Babe Ruth (1998)

“History tells us that Babe Ruth was the greatest player in an era when baseball stood alone as the national past time; his talents were beyond unique” – Narrator

Number of Times Seen – 1 (16 Mar 2016)

Brief Synopsis – An in-depth look at the life of one of Baseball’s greatest players, the Sultan of Swat himself, Babe Ruth

My Take on it – There probably aren’t many people who have never heard of Babe Ruth (even those who know so little about baseball) and this documentary does a wonderful job trying to explain and understand who he really was.

Like many “legends” before him, Ruth had a very rocky personal life partially due to the amount of fame afforded him by his on-field successes.

That isn’t to say that ‘rocky’ isn’t at all interesting…

His escapades with lots of women and his kindly heart to underprivileged youth will probably be what he is mostly remembered for off the field.

He knew that speaking to these underprivileged youth would help raise their spirits and brighten their days despite the US being amidst a devastating depression during his most successful years.

It probably wasn’t so easy finding people to interview about him 50 years after his death, but they do a fine job of speaking to sport writers who either knew him or wrote about him, family members and of course the fans who’s lives he managed to touch in some way or another.

The story of the latter part of his life is even more powerful because it gives us so much insight into how a famous person dealt with his declining health and vigor after being a truly great athlete in his early days.

Another great legend that I’ glad I learnt even more about through this film.

Bottom Line – Great insight into the life of this heavy-weight Hall of Fame Baseball player. Like similar “legends”, his life off the field was just as tumultuous and interesting as his life on it. He seems to really have had a heart of gold for underprivileged strangers who he knew would have their spirits lifted up just by talking to him.  Excellent interviews with so many sport writers who either knew him or wrote about him along with numerous people who’s lives were touched by him.  The look at his later life is especially poignant because we learn how someone who depended so much on his sport needed to find reasons to continue when he knew it was all going to be gone quite soon.  Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – In 1927, the “Sultan of Swing” broke his previous three single-season home run records to hit 60 home runs in just 155 games. He would hold that record for the next 31 years. Babe Ruth is arguably the greatest ballplayer of all time (From Rotten Tomatoes)

Rating – Oscar Worthy

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