- Aspect Ratio: 1:78:1
- Video Codec: AVC MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24 (23.976Hz)
- Audio Codec: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles: English SDH
- Region: A (Region-Locked)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 94 Mins
- Discs: 1 (1 x Blu-ray)
- Studio: Image Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: August 21st, 2012
- List Price: $29.99
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Overall
[Rating:2.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:4/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0/5]
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]
Home Run Showdown tells the story of 12-year-old Lorenzo and his quest to play the game he loves — the game of baseball. After not making the local team, Lorzeno decides to one up the coach by starting his own team! Enlisting the help of friends, his new goal is to convince one great minor leaguer Joey Deluca (Matthew Lillard) to be their coach. While this seems like a great idea for Joey, the only issue at hand is that if he does take the job, his opponent will be none other than his arrogant brother Rico (Dean Cain). Now it’s up to Joey to figure out how to shape these kids into the kind of team that can win it all! What results is yet another sports film that hits all the right pitches.
Having just reviewed a similarly themed sports film in Touchback, I had initially thought that another ‘rise above the odds’ film would be overbearing. Such isn’t the case as Home Run Showdown is every bit as entertaining as the numerous other sports film out there. Yes, this one shares all the same aspects as nearly every sports movie. We have the underdog team that everyone laughs at. Then there’s the bigger, badder team with, seemingly, all the elite players on it. In fact, this theme sounds so familiar that I couldn’t help but find myself thinking about the classic kids playing sports movies Little Giants. Like Giants, Showdown just has all around charming characters that help to bring home all these elements that, despite us seeing them a thousand times before, we just can’t help but enjoy.
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Home Run Showdown arrives with a 1:78:1 framed, AVC MPEG-4 encoded transfer, which looked fine for the material at hand. The film has the kind of palette that leans toward the brighter side of the spectrum with the gold sands of the baseball diamond and the greens of the trees. Black levels are also rock solid, with no instance of smearing or crushed blacks. There is a thin layer of film grain present, but nothing that becomes overly obtrusive. All in all, this is a good effort from Image Entertainment.
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Featuring a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, the provided mix is a notch below the aforementioned video. Dialogue is well reproduced throughout via the center channel. Atmosphere is a bit subdued, which kind of surprised me as I had expected a bit more response from the rears as this is a sports film. LFE, outside of the musical moments that open and close the film, is also reserved only occasionally showing up. All in all, I didn’t find many issues with this track.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0/5]
No features are included with this release.
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:2.5/5]
Despite not hitting any new ideas, Home Run Showdown is purely entertaining thanks in part to a series of characters we can connect with. While Image Entertainment’s Blu-ray for the film isn’t perfect with a solid video presentation and good audio track, I still am going to recommend this one as a solid rental.
Additional Screen Captures
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Purchase Home Run Showdown on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
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[amazon-product]B007ZULAJI[/amazon-product]
Purchase Home Run Showdown on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Film
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:3.5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:0/5]
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