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The Perfect Game

Name: The Perfect Game
Director: Hugo Butler
Released: 1960
Duration: 87 min

Representation Score

2.1/10

Limited

1960

Approved

Director

Hugo Butler

Runtime

87 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The Perfect Game serves as a historical document for ethnic representation, particularly highlighting Mexican ability to act during the mid-century. By focusing on a Monterrey baseball team, the film breaks away from the era's typical homogeneous athletic narratives. However, the film remains tied to the social norms of its time, relying on traditional gender hierarchies and seeking validation through established Western institutions, which limits its progressive impact. Ultimately, while the film excels in showcasing racial and ethnic triumph, its lack of diverse representation in gender and LGBTQ+ identities keeps the overall score modest.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Perfect Game have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film does not feature any LGBTQ+ characters or narratives. It focuses solely on traditional family and sports structures of the 1950s.

How does The Perfect Game portray gender?

Limited

The story centers around male-dominated spaces such as competitive baseball. It follows mid-century gender norms, emphasizing masculine competition and patriarchal authority.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Perfect Game?

Good

The film centers on a Mexican team as the main characters. It highlights the ability to act of a non-Anglo-Saxon group navigating international competition and economic challenges.

How does The Perfect Game represent religion and culture?

Fair

The story validates success through traditional Western institutions like the White House. It celebrates triumph within a globalized, institutionalized structure.

Does The Perfect Game include disability representation?

Minimal

There are no characters with visible or invisible disabilities that drive the plot or are integrated into the narrative.

Present on Screen

Provides meaningful representation by centering a Mexican youth cohort as protagonists.
Highlights the ability to act of a non-Anglo-Saxon group navigating international competition.
Disrupts typical mid-century athletic narratives by focusing on Mexican identity and achievement.

Limited or Absent

Lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth narratives.
Adheres to rigid, traditional mid-century gender hierarchies and patriarchal structures.
Fails to include characters with visible or invisible disabilities within the narrative.

Official Synopsis

Inspired by a real-life history comes the feat of a small group, led by their manager, Cesar Faz, that achieved what no other Mexican team in Little League World Series had achieved before. This film recreates the miracle of the small Monterrey sports baseball team, champions of 1957, which were no longer unknown, facing adversity, the climate, the socio-economic differnces and internationally renowned rivals to finish conquering the unimaginable: the White House. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.

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