Hitchcoc When Author, played by one of my favorite actors, Michael Moriarty, finds out that Bruce (played amazingly by Robert DeNiro), his catcher on the fictitious New York Mammoths Major League Baseball treat has terminal cancer, he sets about trying to make his last year on earth as normal as possible. It is hard because Bruce is not too bright and a below average catcher. Author and Bruce decide that no one is to know about the situation. Author is a star pitcher, and negotiates a new contract with Bruce as part of the details. This is the setup. What is wonderful about this film is the incredible relationship between Moriarty and DeNiro, two disparate people. When the reality of death rears its head, all the selfishness and avarice go out the window. If one can keep his or her eyes dry as this progresses I'd be amazed. One of the best baseball (and human) films ever made. Still it is quiet and restrained.

classicsoncall Nominally a baseball movie, this is actually more of a human interest story focusing on the relationship of a couple of teammates who hang together through the thick and thin of catcher Bruce Pearson's (Robert DeNiro) bout with Hodgkin's disease. You never get a clear idea of why New York Mammoth's pitcher Henry Wiggen (Michael Moriarty) takes a shine to his buddy but their loyalty to each other is convincing. I'm not sure if a real life ball player could have pulled off the contract demand that Wiggen did by forcing the owner and manager to agree to his terms for keeping 'Bill' employed, but this was made over forty years ago when money hadn't yet become that big a deal.Now I'd never heard of Big League Tegwar before seeing this picture and I don't know if it was simply made up for the story, but it looks like it could be a lot of fun. With a little creativity you could almost convince a newcomer that the game was on the up and up as long as you didn't get too carried away. But getting too carried away is probably the whole point of it.For DeNiro, this was his last picture before really coming on as an actor with an appearance in "Mean Streets" as Johnny Boy in the same year. After that his career took off like a rocket and is still going as strong as could be. Michael Moriarty, well I never really cared that much for him, probably because I've seen him in too many roles like Hull Barret in Eastwood's "Pale Rider" where he's too much of a doormat. In this picture his character is a commendable sort to stand up for Bruce but his non-aggressive demeanor for some reason bothers me a bit.As for the baseball, there are a handful of scenes to give the picture it's flavor as a sports film, but if you're tuning in that's not the main reason to see it. It's the human drama that takes center stage here in a story that personifies the meaning of friendship and going the extra mile.

Tad Pole " . . . to carry my coffin," sings the back-up catcher of the pin-striped "New York Mammoths" MLB club as battery man "Bruce Pearson" (Robert De Niro), an eerie precursor of real-life N.Y. Yankees captain Thurman Munson, refuses to acknowledge the Grim Reaper swinging his scythe all around everywhere he goes. Munson went down in flames a day after driving in all the runs in a Yankees victory. (He had agreed to become the first Yankee captain since Lou Gehrig, not seeing any curse of pinstriped doom there.) Widely considered the saddest sports flick of all time, BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY ends on a bittersweet note. After getting the pennant-clinching hit, Bruce must waste away down in his native Georgia while his teammates sweep to victory in the playoffs and World Series. Bruce's career year ends with only ONE Mammoth attending his funeral. (As everyone but Pete Rose knows, there's been no gambling in baseball since 1919; they might have had "16 gamblers" on "The Streets of Laredo," but even the infamous Chicago Black Sox could manage just eight in 1919--and that's only IF you believe the verdict of "Hanging Judge" Landis.) Shoeless Joe would have been around to help shoulder Bruce had he been a Mammoth, but MLB had pretty much outlawed real men before BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY came out. Thanks to this movie, EVERY Yankee attended Munson's funeral.

Desertman84 Bang the Drum Slowly is a film adaptation of the novel of the same title by Mark Harris. It features Robert De Niro and Michael Moriarty together with Vincent Gardenia,Phil Foster,Heather MacRae,Ann Wedgeworth and Tom Ligon.It is directed by John D. Hancock.The screenplay centers on professional baseball player Bruce Pearson and his team mate Henry Wiggen, who supported Bruce to the bitter end after learning that the young catcher was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease and would soon die. When hayseed Pearson first joined the team, he and Wiggen, the team's red-hot pitcher were oil and water. The other team members were none to thrilled to have Pearson on their team. Wiggen changes his attitude when he learns of Pearson's illness, and when the other team members find out, they too become more helpful until the inevitably teary ending. The film is a touching melodrama that explores the inner workings of a baseball club and its players' personalities with remarkable depth.It is sentimental and predictable, but it's also very well acted by it talented cast.Finally,it is good to see a young Robert De Niro showing the talent that has made him one of our best actors.