BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Bereamic Awesome Movie

Senteur As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Jeff Melchior Paul Douglas is perfectly cast as the belligerent, irascible, steak- devouring Pittsburgh Pirates manager whose second-division club is the beneficiary of divine intervention in the form of the unseen Angels of the Heavenly Choir summoned by the prayers of an adorable eight year-old orphan girl (charmingly played by Donna Corcoran) who idolizes Douglas. Filled with top-notch performances: Janet Leigh – seen here about a decade before her notorious shower scene in Psycho – as the novice baseball columnist initially outraged at Douglas' harsh methods; Keenan Wynn as the cynical and surly radio announcer with an ax to grind; Spring Byington as the baseball-savvy nun; and James Whitmore as the voice of an Angel who teaches Douglas kindness and shows him the error of his ways, converting him from a foul-mouthed, quick-tempered punch- thrower to a Shakespeare-quoting gentleman. Joe DiMaggio, Ty Cobb, and one-time minority Pirates owner Bing Crosby offer their take on the existence of angels in cameo appearances. Actual game footage of Pirates games – look for a homer from Ralph Kiner (wearing # 4) who led or tied for the league lead in round-trippers every year from '46 to '52 – is spliced in to enhance its authenticity. Poignant tale of faith, forgiveness, friendship and second chances with a tear-jerker finale involving a potential new home for Corcoran and a weary ex-pal (Bruce Bennett) of Douglas' taking the mound in a final shot at glory in the last year of his baseball career…and his life. An underrated and overlooked gem deserving of multiple annual cable TV showings. Remade in 1994 with Danny Glover and Tony Danza with glitzy special effects that add little to the story.

classicsoncall You pick up some interesting tidbits watching these old flicks on Turner Classics when they're hosted by one of their movie critic pros. For example, when Janet Leigh visited Forbes Field to see where this movie was being filmed, she stepped on the infield grass in her high heels and they immediately sank into the turf. Pittsburgh Pirate Ralph Kiner came to her rescue and carried her off the field and some newspaper photographers captured the moment. What seemed like a romantic match-up turned to naught because Leigh was engaged to Tony Curtis at the time.Well this was a nice engaging family picture with a baseball backdrop but I think there was a missed opportunity. Being a fantasy, it could have been more whimsical if the film makers had actually put some angels on screen, you know, maybe borrow someone like Cary Grant or Constance Bennett from 1937's "Topper" to liven things up. OK, they were ghosts but you know what I mean. A couple of winged apparitions behind each of the players might have given more credence to the title.I'd also question the casting of Paul Douglas and Janet Leigh as potential romantics. It worked out for the story but I don't see the connection to reality if you wanted to maintain some credibility for the outcome. Oh well, with angels in the outfield, there wasn't going to be a lot of credibility left to go around anyway.What I really found interesting was seeing Forbes Field the way it was back in the day. To me it didn't look much bigger or better looking than the ball field my home town semi-pro team used back in the early Sixties. I never went to a professional baseball game as a kid, and was never to a big league ball park until the Seventies, so my only basis for comparison would be the old Shea Stadium and Yankee Stadium in New York. Come to think of it, those aren't around anymore either. Boy, time does go by.I'll say one thing though. The story really made you think about the plight of orphans, as in little Bridget's (Donna Corcoran) case where she had spent her entire life of eight years in one. It seemed extremely sad that she was 'given' a birthday by the nuns because no one knew when she was really born. That seemed just so incredibly sad, on top of the ruses the orphan girls thought they needed to attract potential parents, like taking off their glasses. It really makes you think about how lucky most of us are.Well anyway, long before the Los Angeles Angels ever held a home field advantage, this film entertained a good idea about how to treat one another both on and off the field. It might not be the greatest baseball movie, but where else would you ever be able to see Joe DiMaggio, Ty Cobb and Bing Crosby all in one place at the same time. And if you're a seasoned citizen like myself, you won't have any trouble picking out the Beav's mom herself, Barbara Billingsley in a couple of scenes as the hat check girl at Johnny's Steakhouse. Just another reason I get a kick out of these old pictures.

moonspinner55 Baseball and fantasy combine to make exceptionally comfortable movie partners here, as the hot-headed, foul-mouthed (for 1951) manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team learns to clean up his act after he and his losing team receive Divine Intervention on the playing field. Potentially sticky premise gets some heavenly assistance of its own, with Paul Douglas just about perfect in the lead. He's supported by a fine cast, including Keenan Wynn, Janet Leigh (looking lovely), as well as Ty Cobb, Joe DiMaggio, and Bing Crosby in smart cameos. The whimsical script is surprisingly witty, and the direction is straightforward and never too mawkish. Remade by the Disney people in 1994, with one major difference: in this one, you don't see the angels. *** from ****

Robert Germinsky I was taken by this movie the first time I ever saw it. That was so long ago, I can't even remember when. Paul Douglas as Guffy was superb. Angry, contrite at times, not quite sure what is happening with the angels, but in the end, he is willing to believe. The baseball scenes are pretty realistic. I enjoyed the shots of Forbes Field, as it was always one of my favorite places to watch a ball game. Donna Corcoran and Janet Leigh were both excellent playing their parts. However, the best performance (and most overlooked), was that of Keenan Wynne as the commentator. He played his part so perfectly that you forget this is only a movie. You really wanted to throttle him, the way he denigrated Guffy and the rest of the team. Excellent acting job on his part. James Whitmore did a great job as the voice of the angel, taking no "guff" from Guffy. I enjoyed the scene where Guffy lets his old and tired pitcher (Bruce Bennet) stay in the game, because Whitmore informs Guffy that "We are recruiting him (Bennet) next season." All in all, this was a terrific baseball movie. Yes it was predictable and at times a bit sappy. Having said that, the film was still well done and is certainly a fine movie for family entertainment.