Thumbs up for ‘Tommy’s Honour’

In an attempt at full disclosure, I have always preferred the real to the unreal. When it comes to reading books, I prefer non-fiction to fiction.

That goes all the way back to my childhood. The other neighborhood kids were reading Disney Treasures, such as “The Adventures of Spin and Marty” (later a series of television shorts) or classics such as “Huck Finn” or “Tom Sawyer”. I had my head buried in books handed down from my older cousin – “Bill Stern’s Favorite Baseball Stories” and “Bill Stern’s Favorite Football Stories”.

They were the true tales from the famous broadcaster of the ’30s, ’40s and ’50s. He did the broadcast on the first televised sporting event – a Princeton vs. Columbia baseball game – in 1937. He is credited with formulating the “rest of the story” style of going behind the scenes, a style that propelled radio’s Paul Harvey to later fame.

I quickly learned that the real stories in people’s lives could be more fascinating than anything that was conjured in the mind of an author.

The same now holds true for motion pictures. While repulsed by the entire Hollywood scene – and most of the movies that are produced – I occasionally will drag myself into a movie theater to watch something that is at least based in fact.

There have been so few trips to the movies over the last few decades that I can almost recall all of the visits:

•Chariots of Fire – the 1981 film about two track athletes in the 1924 Olympics

•Goodfellas – the 1990 film based on the organized crime book “Wiseguy”

•Schindler’s List – the 1993 story of life in Poland during the Holocaust

•Apollo 13 – the 1995 thriller about space travel

•Seabiscuit – the 2003 inspirational story of a thoroughbred horse during the Great Depression

•Moneyball – the 2011 biography of Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane and his attempt to assemble a successful, low budget baseball team

•Unbroken – the 2014 tale of Louis Zamperini, 1936 Olympic runner who became a prisoner in a Japanese POW camp

•13 Hours – the 2016 expose of the terrorist attack in Benghazi

OK, I’ll admit that “Moonstruck” (1987), “My Cousin Vinny” (1992), “Analyze This” (1999) and “Analyze That” (2002) are a few fictional films that snuck in between all the

harsh reality. But you need to laugh sometime.

So, it was with that mindset that I attended the private screening of the movie “Tommy’s Honour” at the IMAX Theater in King of Prussia. The movie, the true story of Scottish golf champions Old Tom Morris and

Young Tom Morris, was released to the public over the weekend.

The event was hosted by the Golf Association of Philadelphia and was a veritable Who’s Who of the local golf community.

If your reason for attending was to see realistic golf, in the 1860s and 1870s, you were probably disappointed. Just as in most sports movies, the attempts to

duplicate championship athletic action comes up woefully short to the discerning eye. A trained golf instructor would wince at the swings of actors Peter Mullan (Old Tom) and Jack Lowden (Young Tom). The drama of the golf matches was over-hyped.

But the main theme, the story of a proud father, a loving wife, a rebellious son and a lionhearted champion was

very much worthwhile. It depicted the cavernous class distinctions that existed in Scotland 150 years ago.

And, it did so without the use of the ever-present vulgarity that afflicts most of the current Hollywood products.

At least, I don’t think there was any vulgarity. The use of the heavy Scottish brogue – especially by those who toiled beneath society’s upper

crust – made much of the dialogue unintelligible. However, the vivid cinematography and the ability to catch understandable phrases here and there allowed viewers to follow the heart-wrenching story.

For those who only attend movies with a happy ending, “Tommy’s Honour” is not a perfect serving. But, for those who enjoy an honest, vivid and wholesome portrayal

of human drama, this latest movie gets a surprise recommendation.