag at some points. This is not so much a movie about the game as it is a movie about the player.Young Lou Gehrig dreams of playing baseball in the major league, and he enjoys playing sandlot baseball. Meanwhile, his mother Ma Gehrig (Elsa Janssen of "Dillinger") urges him to follow in the footsteps of their Uncle Otto, whose picture hangs on their wall, and become an engineer. Eventually, Gehrig gets into Columbia, where his mother cooks, and his exploits at bat reach the New York Yankees. Gehrig has made a reputation for himself by smashing windows with his home runs. Secretly, without mentioning anything to his mother, Lou tries out for the Yankees, and they sign him to a contract. When Lou joins the Yankees, the big cheese on the team is none other than the Sultan of the Swat, Babe Ruth (the real Babe Ruth), who never misses a moment to dominate the limelight. Eventually, Gehrig gets his start at first base after the regular first baseman opts to sit on the bench rather than play. From this point on, Gehrig established a Major League record of playing 2,130 games with missing a day. For the record, Gehrig played seventeen seasons for the Yankees, between 1923 and 1939. Several amusing incidents occur, such as Gehrig's publicist driving over the speed limit to get him to Yankee Stadium. The NYPD pull them over, realize who they have stopped, and provide him with an escort to the stadium that increases in number as they approach the baseball diamond. Another incident shows Gehrig at a hospital where he promises a youth that he will knock two home runs for him. Indeed, he clouts two home runs for the bed ridden adolescent! Babe Ruth only promises one four bagger for the kid. Years later when Gehrig voluntarily retires, the lad meets him at Yankee Stadium and shows him that he can walk. Gehrig had urged the boy when he spoke to him at the hospital to never give up hope.Director Sam Wood and his writers cover Gehrig's family life, his life in the Major Leagues, and his eventual medical woes without going into detail about his malady, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), now commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease. You don't have to be a baseball aficionado to enjoy "The Pride of the Yankees." Cooper seemed to realize Gehrig's prominence and gives a performance that isn't his standard one. According to legend, Cooper knew nothing about baseball and had to be coached, especially with regard to batting as a left hander. The film concludes on a poignant note as Gehrig retires from baseball during ceremony with thousands of fans cheering him. "The Pride of the Yankees" is not without propaganda value. Released early during World War II, the film espouses all the positive values of being an American.

beauzee for all the B-movie sentimentality we do have the incredible, amazing opportunity to watch the great Bambino play himself and do one h*lluva good job! and not just the Babe...many of "Murder's Row", the 1927 (real) Yankees. can't get over that...even after 55 years of loving the movie.Gary Cooper was, as we all know, selected by the fans who chose guess who? had to be Gary Cooper! Here's a little confusion for me: I love Gary and Lou but Gary was, at 40, built like a tennis player and Lou was build like...an Iron Horse. Muscles over muscles. Was there an actor to really play Gehrig? I do not know. Movie historians, please advise. I know how negative that sounds. But Cooper looked awful in uniform.but..to dispel any "confusion"...Gary's beautiful final speech at Yankee Stadium, July of 1939. "Today, I consider myself...". For Americans and Americans only, we cherish that after THe Ghettysburg Address!

coonyp I watched this movie again last night with my son who has become quite a baseball fan. It had been maybe 40 years since I had seen it so I could enjoy it all over again.How terrific that Babe Ruth was cast as himself! Perhaps the greatest player of all time had a larger than life persona and this movie captures him as he was for generations to come. Gary Cooper is without a doubt an iconic actor and perfect for the title role.There is plenty of gratuitous patriotism written into the screenplay which is not surprising since it was a wartime film. A subtle aspect of this nationalism is the portrayal of an immigrant family's gradual immersion into American culture.The screenplay and the direction is overall is excellent for a bio movie. The viewer gets a good idea of who Lou Gehrig is as a person. The presumably accurate love story is quite joyful.Now to my gripe about not just this movie but just about every sports subject Hollywood takes on. As a lifelong sports and cinema fan, I am constantly amazed at how poorly the two have meshed. This movie is a prime example. It gives the viewer virtually no appreciation of Gehrig the player. What were his particular skills and weaknesses? What were his notable achievements (other than the consecutive game record)? Moreover, even a casual sports fan appreciates the recurrent drama of game situations which matches or exceeds the dramatic tension of the best films. Yet for whatever reason, the obvious techniques for translating some of this to film are never used. How about at least two or three scenes recreating a tense moment in a crucial game where the hero delivers a key hit or play and capturing the joy of the fans and teammates? The use of a radio broadcast can set the stage. The closest this movie comes is recreating the home runs Gehrig promised to a crippled child. Sure that tugs at the heart strings but it is not necessarily important from a sports perspective.