Based on the life of a true superstar cut donw in his prime, The Pride of the Yankees is a great baseball film and a must see for any Yankee or even baseball fan.
It wasn't untill 1995 that Cal Ripken, Jr. broke Lou Gehrig's amazing string of 2,130 consecutive games played. 2,130!! A span of some 56 years.
The Pride of the Yankees tells the story of Henry Louis Gehrig, from his humble beginnings as a poor boy growing up in New York City, to a college student, to a baseball phenom. It tells us about his life, his loves (mother, wife, and baseball) and his amazing streak of games.
As we start off, we see a young Lou Gehrig playing a sandlot game of ball, and breaking a window. From there we see him grow into a fine man (now played by Gary Cooper) who attends college at Columbia, and loves his mother (Elsa Janssen) and father (Ludwig Stössel) more than anyhting.
While playing college ball, he is noticed by the New York Yankees, and soon signs a contract.
Once he suits up for the Yankees, he plays an astounding 2,130 straight games. That's fourteen straight seaons of Baseball!
During all of those fourteen seasons, Lou did manage to find a girl-friend, Elenor Twitchell (Teresa Wright), court her, and get married, as well as win countless batting awards and several world-series titles.
On May 2, 1939, his streak ended. He had removed himself from the game. Lou's batting talent had tappered off in the last few weeks, and the baseball world wanted to know why. We soon find out that Lou has an illness that can't be cured.
Lou gives the crowd at Yankee Stadium a farewell speech, and it is a speech to be remembered for the ages. It is after this speech that the film ends.
It was discovered that Lou was diagnosed with amyotropic lateral sclerosis, a rare incurable muscular disorder which causes the muscular motor functions to degenerate, resulting in atrophying muscles, which in turn can lead to paralysis and ultimately death.
ALS is know commonly known as Lou Gehrigs disease, in honor of the man who so captivated New York City, New York State, and the whole baseball community for more than a decade.
Lou Gehrig Passed away on June 2, 1941 at the age of 37 years.
The film is chock full of great performances including Teresa Wright as Elenor Twitchell. Gary Cooper, however, appears far too old to be a "realistic" Lou Gehrig.
Pride of the Yankees is a touching film as we know the ending already, however we do not know the details. And, isn't it an ironic twist that Billy, the boy in the hospital learns how to walk, and confronts Gehrig just as his illness start to take affect? (Eventually, Gehrig would not be able to walk.)
Pride of the Yankees tells Gehrig's story with sole and passion, and there could never be a better job on this tory again.
Lou Gehrig was a man who didn't "fool around" on his wife; he wasn't a boozer, nor did he swear or talk ill of his parnets. Lou was brought up in a poor neighbourhood and he repsected his elders. Sure, he was a superstar making a lot of money, but he didn't spend it foolishly. It sadly ironic that such a good, great man was cut down so early in his life. There are so many people alive who just don't deserve the life they were given when a truely good man didn't get his chance.
The Pride of the Yankees is one of the better baseball films out there. Some (such as Field of Dreams or Bull Durham) come close, but others like Angels in the Outfield miss the mark completely. This on hits the sweet-spot perfectly.
Plot:
Based on the life of a true superstar cut donw in his prime, The Pride of the Yankees is a great baseball film and a must see for any Yankee or even baseball fan.
Visual Effects: 
Sound:
There are no songs, however the baseball soundeffects partly make up for this.
Character Development:
Atmosphere:
If you like baseball, or even if you don't or if you just want to learn about a great man, you can view this film a you won't be dissapointed.
Realism:
Gehrigs life is "jumbled," to say the lest. Many scenes are "hollywoodized," but the basic plot of his life and legacy remain intact, and it is the best version of his life available.
Warren’s Rating: 
Movies it was nominated with for Best Picture:
Forty-Ninth Parallel, (1942); Kings Row, (1942);
The Magnificent Ambersons, (1942); *Mrs. Miniver, (1942); The Pied Piper, (1942); Random Harvest, (1942); The Talk of the Town, (1942); Wake Island, (1942); Yankee Doodle Dandy, (1942)
7.86/10 Is the movie worth your time to watch?
14-11-03
