DVD Review HTF REVIEW: The Benchwarmers (1 Viewer)

[Aaron Silverman]

It should be clear by now that we're dealing with a rather low-brow picture that relies on sight gags and cheap stunts for laughs. That said, if you're in a fart-joke mood, you could do a lot worse than The Benchwarmers. As an added bonus, sports fans will enjoy Reggie Jackson's extended cameo appearance (as himself), as well as former NFL players Bill Romanowski and Sean Salisbury making fools of themselves for our benefit. (Has Romanowski finally mellowed out?) Despite some cruel comedic moments along the way, the film ends up on a positive note that won't leave a bad taste in your mouth (assuming you like "beef stew," that is!)

THE WAY I SEE IT: 4/5

For the most part, the image is quite good. It’s nicely detailed, with rich colors and deep blacks. Interestingly, the bitrate is extremely high – higher than most SuperBit titles, in fact. Things are marred a bit by a fair amount of edge enhancement and occasional digital noise, but overall, this is a fine-looking specimen.


THE WAY I HEAR IT: 4/5

The audio is on par with the excellent video. Dialogue and effects are clear and bright in the center channel, with the upbeat score mixed in all five channels. The LFE channel is put to decent use to enhance some of the effects, although it could probably have been even more active. If there’s a knock on the soundtrack, it’s that the surrounds are perhaps a tad low.


THE SWAG: 3/5 (rating combines quality and quantity)

Commentary With Director Dennis Dugan

This track isn’t too exciting. There are a few interesting tidbits about the production, but there’s also a lot of “he’s a really good actor,” “I really like this scene,” and that sort of thing. Dugan has a deadpan sense of humor that will work for some people but bore others.

Commentary With David Spade and John Heder

Spade and Heder banter and goof around for the duration. It’s moderately entertaining, but if you don’t like chatty, jokey commentaries, then don’t bother.

Deleted Scenes

Four scenes are included – play ‘em separately or Play ‘em All.

Featurettes

The four featurettes can be played individually or via a Play All button. All told, they aren’t too exciting, and include too many clips from the movie.

Nerds Vs. Bullies (5:46)

The cast members talk about their experiences as kids. It’s astounding how many of them were both jocks and nerds. Um, sure, guys. Whatever you say.

Mr. October (8:11)

Reggie Jackson relates his thoughts on making the film, while the rest of the cast lets us know how awesome it was to work with such a legend.

Play Ball (6:03)

The gang waxes poetic about America’s pastime.

Who’s On Deck (2:39)

A montage of clips of Howie, Richie's painfully agoraphobic brother (co-writer Nick Swardson), set to music. He was a funny character in the film, but I don't know that we really needed this. Swardson’s mother probably thought it was totally awesome, though.

Trailers

The trailers for Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Open Season play automatically when the disc is first inserted. They may be skipped.

• Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2:17) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• Open Season (2:19) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• Monster House (1:53) (DD5.1; 2.35:1 anamorphic)
• RV (2:20) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• The Pink Panther (2:04) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• Fun With Dick And Jane (2006) (2:08) (DD2.0; 1.85:1 anamorphic)
• Big Daddy (2:25) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• Joe Dirt (2:33) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• Ultraviolet (2:20) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• The James Bond Ultimate Collection (1:42) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 anamorphic)
• The Princess Bride (Dread Pirate/ Buttercup Editions) (1:38) (DD2.0; 1.78:1 non-anamorphic)

SUMMING IT ALL UP

The Way I Feel About It: 2.5/5
The Way I See It: 4/5
The Way I Hear It: 4/5
The Swag: 2/5

For the love of God, people – this is a Rob Schneider movie and a David Spade movie, all in one! You know what to expect. While The Benchwarmers isn’t going to blow anyone away, it’s good for a few chuckles and it isn't asking to be taken seriously. All things considered, it could’ve been a lot worse. Fans can rest assured that the A/V quality is solid, although the extra features leave something to be desired.

 

[Jordan_E]

I watched this last night, and all I gotta say is that it smelled like....beef stew! Terrible. And I likes a good, dumb movie every once in a while.

 

[Yumbo]

I thought it was funny!!! Quite. Didn't pretend to be anything else.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

OK, gang, my initial post is now updated with the full review. Enjoy!

 

[Jesse Skeen]

This is the first time I've seen a Thai soundtrack on a US release! Anybody checked it out? Looks like there's a total of 8 audio tracks altogether, the maximum the format can have. Pretty uncommon for one to actually have that many.

 

[Random Hero]

Aaron, do you think you could find out why Sony released a different version of the movie and didn't point it out? In the cinema, there were outtakes playing under the closing credits. I believe they are even referenced in one of the commentaries. They aren't available seperately as a bonus feature, either.

I was disappointed when I watched the movie yesterday and noticed this major edit.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

I didn't listen to it, but I have some Thai friends who could check it out if there's something you're wondering about.

On a similar note, the Chinese subtitles use traditional characters, but the dialect seems to be Mandarin. I wonder if it's actually Taiwanese (they use the traditional characters, but their dialect is similar to Mandarin IIRC).

 

[Aaron Silverman]

John,

I'll ask my contacts at Sony about the outtakes and post their response here. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!