The Babe
| The Babe | |
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Original movie poster
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| Directed by | Arthur Hiller |
| Produced by |
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| Written by | John Fusco |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Elmer Bernstein |
| Cinematography | Haskell Wexler |
| Edited by | Robert C. Jones |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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115 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12 million |
| Box office | $19.9 million |
The Babe is a 1992 American biographical drama film about the life of famed baseball player Babe Ruth, who is portrayed by John Goodman. It was directed by Arthur Hiller, written by John Fusco and released in the United States on April 17, 1992.
The story begins in 1902 in Baltimore, Maryland, where a seven-year-old Babe Ruth, troubled and not-so disciplined, is sent to the St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys, a reformatory and orphanage. Ruth is sent by his father, George Herman Ruth Sr. (Bob Swan), who cannot handle raising the boy. At the school, Ruth is schooled by Catholic missionaries and is made fun of by other children, because of his large size. Brother Matthias Boutlier (James Cromwell), the Head of Discipline at St. Mary's, first introduces Ruth to the game of baseball. During a session of batting practice, Ruth hits several towering home runs off of Matthias, who is pitching. Brother Matthias and others are stunned by Ruth's amazing power to drive the ball.
The film then flashes forward to 1914. A 19-year-old Ruth (Goodman) is on St. Mary's baseball team. Ruth continues to excel as a powerful hitter and a great pitcher. Ruth's amazing skills come to the attention of Jack Dunn (J.C. Quinn). Since Ruth is underage, Dunn decides to adopt Ruth and sign him to a contract with the Baltimore Orioles. In the middle of the 1914 baseball season, Ruth is sold to the Boston Red Sox. As a member of the Red Sox, Ruth begins to gain wide attention for his home runs and becomes popular in Boston. However, he angers Red Sox owner Harry Frazee during a party, and following the 1919 season, Ruth demands a raise, and a suite for road games, so Frazee sells him to the New York Yankees to finance his Broadway shows, which had cost him money ($125,000, equal to $1,726,727 today, the same amount of money that Frazee got for selling Ruth to be exact). Ruth becomes very popular in New York, as he helps the Yankees win the World Series in 1923. Also, in one game, he hits two home runs for a little boy named Johnny Sylvester, whom he had recently visited in hospital. However, two years later, after divorcing his first wife, Helen Woodford (Trini Alvarado), Ruth starts to go into a slump, while teammate Lou Gehrig (Michael McGrady) becomes known as the "Iron Horse". After getting pelted with lemons during a game, he gets angry and storms onto the dugout, yelling at the crowd, who continue to pound him with lemons. He also takes a second wife Claire (Kelly McGillis), but that becomes complicated too.
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