A League Of Their Own (1992)

Set during WWII, major league baseball is suffering a setback with men at war. The owner (Garry Marshall) of a candy company also owns a baseball team and persuades the co-owners to bankroll a a woman's league for the duration of the war. Directed by Penny Marshall, this is a fictionalized account of the All American Girls Professional League which lasted from 1943 to 1954. It's hard not to fall under the movie's spell as it chronicles an important part of sports and feminist history. The film's story is strong enough to overcome the frequent lapses into mawkishness which threaten to undermine the good will engendered by the subject matter. Two things stand out that bothered me. The whiny "blame everybody else but you for your problems" character played by Lori Singer gets a pass by the film makers and the fact that Tom Hanks (who I adore) isn't quite believable as an alcoholic washed up baseball player reduced to coaching girls baseball. I kept on thinking how much better a James Caan or a Burt Reynolds would have been in the part. Hanks is a sweetie, there's no getting around it and the role calls for an edgier actor. With Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Bill Pullman, David Strathairn and Jon Lovitz.