The year is 1947. Major league baseball is segregated and limited to white men. Then comes Jackie Robinson (portrayed by Chadwick Boseman). Having played in the entirely African-American Negro Leagues, Robinson shows his superb athletic skill in front of a scout. Jackie Robinson is chosen by Branch Rickey (played by Harrison Ford), a major league executive, to be the first African-American baseball player in history. He goes into the minor leagues and then makes his transition into the major leagues. He is given a number, 42, to show he is part of his new team, the Brooklyn Dodgers. But no one told Jackie that it would be a smooth transition.

Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford) and  Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) starred in 42.


Because he is African-American, Robinson is immediately ostracized by white fans and the other baseball players. His team’s hotel reservations are canceled, he is threatened with lynchings, he has been hurt by a player’s baseball cleats, spectators yell and harass him at games, and he has had pitchers aiming at his head. Yet despite all the negative reception, he manages to overcome the hatred of others to show them that his color doesn’t make him any less of an athlete. Rickey, having regret from not supporting another talented African-American player, comes alongside Robinson to show his support and encourage Robinson. Can Robinson win the World Series and show the country how an African-American man can overcome diversity and destroy a racial barrier?

Even if you are not into sports, 42 isn’t just a sports movie. It’s an inspiring true story of a man who brought down a racial stereotype that African-Americans couldn’t play as well as white baseball players. In the movie, Jackie Robinson just the one who brings down the barrier, he is helped by a white major league executive who believes in him. It’s an excellent movie that could make you angry at times or make you cry, but it’s a pleasure to see a movie in which determination overcomes prejudice.