IT'S A DINGER
"Reggie is a guy that can carry a whole ball club". That would be Reggie Martinez Jackson, Hall of Famer and scalding, home run hitter. Jackson won 5 World Series titles, was a 14-time All-Star, and played for 4 different MLB teams. Oh and he also had a bit part in 1988's The Naked Gun. "I must kill... the Queen". Oh Reg, you slay me, you really do.
With tons of interviews from Jackson's family, his major league colleagues, and major league players he currently mentors, 2023's Reggie is more than just about baseball. It's inching dramatis personae. There's racial oppression and monetary slavery involved and that all started from the beginning of this dude's storied career (1967-1987).
In truth, I found Reggie to be a documentary that's a little off the cuff but effectively raw. I mean when you hear Reggie Jackson speak it almost feels like he didn't even know the cameras were rolling. It's as if he were talking to one or two people in the room, not a mass audience.
Reggie is directed by Alex Stapleton, a woman who intersperses Jackson's likeness with his archived highlights of massive long balls and clutch performances. The whole effect is chronological and exhilarating, with Alex's subjects (mainly Jackson) being mildly angry and rightfully so (revert back to second paragraph).
Bottom line: Reggie is candid, resenting, and opinionated. A little self-serving? Perhaps. A little bit of a platform for a guy who hasn't swung a bat in decades? Sort of. Oh well. They say as a human you are the only one who can represent yourself and well, Jackson does it better and with more bravado than most. I mean he wasn't a producer on this and always gives off that love or hate feel but Stapleton renders the former slugger well on both counts. "Mr. October" shines here in March.
Written by Jesse Burleson
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