- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) French, German, Japanese, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0
- Subtitles: English, English SDH, Danish, Finnish, French, German, Hindi, Japanese, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish
- Subtitles Color: White
- Region: ABC (Region-Free)
- Rating: PG
- Run Time: 128 Mins.
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Digital Copies: N/A
- Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: October 16, 2012
- List Price: $19.99
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Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2.5/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(All TheaterByte screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG at 100% quality setting and are meant as a general representation of the content. They do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
When Penny Marshall’s A League of Their Own was released in 1992, I was among the many who was ignorant of our nation’s history concerning the wartime women’s professional baseball league the film honors. Set during World War II, the film enlists a who’s who of Hollywood stars including tom Hanks, Geena Davis, and Madonna, to portray the story of the All-American Girls’ Professional Baseball League, a startup women’s pro-baseball league instituted by the Major League owners in the absence of many of the male players who were sent overseas to fight the war. Told from the viewpoint of two rival sisters, Dottie (Davis) and younger Kit (Lori Petty), who make it into the league on the same team under manager, Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks), A League of Their Own is a charming look back at a bygone era that tells a forgotten tale well worth telling. While Marshall’s direction often lapses too far into sentimentality, particularly in the film’s second half, League is rescued by the absolute chemistry by leads Davis and Hanks and the comic relief provided by supporting cast members Madonna and Rosie O’Donnell. Also of note is the fact that A League of Their Own doesn’t take for granted the sports scenes that are the crux of the film. The action sequences are every bit as realistic and intense here as the best of any male-dominated sports film, and that may be the biggest accomplishment for Marshall in this film.
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Apart from some film softness inherent in the source, this is a strong transfer from Sony, coming to Blu-ray in an AVC/MPEG-4 1080p/24 encodement transfer. It looks clean with a film-like presentation, strong detail on close-ups extended into midrange and sometime farther. Colors are natural, even if they don’t always leap from the screen as one would want them to.
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
A League of Their Own gets a solid lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) soundtrack that has an effective amount of atmospheric effects in the surround channels that convey that sunny outdoors feel well. The dialogue as some very slight crackle, but it is intelligible and natural in tonality as are the various sound effects such as the crack of the bats and the the sound of the balls hitting the gloves.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2.5/5]
The supplements offered on this release are interesting, but there is nothing groundbreaking here. The production featurette, Nine Memorable Innings, is a standard definition port-over and the bulk of the rest are deleted scenes that don’t add much.
The supplements:
- Director and Cast Commentary
- Deleted Scenes w/ Optional Penny Marshal Introductions:
- The Business Lunch
- Dottie and Kit in Kitchen
- Marla Eats on Train
- Pee Wee
- Babe Ruth Story
- Jimmy and Evelyn
- Marla Gets a New Glove
- Flaming Baton
- Marla Have a Cookie
- The Bus Scene
- Miss Cuthbert Throws Up
- Kit Strikes Out Guy
- Jimmy Hits IRA
- Jimmy Kisses Dottie
- Dottie Takes Out Marla
- “This Used to Be My Playground” by Madonna
- Nine Memorable Innings (1.78:1; SD):
- Pre-Game
- Inning #1 First Pitch
- Inning #2 The Starting Line Up
- Inning #3 Training Camp
- Inning #4 Suit Up
- Inning #5 Play Ball
- Inning #6 Player by Position – The Director
- Inning #7 The 7th Inning Stretch
- Inning #8 Great Players/Great Stories
- Inning #9 Cooperstown
- Post Game
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:4/5]
This charming sports film may at times become just a bit too sappy, but never you worry, there really is no crying in baseball. The film is rescued at every turn by its easy comedy, great chemistry between the actors, and strong sports scenes. The Blu-ray offers a solid transfer as well, so if you want it, go get it.
Additional Screen Captures
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Purchase A League of Their Own on Blu-ray at CD Universe
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[amazon-product]B00190KZVY[/amazon-product]
[amazon-product]B008OHV68Q[/amazon-product]
Purchase A League of Their Own on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:4/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:2.5/5]
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Great review Brandon.
I learned a lot from this movie as well; history has always been fascinating to
me and I was one of those girls that would rather be playing sports than
cheering on the sidelines. One of my fond memories of this movie is the comedy,
which wouldn’t have worked if the chemistry of the cast hadn’t been right on. Having
seen the original made me question whether seeing the film again on Blu-ray was
necessary, but coworkers of mine from DISH who know my love for historical
movies have said the Blu-ray version is worth it. If I remember correctly Tom Hanks,
who is one of my favorite actors, is hysterical as a washed up baseball player,
and thinking about his antics makes me want to buy the movie, but that can get
a little pricey. Besides, I made the decision to start renting from Blockbuster
@Home, which has saved me a lot of money, which has been helping me out a lot these
days. When A League of Their Own arrives in a couple of days, I look forward to
watching the gals play ball.
Thanks for your thoughts, Sadie, hope you enjoy it when it arrives! :)
I’m sure I will. I loved the original and Blu-ray makes everything sweeter, so I plan on watching it with my Mom. Thanks for repsonding to me, I loved the pictures you choose, especially the ones with Tom Hanks!