Bang the Drum Slowly
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DVD details
Actor: Ann Wedgeworth, Michael Moriarty, Phil Foster, Robert De Niro, Vincent GardeniaBrand: Team Marketing
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 96 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-03-04
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Paramount
DVD Reviews of Bang the Drum Slowly
DVD Review: Excellent acting by Michael Moriarty
Summary: 3 Stars
"Bang the Drum Slowly" is a 1973 adaptation of a 1956 TV program (Paul Newman and Albert Salmi) based on the Mark Harris novel of the same name. The film stars Michael Moriarty and Robert DeNiro.
Michael Moriarty is best known to us from his years playing ADA Ben Stone on "Law and Order." "Drum" was Moriarty's third film and that same year he appeared in a TV version of "The Glass Menagerie" for which he won his first Emmy. He won again in 1978 ("Holocaust") and 2001 ("James Dean") and along the way picked up 5 more nominations as well as a Golden Globe ("Holocaust") and a Tony ("Find Your Way Home") in 1974.
There's not much you can say about DeNiro. He won the Oscar twice ("Raging Bull" and "Godfather 2") and was nominated 4 other times ("Taxi Driver", "Deer Hunter", "Awakenings" and "Cape Fear") and in later years was nominated twice for the American Comedy Award ("Meet the Parents" and "Analyze This"). "Drum" was his 10th film and 2 months later his breakthrough performance in "Mean Streets" launched him on his way - the next year he appeared in "Godfather 2".
The role of the dying catcher Bruce Pierson was originally offered to Al Pacino, but Coppola wanted Pacino for "The Godfather" and had him released. DeNiro was supposed to play Paulie in "The Godfather" but had to give up that role in order to play Pierson. It worked out OK for both of them!
The film co-stars the great character actor Vincent Gardenia, comedian and sometimes actor Phil Foster, and Thelma Diamond
-Vincent Gardenia appeared in nearly 100 films and TV shows. He was twice nominated for an Oscar ("Bang the Drum Slowly" and "Moonstruck"), won an Emmy in 1990 for "Age-Old Friends" and won a Tony in 1972 for "Prisoner of Second Avenue." He gave us many memorable performances, but my favorite is Detective Frank Ochoa in "Death Wish" (1974). Gardenia plays the foul-mouthed manager of the New York Mammoths.
-Phil Foster was a great comedian, part of the borscht belt comedians that emerged in the late 30s. He's best known to us from his recurring role in "Laverne and Shirley" produced by his old friend Gary Marshall. Foster plays a team member.
- Selma Diamond plays a raspy-voiced receptionist in the New York hotel where the players stay. She's best remembered for her continuing role in the TV series "Night Court" for which she earned an Emmy nomination in 1985 (Rhea Perlman won for "Cheers"). Diamond also received an Emmy nomination for her writing work on "Caesar's Hour" (1954). She is terrific as the nosey switchboard operator.
- Ann Wedgeworth has a small role as a hooker. Wedgeworth won the National Society of Film Critics award for Best Supporting Actress in 1977 ("Handle with Care") and won a Tony as Best Actress in 1978 for Neil Simon's "Chapter Two". She was a well-known soap actress at the time the film was made, having appeared in "Another World" (1967-1970) and "Somerset" (1970-1973).
The film is basically a character study of the relationship between Moriarty and DeNiro.
The author of the novel upon which the film is based was Mark Harris. Harris is known for his baseball novels (e.g., "The Southpaw", "A Ticket for a Seam stitch", "It Looked like Forever") all of which center on the experiences of pitcher Henry "Author" Wiggins, played by Moriarty who does an absolutely terrific job as the experienced star pitcher who takes the ailing Denier character under his wing.
John Hancock directs. This was his third film, and he went on to do a dozen undistinguished films and a few TV shows. His best known film is probably "Weeds" which he also wrote. Hancock went on to have greater success on the stage.
The film was a box office success and critically acclaimed. Vincent Gardenia got an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor and DeNiro won a NY Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor. Writing for Time Magazine, Richard Schickel called it an "extraordinarily well-made film" and say that it was a "funny, gentle and honestly sentimental movie that is easily one of the best of the year in any category, and very possibly the best movie about sport ever made in this country." Roger Ebert called it "the ultimate baseball movie"
DeNiro's performance as the dumb catcher is not among his best performances. He spends a lot of time chewing tobacco and smiling, and slips in and out of his "southern" accent. His facial expressions, at times, come directly from Johnny Boy Civello, the role he did the same year in "Mean Streets" which was a completely different character. If you want to see a good performance from the young DeNiro, "Mean Streets" is the better choice.
Another problem I had with DeNiro's performance is that he doesn't look like a ball player. Whereas Michael Moriarty has us believing that he is a big league pitcher, DeNiro never looks the part. The camera tries to hide this fact in several ways (e.g., every time DeNiro comes to the plate he is filmed by himself) but everytime he is filmed with the other players, it's obvious that he is out of place. This is never more apparent than when 5 players get together to shoot a commercial, and DeNiro looks more like the bat boy than a MLB catcher.
Despite the accolades at the time, unfortunately, the film does not stand the test of time very well. "Brian's Song" provided us with a far better version of the "sports/buddy/dying" movie and the baseball scenes appear highly staged. Personally, if I wanted to watch a film about baseball, I'd look at films like "Eight Men Out" (1988), Bull Durham" (1989), and "A League of Their Own" (1992). If I wanted to watch a baseball comedy I'd watch "Damn Yankees" (1957), "Bad News Bears" (1976), or "Major League" (1989).
The greatest single virtue of this film is Michael Moriarty's performance.
Description of Bang the Drum Slowly
The story of the friendship between a star pitcher, wise to the world, and a half-wit catcher, as they cope with the catcher's terminal illness through a baseball season.Bestsellers in DVD
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