COBB
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1995 Michael John Legeros
(WB)
Directed by Ron Shelton
Written by Ron Shelton,
based on the book "Cobb: A Biography" by Al Stump
Cast Tommy Lee Jones, Robert Wuhl, Lolita Davidovich
MPAA Rating "R" (presumably for language, violence, and sexual
references)
Running Time 128 minutes
Reviewed at The Carolina Theatre, Chapel Hill (9MAR95)
==
Tommy Lee Jones is the best thing behind COBB, director Ron Shelton's broadly played "biography" of baseball great Ty Cobb. By all accounts, the immortal Cobb broke more than just records. He was everything from a racist, to a wife beater, to a man who attacked a handicapped heckler during a stadium game. Jones plays the part wide-open, and you can't take your eyes off of him.
Costar Robert Wuhl is another matter entirely--he's *all* wrong for the part of the sportswriter-turned-biographer. The actor may have a greater range, but here he acts like the dopey sidekick. He shows about five facial expressions total and, since he's in nearly every scene, he basically kills the tone. The overblown music suggests that COBB is a drama. You'd never know it from watching Wuhl.
If this trip's worth taking it's because of the script. Shelton gives Jones a few great lines, and the actor hits each one right over the fence. On rude behavior: "life's too short to be a diplomat." On Babe Ruth: "he ran okay for a fat man." The gems are few and far-between, thanks to the poor pacing, but at least they're there.
When COBB finally wraps, it wraps thirty minutes too late.
Grade: C+
-- Michael J. Legeros Raleigh, North Carolina
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