Everyone's Hero (2006)

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General		Extras
Category	Animation	Main Menu Audio & Animation Interviews-Cast & Crew
Rating
Year Of Production	2006
Running Time	83:18
RSDL / Flipper	RSDL (66:16)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Ads Then Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Colin Brady Christopher Reeve Dan St. Pierre
Studio Distributor	Anchor Bay Entertainment	Starring	William H. Macy Rob Reiner Brian Dennehy Raven-Symoné Robert Wagner Richard Kind Jason Harris
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	?	Music	John Debney

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    I knew very little about this children's animated film when I decided to review it but I'm glad I did. To my knowledge, this project did not get a local theatrical release and it was actually released originally in the US in 2006 after a number of years in production. It was also the project Christopher Reeve was working on at the time of his death in 2004. He is the first credited director and also an Executive Producer. This is not a major studio, big budget children's animated film however it is better than quite a few that are. It's no classic but it is solid and enjoyable entertainment with some very funny dialogue, good voice acting and an enjoyable if somewhat clichéd story.

    The story involves a young boy, Yankee Irving growing up in New York during the days of Babe Ruth (1920s & 30s). Yankee's father is a custodian at Yankee Stadium and he dreams of being a great baseballer. Unfortunately, he does not really have much skill at baseball and struggles to play with his friends. After one such game he finds a baseball in the sandlot where they play and is very surprised to discover that the ball can talk. Screwie (as Yankee names him) is an ex-major league ball who was hit out of the park on his first ever pitch in the majors. He is a bit disgruntled but slowly forms a friendship with Yankee. When Babe Ruth's bat is stolen from Yankee Stadium, Yankee's dad is accused of the crime and loses his job. Yankee, however, saw the thief (a rival Chicago Cubs player) and sets out to retrieve the bat, Darlin' and get his father's job back. This means he must travel from New York to Chicago and get the bat back from the Chicago Cubs, who are in the middle of the world series against Babe's Yankees.

    Despite the obviously American directed story, based as it is around baseball, it works for Australian kids (well mine anyway). There are lots of laughs mostly from Screwie (voiced by Rob Reiner) and the main baddie, Lefty (William H. Macy). Other voice cast members include Whoopi Goldberg, Brian Dennehy, Robert Wagner, Mandy Patinkin & Richard Kind. My kids (5 & 4) really enjoy this movie and laugh often and heartily while its on. The story also has a good theme of never giving up and keeping on trying even when things don't go your way. Unlike some American prouductions it does not overdo the 'message'. Technically, the animation is not as impressive as the latest Pixar features but certainly isn't embarrassing either.

    Definitely worth a rental for parents who are looking for something different for their kids to watch.

Video

    The video quality is very good.

    The feature is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio which is the original aspect ratio. It is 16x9 enhanced.

    The picture was clear and sharp throughout.

    The colour was very good with no noticeable issues.

    The only noticeable artefact was some very light grain in some backgrounds.

    There are no subtitles.

    The layer change occurs at 66:16 causing an obvious pause.
    

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is very good.

    This DVD contains an English Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 448 Kb/s and English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s.

    Dialogue was clear and easy to understand.

    The score by John Debney is well suited to the film without really jumping out at you. Some songs are also included which are enjoyable without being memorable.

    The surround speakers were used well adding significant immersion to the sound and specific effects such as crowd scenes, dialogue for offscreen or moving characters and trains.

    The subwoofer was used to add bass to the music and mild bass to things such as trains.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

    Extras are 16x9 enhanced.

Menu

    The menu included an intro, motion and music.

A Chat With the Stars (15:05) 

    Electronic press kit style interview segments with all the major cast and some crew. They have not been edited well and sometimes people talk without their being any sound. Nothing terribly interesting.

Trailers

    The Region 1 version of this movie was released early last year and includes a commentary and two featurettes along with English & other subtitles. Region 1 is probably the best choice if you must have the extras.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is very good.

    The disc has one extra which is uninteresting.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall