The story of the friendship between a star pitcher, wise to the world, and a half-wit catcher, as they cope with the catcher's terminal illness through a baseball season.
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Title: Bang the Drum Slowly (1973)
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Robert De Niro | ... | Bruce Pearson | |
| Michael Moriarty | ... | Henry 'Author' Wiggen | |
| Vincent Gardenia | ... | Dutch Schnell | |
| Phil Foster | ... | Joe Jaros | |
| Ann Wedgeworth | ... | Katie | |
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Patrick McVey | ... | Bruce's Father |
| Heather MacRae | ... | Holly Wiggen | |
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Selma Diamond | ... | Tootsie, Hotel Switchboard Operator |
| Barbara Babcock | ... | Team Owner | |
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Maurice Rosenfield | ... | Team Owner |
| Tom Ligon | ... | Piney Woods | |
|
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Andy Jarrell | ... | Ugly |
| Marshall Efron | ... | Bradley | |
|
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Danny Burks | ... | Perry |
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Tom Signorelli | ... | Goose Williams |
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Plot Summary
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Storyline
Henry Wiggen (Author to his friends) and Bruce Pearson are members of the New York Mammoths major league baseball team - Author the star pitcher, Bruce the catcher who never quite lived up to his potential - friends, and roommates when they're on the road. During the off season, Bruce is diagnosed with a terminal case of Hodgkin's disease. Author is the only person on the team who knows of Bruce's illness, with neither planning on telling anyone. Author takes extraordinary measures to ensure that he is playing ball with Bruce during what will probably be Bruce's final season before he can no longer play. Author looks after Bruce in part because Bruce is mentally a simple man who can easily be taken advantage of, especially by his opportunistic girlfriend Katie. As the season progresses, the team isn't quite gelling, despite being the best team on paper. But as information comes to light, the dynamic on the team changes to make it a memorable end of the season especially for Bruce, who... Written by Huggo
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Details
Country:
USARelease Date:
9 March 1978 (Netherlands) See more »Also Known As:
Das letzte Spiel See more »Company Credits
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Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
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Did You Know?
Trivia
The lead role was originally to have been played by Al Pacino, while Robert De Niro was to have played the driver Paulie in The Godfather (1972). Francis Ford Coppola wanted Al Pacino to play Michael Corleone, so to get Pacino released from his contract for this film, he had to give up De Niro to replace him. See more »Goofs
During Piney's song in the clubhouse, coach Joe is shown holding the deck of cards in his hand. The next cut shows him with all the cards spread out on the table. No time has passed since the song is marking the time. See more »Frequently Asked Questions
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I have been a baseball fan all my life, I have played the game, and I have even been compared by one girl to Kevin Costner's character, Crash Davis, in Bull Durham. I like Bang The Drum Slowly better than Durham. For one, the lines stand up better. Many of Bull Durham's lines are ridiculous or unnecessary or unrealistic. The whole "I believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone..." monologue, for example is silly when really looked at hard. (Who would make such a speech?) There are lines in Bang the Drum, however that stand up over time. "It's sad, it makes you wanna cry. No, it sad, it makes you wanna laugh," for example. Even though I have actually had to explain the meaning of that line to one person, I love it. Just the way the players, especially Moriarty, talk, is so authentic. "Not a bad ballplayer, either once people got off his back and let him play." Great performance by De Niro. A good little sports film that will make you cry a little and give you lines that you never forget. "From now on, I rag no one."