The Babe (1992)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

Arthur Hiller

Writer (WGA):

John Fusco (written by)

Release Date:

17 April 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

There Was Only One.

Plot:

Babe Ruth becomes a baseball legend but is unheroic to those who know him.

Plot Keywords:

Baseball | New York Yankees | Character Name In Title

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

John Goodman	...	George Herman 'Babe' Ruth
Kelly McGillis	...	Claire Hodgson Ruth
Trini Alvarado	...	Helen Woodford Ruth
Bruce Boxleitner	...	Jumpin' Joe Dugan
Peter Donat	...	Harry Frazee
James Cromwell	...	Brother Mathias
J.C. Quinn	...	Jack Dunn
Joe Ragno	...	Miller Huggins
Richard Tyson	...	Guy Bush
Ralph Marrero	...	Frank 'Ping' Bodie
Robert Swan	...	George Herman Ruth Sr. (as Bob Swan)
Bernard Kates	...	Colonel Jack Ruppert
Michael McGrady	...	Lou Gehrig
Stephen Caffrey	...	Johnny Sylvester
Gene Ross	...	Brother Paul

Runtime:

Netherlands:115 min | USA:115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:PG | Iceland:L | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

When Babe is in his hotel room his door opens and reveals the room number across the hall to be room #714 - an obvious reference to the total number of home runs the Babe hit during his career.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The film portrays Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig as being enemies from the start. That is, in fact, not the case. When Gehrig first joined the Yankees, he and Ruth got along famously. They would often go on fishing trips and barnstorming tours together in the off season. The Ruth-Gehrig Feud did not start until after Gehrig had married Eleanor Twitchell in 1933.

Quotes:

Johnny Sylvester: You are the best, you are the best there's ever been.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Blonde Poison: The Making of 'Basic Instinct' (2001) (V)

Soundtrack:

Muskrat Ramble

People expected too much from this film

"The Babe" was a wonderful film. If critics want to nitpick it by commenting on the "authenticity" of the film like saying that all the games were played on the same field just re-organized, and making negative comments about about the film portraying the "dark side" of Babe Ruth, etc, I guess that's fine, but give the film what it deserves. First of all, John Goodman did an amazing job.

The truth is that Babe was a very confused person. He is probably baseball's greatest legend, but he did have some serious problems with women and alcohol. His childhood was a mess in many ways. He didn't know how to be married or to be a Father to a child. Everyone has issues. Accept the documented facts that he was not an angel. He had a huge heart and loved to do things for people. He also had his own demons to overcome and most of us do. I know that the film added a few things that may or may not have happened and I know that many things were left out, but unfortunately this is the way it has to be in ALL films like this. There is NO way to capture every single thing that the Babe ever did in less than 2 hours. They just have to do the best job they can with the time they have to work with.

This film was genuinely uplifting and to all who only saw the negative side of this film, shame on you. John Goodman is a huge Babe fan and even he felt that this was an acurate portrayal of the Bambino. The film is inspiring, positive for the most part and it's made me feel good every time I've seen it.