In the aftermath of World War II, soldiers of color who had fought facism overseas now had to fight against racism in their own country. Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford), the president of the Brooklyn Dodgers, would not stand for racism anymore. He wanted to sign the first African American to a Major League Baseball team. Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) dawned the number 42 and forever changed the world of baseball one home run at a time.

The story creates an excellent vision that brings the audience into 1946 and shows the world through Jackie’s eyes. The racism Jackie endured from the spectators, the referees, the competition and even his own team will tug on the audience’s heartstrings.

The story throughout is very accurate to Jackie’s life. The writers worked closely with Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s wife, to tell a story that will show everything that Jackie endured. Rachel had final approval on the script and worked closely with Boseman on his performance.

While the story is very accurate to Jackie’s life, there is one scene that Rachel said never happened in his life. Boseman came to the defense of the scene saying, “At some point he (Jackie) had to break, and the fact that Rachel Robinson didn’t fight us to take (the scene) out (of the film), to me proves that it is true.”

“42” highlights the fact that many people had a target on Jackie’s back trying to get him to make a mistake which would end his baseball career. However, many were on Jackie’s side and fought with him to show that everyone should be able to play baseball.

The cinematography is exemplary. Writer and director, Brian Helgeland, brings his A game when it came to developing this film.

Boseman’s performance as Jackie Robison is powerful. Boseman’s range of emotion and expression will instantly connect with the audience. Boseman and Ford’s chemistry is undeniable. Ford shows how dedicated Rickey was to bring everyone together for America’s favorite pastime. Alan Tudyk’s performance as the most bigoted man in baseball, Ben Chapman, will make the audience’s skin crawl. Tudyk shows the harsh reality of how the league used to be, but also shows how Jackie changed the field forever.

The score for this film assisted in bringing emotion to the screen. It allowed the story to flow seamlessly without being a distraction.

This film is spectacular. This masterpiece brings a new light to Jackie’s story and puts it on the big screen for everyone to see. “42” was Boseman’s first movie to star in which is shocking due to how amazing his performance is. Throughout the entire film Helgeland kept true to the fact that both Jackie and Rickey were Christians and how faith influenced both of them throughout the story. “42” is one of the best sports movies that has been made to date, having a balanced combination of Jackie’s personal life and his career. I highly recommend this film to anyone ages 13 and up due to some very harsh language. This movie has been put back into the theaters in remembrance of Boseman’s passing away last week. It is also available now for purchase on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital on demand. I give this film a 5 out of 5 tiger paws.