Leatherheads Blu-ray delivers great video and audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
Dodge Connolly, a charming, brash football hero, is determined to guide his team from bar
brawls to packed stadiums. But after the players lose their sponsor and the entire league
faces certain collapse, Dodge convinces a college football star to join his ragtag ranks. The
captain hopes his latest move will help the struggling sport finally capture the country's
attention. Welcome to the team Carter Rutherford, America's favorite son. A golden-boy war
hero who single-handedly forced multiple German soldiers to surrender in WWI, Carter has
dashing good looks and unparalleled speed on the field. This new champ is almost too good
to be true, and Lexie Littleton aims to prove that's the case. A cub journalist playing in the
big leagues, Lexie is a spitfire newswoman who suspects there are holes in Carter's war
story. But while she digs, the two teammates start to become serious off-field rivals for her
fickle affections. As the new game of pro-football becomes less like the freewheeling sport
he knew and loved, Dodge must both fight to keep his guys together and to get the girl of
his dreams. Finding that love and football have a surprisingly similar playbook, however, he
has one maneuver he will save just for the fourth quarter.
The Duluth Bulldogs lost to the Toledo Bullets today in a dirty game of professional league
football where a new and dangerous element has been creeping in: rules.
Football always makes for a great movie, and the sport lends itself well to numerous themes and
genres, from the inspirational (Rudy, Invincible), the
dramatic (North Dallas Forty, Friday Night Lights), or the comedic
(Necessary
Roughness, The Longest Yard). Be they films that focus on the high school, college,
or
professional level, one theme shared among all these films, and the vast majority of
football-centric
films, for that matter, is that they are all set during the modern era of football, from the 1970s
forward. Enter Leatherheads, a film that takes the tried-and-true football tale, but
travels back in time to the early days of professional football where sweaters and leather helmets
were the norm. Throw in plenty of laughs and a
romantic twist, all of which make it somewhat of a novelty among its football brethren.
It is a movie that's got enough spirit, charm, and romance to make it an acceptable date night
movie, too. Leatherheads is far from being the best football movie I've seen, but it puts
plenty of
points on the board for originality, fun, and another fine performance from George Clooney (The Perfect Storm).
Here's mud in your eye!
Following the First World War, football in America is big. In college, that is. Collegiate teams
thrive,
while the professional league finds itself floundering. The Duluth Bulldogs, led by the aging
Jimmy
'Dodge' Connelly (Clooney), are no exception. In fact, the team soon finds itself bankrupt with no
way to pay for train tickets for its players or the rental fee for a field to play on, and the team
disbands. Dodge, desperate to get back on the field, manages to bring aboard college football's
famed player and World War One national hero, Carter "The Bullet" Rutherford (John Krasinski,
License to Wed), a
move that instantly creates an influx of cash (even the team's practices are sold out), brings the
team back together, and places professional football back in the public spotlight. Meanwhile,
ambitious reporter Lexie Littleton (Renée Zellweger, Jerry Maguire) has
been
assigned to get to the truth behind Rutehrford's war heroics, stories that don't seem to add up.
Of
course, the three characters collide, both stars have their eye on Lexie, and whomever she
chooses
to get close too -- and the information she can dig up regarding Rutehrford's wartime career --
just
might have a profound impact on the future of professional football.
Leatherheads does a fabulous job of recreating an old-fashioned feel as it brings the past
alive with vigor and vitality, and the novelty of the setting for a football movie never wears old.
It's most welcome, in fact, and from the very first image we see on-screen -- that of an old,
golden-hued Universal Studios logo -- we get the feeling we're in for a rollicking old-fashioned
treat. Indeed, we are, and the movie serves up plenty of laugh-out-loud moments in the early
going. Stephen Root (Dodgeball), as
always, proves himself to be gold in a small role, this time that of a hack sports reporter who has
his stories and headlines fed to him by Dodge. Clooney, as expected, is the star of the show, and
he delivers another first-rate performance, reminiscent of his accomplishments in O Brother,
Where Art Thou? It's not that the films share a similar setting in time; it's that the
caricature Clooney lends to both roles share many of the same characteristics. Had
Leatherheads somehow been an extension of O, Brother, I wouldn't have been
surprised in the least. As it stands, however, it's a fine film all its own, though don't be surprised
should you spot a can of Dapper Dan in Dodge's possession in the film.
Also serving as film's director, Clooney has captured the perfect look and feel for the film, one
that exudes all the qualities found in the script -- comedy, romance, and gridiron action. Even
though the film slows down the second half (though it never comes to a grinding halt) and
features a concluding football game that is moderately exciting at best and somewhat
anticlimactic,
Leatherheads is still a fun, mostly brisk, nearly two hours of entertainment. Outside the
performances from Clooney and Root, and a solid outing from the remainder of the cast, where
the film truly shines is in it's costume and set design, and over-the-top sports moments. The
wardrobe is outstanding. The film is brought to life thanks to the fine wardrobe, and the football
uniforms in particular. Rugged, sometimes worn, and looking genuine, the costumes seen during
the games serve as one of the most crucial aspects of the film (let's not forget the movie is so
named for the leather helmets utilized by the players) and they sell the audience on the era
extremely well. Also of note is the overly dramatic, almost cartoonish way the characters handle
themselves on the football field. Over-exaggerated poses and motions serve as the funniest
moments in the film. When a quarterback throws a pass, he holds the pose, like a statue, for
several seconds, and his motions leading up to the pass are more robotic than smooth, capturing
the feel of old-fashioned footage and style extremely well.
