61* (2001)

61* is an endearing ode to the baseball days of yore when the press was the enemy, salaries were in check, and breaking records with bat and glove took on Ruthian proportions. In 1961 baseball expanded its season from 154 games to 162, allowing weaker pitching into the major leagues and two New York Yankees teammates--the colorless Roger Maris and golden boy Mickey Mantle--to make an assault on the sport's ultimate record: Babe Ruth's 60 home runs. To add to the stew, baseball commissioner Ford Frick announced any record set in the last eight games of the season wouldn't count toward the official record; records had to be achieved in 154 games.

Director Billy Crystal guarantees success for his movie in the perfect casting of the leads. Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan's religious sniper) is deft as Maris, and Thomas Jane is a perfect Mantle, a superman in a Yankee uniform. Despite the differences between family man Maris and hard-living Mantle, they form a rewarding friendship amid the media and fan frenzy. The shy Maris took the brunt of the storm, even facing boo-birds in his home stadium. Crystal and first-time writer Hank Steinberg keep the pace moving quickly between the field, the locker room, the press box, and the home front. The film never tries to dazzle with more than the facts (and it softens Mantle up a bit), yet it belongs on the short list of grand baseball movies. --Doug Thomas Amazon.com

Great movie, but if you are buying for kids, BE WARNED!!

I am always looking for sports-themed movies for my young son, and he is especially interested in non-fiction movies. ("Miracle" and "Rudy" are two great examples.)
I read the reviews, and thought we'd give this a try. I noticed that this was marked "not rated" and just hoped for the best! Whoops! I am not offended by swearing in the context of baseball. But this has excessive use of the "F" word, which I just wasn't expecting. It was a big surprise and quite disappointing.
I only offer this review for other parents who may be contemplating this movie for kids and younger teens. July 23, 2008

Don't really enjoy baseball

Got this for my husband, a baseball fan, but think I enjoyed it more then he did.Very interesting story. June 17, 2008

Roger Marris should be in the Hall of Fame!

This DVD is another great baseball movie. It highlights a number of reasons why the Home Run King for over 60 years should be in the Hall of Fame regadless of other things he did or didn't do. He is the link to the record and with a steroids era, maybe he still is the Home Run King! Think about it and enjoy the story! April 2, 2008

Great Baseball Movie

I'm not even a huge baseball fan, but I enjoyed this movie very much. All of my Yankee friends love this true-story-based movie, though not many ever heard about it before they watched it. Definitely a quality hour or so to spend in front of the TV. December 13, 2007

Very Interesting

This movie is well-done. They paid attention to details. Billy Crystal is a fan who remembers this era fondly and did a great job telling the very interesting story of Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. These are names I remember from growing up, but I knew little about. Having the two men on the Yankees at the same time, each aiming to beat the home run record Babe Ruth had set as a Yankee, makes for a fascinating story.

The only problem with the movie is the language is foul (so to speak). The swearing and use of various words is way over the top and distracts from the story. It should have been made as a family movie because the appeal of this story crosses all generational lines. If it weren't for the language, this movie would deserve even more than five stars.

The special features are very worth watching. They show just how much detail they put into every aspect of this movie--from the color of the stadium, to the swings of the two players.

If the language won't bother you, I highly recommend this movie. If it had a rating, it most certainly would be rated "R", so keep that in mind when considering showing it to children. November 12, 2007

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