Yes, it has its forgivable offenses of oversimplification, sunny optimism, Disney-like gloss, and convenient revision, but the film succeeds in its primary goal to inspire the viewer.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 13, 2024

The rest of the supporting cast, including Nicole Beharie who plays Mrs. Robinson, is pretty bad and struggle to deliver quality lines.

| Original Score: C+ | Aug 23, 2024

While it’s not a perfect film, it’s yet another example of how this great sport is fertile ground for quality storytelling.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Aug 20, 2022

42 is more than just a baseball movie but the story of a hero.

| Nov 5, 2021

It's as if the film is trying to meet a quota, doling out emotional moments, enough adversity for any underdog, and a touch of manipulation.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Dec 3, 2020

42 is a fine tribute to a man's ability to endure for the better off all and the insightful visionary who put it all in motion.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 10, 2020

Chadwick Boseman has been around Hollywood for a few years, mostly in television, but this should be the role that allows the young actor to blossom.

| Original Score: 3.5/4.0 | Sep 7, 2020

Boseman delivers a strong performance, particularly during a scene where he endures a relentless string of N-word taunts. Boseman chose this scene for his audition piece, smashing a plastic wiffleball bat against a chair in the audition room.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Aug 29, 2020

Brian Helgeland depicts how agonizing the struggle is for any despised minority to get their foot in the door. 42 climaxes at the apex of baseball legend Jackie Robinson's first season in a Brooklyn Dodger uniform.

| Jun 19, 2020

Director Brian Helgeland's "42" (2013) is a moving biopic about Jackie Robinson.

| Apr 2, 2020

Boseman and Ford are outstanding in their roles. Boseman captures Robinson's inner struggle, while Ford delivers his best performance in a while.

| Apr 10, 2019

In his most challenging role to date, Boseman's Robinson is suitably charismatic and earnest, giving us a human portrayal of an icon that's easy to get behind.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Mar 2, 2019

42 explains eloquently how and why Jackie Robinson became an enduring American hero, with extraordinary baseball prowess perhaps the least notable of his accomplishments.

| Original Score: B+ | Jan 26, 2019

Just go. That's really all I have to say. A Jackie Robinson biopic was long overdue and this is an A+ effort. It's a 9.

| Original Score: 9/10 | Nov 1, 2018

42 manages to capture everything I know of Robinson and put it on the big screen so everyone can appreciate exactly what that number truly means.

| Original Score: 8.50/10 | Oct 10, 2018

It may not be a cinematic grand slam, but "42" does a fine job sharing and celebrating Robinson's legacy, which makes it a solid win.

| Aug 7, 2018

This story is a tough one to hit the right notes on, but Oscar winning screenwriter of LA Confidential, Brian Helgeland, does just that.

| Jun 22, 2018

Director Brian Helgeland's 42 may not be the greatest baseball movie of all time ... but it may tell baseball's most important story.

| Nov 29, 2017

Mythic material, beautifully done, the winning performances and telling (true) incidents make this one not just for baseball devotees.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 5, 2017

The game sequences are riveting, not only when Jackie slams a homer or steals a base, but also in the jubilance of him overcoming the negative atmosphere in which he was playing.

| Original Score: B+ | Aug 18, 2017