New film ‘It Ain’t Over’ an intimate portrayal of Yankees legend Yogi Berra

Yankees legend and baseball Hall of Famer Yogi Berra may be one of the best-known players in the game, and he may be one of the most misunderstood ones as well. It’s part of what drove filmmaker Sean Mullin to want to explore the life of one of baseball’s most iconic figures.

Mullin’s new film “It Ain’t Over” explores both Berra’s cultural impact as well as his impact on the field, and how his off-the-field persona has overshadowed his baseball accomplishments. The movie opens in theaters on May 12.

“It’s really interesting when you look at someone who has a personality that kind of outshines their abilities on the ball field. I think with Yogi that’s really what stood out to me,” Mullin explained to amNewYork during a special premiere of the film in Manhattan. “The fact that he was so overlooked as a player, you know, not during the time necessarily, but afterward. I think his personality kind of became a bigger part of his legacy than him as a player and we really want to take a look at that. Also, I think, people have a hard time allowing people to be both funny and good.

“They don’t want the jester to be the king and he was a little bit of both. It’s a really great look at a life well lived and that’s really what the film is about.”

Berra was one of baseball’s all-time great catchers, having been a 10-time World Series Champion with the Yankees, an 18-time American League All-Star and a 3-time AL MVP winner during the course of his career. And that’s only naming a small fraction of his accomplishments.

Away from the field, Berra was appearing in commercials long before it became the norm for athletes to do so and his “Yogi-isms” have lasted the test of time as part of American culture.

The film attempts to paint an intimate picture of the beloved sports icon and showcase the many facets of Berra’s story through tales from those who knew him best. Mullin, who described the movie as a “love letter” to Berra’s life and legacy, said he learned quite a bit about Berra in the process of directing the film.

“I like to say, everybody knows Yogi Berra, but nobody knows Yogi Berra,” Mullin said. “I knew he was a pretty incredible person going in, but coming out of it I was just really astonished at (the fact) he was someone who just always did the right thing no matter what. I think this day and age it’s really nice to have somebody to look up to, somebody the younger generation can look up to, but the older generation can look back and reflect upon.”

A number of familiar faces make cameos in the film, including baseball greats Derek Jeter, Joe Torre, Mariano Rivera, Joe Girardi, Ron Guidry, Willie Randolph, Don Mattingly, Tony Kubek and Bobby Richardson. Billy Crystal, Bob Costas, Vin Scully and Suzyn Waldman also appear, as well as Berra’s granddaughter Lindsay and his sons Tim, Larry, and Dale.

During the premier event last week, Torre spoke about his friendship and some of his fondest memories of the Yankees legend. The former Yankee manager recalled when Berra returned from self-exile in 1999 when the two were driving across Florida during spring training.

“He came to spring training and made every single road trip with us and it’s mainly driving places,” Torre said. “My funny memory is when we’d have take long car rides and we’re in uniform and there’s my friend No. 8 saying we have to stop ’cause I have to use the bathroom.’ We’d stop at a 7-Eleven and there’s Yogi walking out with his No. 8 into 7-Eleven and watching people…going ‘no it can’t be him.'”