Excellent directorial debut of actor, comedian, and diehard Yankees fan Billy Crystal, from a script by Hank Steinberg. Thomas Jane and Barry Pepper are perfectly cast as the "M & M boys," Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, both of whom vied for the Babe's home run record in 1961. Both actors do a wonderful job portraying the men, from looks (both actors are dead ringers) to personality. Jane, whose best-known previous work was as Neal Cassady (again capturing the mood of a legend) in THE LAST TIME I COMMITTED SUICIDE, recreates the happy-go-lucky Mantle whose appeal won the Bronx masses, while Pepper (Private Jackson in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, also in the horrible BATTLEFIELD EARTH) makes do with the "Most Vacant Personality" that was the shy family man Maris. Everything a person like me (born long after 1961) could dig up about that season is present here, from Mantle's injury and alcoholic problems to Maris' hair falling out due to the stress the media placed upon him. Good symbolism of addictions here: Mantle deals with the stress by drinking and picking up women, Maris deals with the stress by smoking a cigarette every chance he gets.
The supporting cast does its job supporting the main characters; they include Chris Bauer (as Bob Cerv), Jennifer Crystal Foley (Billy's daughter, as Pat Maris), Bruce McGill (Yankees manager Ralph Houk), Anthony Michael Hall (as Whitey Ford), and especially Richard Masur (without his notable mustache here, portraying Milt Kahn, the only sportswriter who supported Maris from the beginning). Donald Moffat is a welcome sight as Ford Frick, the baseball commissioner who added the infamous asterisk to the record, which indicated the 162-game schedule, eight more games for Maris to make 61 homeruns. One may remember Moffat in another 1960s-based film, THE RIGHT STUFF (with Moffat as Senator Lyndon B. Johnson).
The friendship (and conflict) between Mantle and Maris, however, ARE THE FILM. We get only brief indications of the race itself (showing Babe Ruth, Maris, and Mantle on the sports page, with the number of homers they have on that particular date) because the film isn't about the race itself, but the men involved in it. While Jane is appealing as Mantle, Pepper deserves a lot of credit in making Maris very interesting to watch, and even more credit because you'll find yourself rooting for him even considering you know he'll get to 61. Also, great interplay with Mark McGwire's bid to break the record in 1998, which was the homerun race of our generation.
Lastly, kudos to Billy Crystal for transforming the now-dead Tiger Stadium to Yankee Stadium. Even though I'm not much of a Yankees fan, Crystal shows just how beautiful a baseball diamond can be.
The supporting cast does its job supporting the main characters; they include Chris Bauer (as Bob Cerv), Jennifer Crystal Foley (Billy's daughter, as Pat Maris), Bruce McGill (Yankees manager Ralph Houk), Anthony Michael Hall (as Whitey Ford), and especially Richard Masur (without his notable mustache here, portraying Milt Kahn, the only sportswriter who supported Maris from the beginning). Donald Moffat is a welcome sight as Ford Frick, the baseball commissioner who added the infamous asterisk to the record, which indicated the 162-game schedule, eight more games for Maris to make 61 homeruns. One may remember Moffat in another 1960s-based film, THE RIGHT STUFF (with Moffat as Senator Lyndon B. Johnson).
The friendship (and conflict) between Mantle and Maris, however, ARE THE FILM. We get only brief indications of the race itself (showing Babe Ruth, Maris, and Mantle on the sports page, with the number of homers they have on that particular date) because the film isn't about the race itself, but the men involved in it. While Jane is appealing as Mantle, Pepper deserves a lot of credit in making Maris very interesting to watch, and even more credit because you'll find yourself rooting for him even considering you know he'll get to 61. Also, great interplay with Mark McGwire's bid to break the record in 1998, which was the homerun race of our generation.
Lastly, kudos to Billy Crystal for transforming the now-dead Tiger Stadium to Yankee Stadium. Even though I'm not much of a Yankees fan, Crystal shows just how beautiful a baseball diamond can be.