A League of Their Own

Rating: 4.5/5

Definitely one of the more unique baseball films, A League of Their Own is an exciting and nostalgic addition to the sports genre.

In the midst of World War II, two sisters, Dottie (Geena Davis) and Kit (Lori Petty) are playing baseball for their local dairy farm in a small Oregon town. While playing, a scout notices Dottie's talents and tries to recruit her for the All American Girls Professional Baseball League; the league that has been put into place since many of the professional men's players have been drafted into the war. At first, Dottie has no interest in joining any team, but her sister Kit is desperate to leave home and join the league. When Dottie learns that Kit will only be allowed to go to tryouts if she goes as well, she agrees and the two sisters get on the train to head to try out for the league.

Once with the other women who have been recruited for the AAGPBL, Dottie impresses everyone with her skill. Both she and Kit are put onto a team called the Rockford Peaches. With America being unfamiliar with seeing females play professional sports, the attendance for the games is low. With no help from their drunkard manager, Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks), Dottie takes it upon herself to get people interested in the world of women's baseball.

Sports movies are always full of energy and intrigue, but I am personally drawn to films about baseball more than any other sport. A League of Their Own has been a favorite of mine for many years, and it is not just because of the sport in which the movie is based around. It's the lead actors and most notably, the time period, that make this movie one of my favorite sports films.

A League of Their Own is the ultimate underdog story. Not only are the characters playing a sport in which it was unheard of to have females participating in at a professional level, but it was also in a time in history where women were expected to be homemakers rather than athletes. The actresses who make up the cast had to portray a level of tenacity that would make the women's impressive sports feats be believable as well as inspiring. All of the cast members did an excellent job, but there is a definite reason that Geena Davis played the lead. Watching the film, you would never suspect that baseball was a new sport for her, and it is her effortless athleticism that really sells the heart of the movie.

As much as I love A League of Their Own, I have always somewhat disliked the portrayal of the baseball players in their older age. On the one hand, the people in charge of the casting did find women who looked remarkably a lot like the actresses that made up the 1940's version of the baseball team. However, on the other hand, it appeared that they were so focused on finding elderly lookalikes, that the concept of their acting ability appeared to be an afterthought. Not to mention, seeing these powerful women hobble around the Baseball Hall of fFame has a tendency to bring down the energy of the film.

Whatever slight annoyances I may have about the "present day" scenes in the film, A League of Their Own is still, in my opinion, one of the better baseball movies out there. It has one of the most compelling stories and contains some of the best sports montages I've seen. All in all, a great film.