In this week’s episode of the Film at 11 podcast, I sit down with my son to watch the very kid-friendly baseball flick The Sandlot. It was a first-time viewing for the both of us. Afterward, we share our thoughts on the movie from both a parent’s and a Fifth Grader’s perspective.
I was 19-years-old when The Sandlot first premiered in 1993, and felt myself too old at that time to watch kids’ movies anymore. I continued to pass it by for many more years for the same reason. Finally forcing myself to watch it with my son Joseph (who has played a bit of Little League and is a baseball fan), I found the movie perfectly charming and delightful. It’s like a softer, decidedly more lightweight and less complex version of Stand By Me, but could perhaps serve as a gateway for leading my kids into that film a little later, when they’re ready for it.
As an adult, I was also pleased to see Karen Allen play the mom and amused by a young Denis Leary in one of his earliest movie roles as the emotionally-neglectful stepdad.
| Title: | The Sandlot |
| Year of Release: | 1993 |
| Director: | David Mickey Evans |
| Watched On: | Disney+ |
| Also Available On: | Blu-ray Various VOD rental and purchase platforms |
Video Streaming
20th Century Fox first released The Sandlot on Blu-ray in 2011, followed by anniversary reissues in 2013 and 2018. As far as I’m aware, they all amount to the same disc in different packaging. I don’t own any of them. The DVD case you may notice me holding in the podcast episode was just a mock-up. For this viewing, my son and I watched the movie on Disney+, where it streams in 1080p high-definition, almost certainly sourced from the same a/v master as the Blu-rays.
I have no serious complaints about the way the movie looks on streaming. The 2.39:1 image is bright and sharp enough, with colors that are solid if unexceptional. It doesn’t have much in the way of contrast, but I tend to believe that’s just the way the movie was photographed. This isn’t the most stylish of films, but it’s perfectly watchable.
The 5.1 soundtrack has nice music separation and a modest amount of surround activity. Dialogue is clear and fidelity of the music (both licensed songs and the score by David Newman) is pleasing. However, the louder moments in the movie – such as the big dog chase and ensuing chaos – sound strained. Whether that’s a compression problem or just a limitation of the original mix, I can’t say. This was never meant to be a big action blockbuster. It sounds fine.
Related
- Coming-of-Age Movie
- Karen Allen (star)
- James Earl Jones (star)
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