Leatherheads doesn't fumble on its way to Blu-ray, as it offers viewers a fine looking
1080p, 1.85:1-framed high definition transfer. Colors are excellent throughout the film, and the
hint of sepia looks great; it lends to the entire movie an old fashioned look and feel. Also of
note is that the filmmakers chose to always shoot the football sequences on a grass field devoid
of even a hint of green. It's all tan colored, sometimes caked in mud, and it was definitely the
right choice for the tone and spirit of the film; a fertile field of luscious green grass just wouldn't
fit in with the look of the movie. Reds stand out as a bit more vibrant than the other colors.
Lexie's dress as seen in chapter 5 serves as an excellent example. Detail is absolutely fantastic as
well. The leather helmets, the worn jerseys, the caked-on mud, facial detail, the whole nine
yards, are all rendered very well on this disc. Look at the vest Bullet wears on the train as he
talks to Lexie in chapter 6. It's texture, flow, and detail is remarkable and features lifelike
authenticity. One thing I always like to see in high definition are old leather jackets (come on
Indy!) and the one Dodge
wears looks great. It appears worn yet loved, and couldn't look more
real were it hanging in your closet. Black levels are rich and true, too. Some scenes look like
they may have undergone a hint of smoothing, noticeable in several close-up shots of actors,
though the film retains a great look and strong detail overall. The print exhibits no speckles or
other random anomalies.
Leatherheads offers a fine high
definition transfer, as expected from Universal.
Leatherheads tackles your sound system with its DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack.
The
film features an excellent score, courtesy of Randy Newman (Cars). The music
practically engulfs the room, as does crowd noise, during a football game at the beginning of the
film. If there is one complaint, it's that this opening segment is far too loud at my normal
reference
volume. It does get more reasonable in volume as the movie progresses, however, and on the
whole offers a pleasing experience that isn't quite as active as I expected, but sounds just fine
nevertheless. Dialogue reproduction is incredibly strong, coming across as very crisp and precise.
The flashback war scene sounds nice, with a heavy rain falling all around the soundstage and
gunfire heard subtly in the background. The football scenes don't really offer quite "oomph" as we
heard (and felt) in Gridiron Gang, but
then
again this brand of football was played in a different era with different equipment than what is
utilized in Leatherheads. The soundtrack is very good. It won't turn any heads, but it
gets the
job done well enough.
Leatherheads hits Blu-ray with only a couple of extras. First up is a commentary track
featuring actor/director George Clooney and producer Grant Heslov. This track is somewhat dry.
The participants offer decent information, but their delivery monotone and bland.
Clooney delves into the shooting style for the film and how it relates to the era in which the film is
based, scenes that required substantial thought and effort to get right (such as what looks like a
fairly basic scene on the surface, dialogue between several characters), and little touches to the
film that serve to tie the story together (such as a wet sidewalk the night before a muddy football
game). The track might be worth a listen for fans, but most will want to scan through this one at
most. Universal has also provided a picture-in-picture commentary that offers the same comments,
but we'll see Clooney and Heslov pop up from time to time to add a visual flair to the commentary.
There is also an extensive picture-in-picture video track that features plenty of
interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and plenty more.
Leatherheads is a fun movie with a lot going for it, and even though it falters from the
middle of the film on, there is much to enjoy here, for football fans and non fans alike. Much of the
movie is pure comedy gold, and the romantic angle doesn't feel forced. The football segments are
more for laughs than serious sports action or drama, however, and when the focus attempts to shift
to the dramatic at the end of the film, albeit with a few more laugh-out-loud moments tossed in, it
doesn't quite work. Leatherheads is a
crowd-pleaser to be sure, featuring another fine performance from George Clooney, who is right at
home in a comedy or in a serious dramatic film (Good Night, and Good
Luck, for example) and is sure to win over even more fans in Leatherheads.
Universal's Blu-ray release of this film is fairly consistent with their previous releases. The picture
and sound quality are both up to par, and the supplements are decent, if not a bit on the thin side.
Football fans will love Leatherheads, and it's more than funny and romantically-inclined
enough to make it easy on the ladies in the audience, too. Leatherheads is a good movie
for most any situation, and comes recommended.
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced that they will release the George Clooney comedy 'Leatherheads' for Blu-ray on August 26th (not confirmed), day-and-date with the DVD release. No technical specs have been announced for the title at this time, ...
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring the George Clooney football satire 'Leatherheads' to Blu-ray on August 26th, day-and-date with the DVD release. No technical or supplemental information has been released for this release at ...
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