The Rookie [P&S]

Director: John Lee Hancock John Lee Hancock

Overview

"The sports drama The Rookie comes to DVD from Buena Vista Home Entertainment with a 1.33:1 full frame transfer. The audio is available in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround in both English and French, with subtitles in English and Spanish. There are quite a few extra features on this disc, including four deleted scenes introduced by the director, John Lee Hancock. There is also an optional commentary featuring Hancock and star Dennis Quaid. Two featurettes are included: ""Spring Training: Tips From the Pros,"" hosted by baseball coordinator Mark Hills, and a 20-minute documentary called ""The Inspirational Story of Jim Morris: Meet the Real Rookie."" In addition, there are several trailers for other Disney movies, like Monsters, Inc., Lilo & Stitch, and Inspector Gadget 2."

Product Details

Release Date:	08/27/2002
UPC:	0786936197372
Original Release:	2002
Rating:	G
Source:	Walt Disney Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Full Frame]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:07:00
Sales rank:	16,835

Special Features

Closed Caption;Audio commentary - Dennis Quaid and director John Lee Hancock; "The Inspirational Story of Jim Morris" - Meet the real Rookie; Spring Training: baseball tips; Deleted scenes introduced by director John Lee Hancock; Dobly Digital 5.1 Surround Sound; Fullscreen (1.33:1); French language track; Spanish subtitles

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Dennis Quaid	Jim Morris
Rachel Griffiths	Lorri Morris
Jay Hernandez	Joaquin `Wack' Campos
Brian Cox	Jim Sr.
Beth Grant	Jimmy's Mother
Angus T. Jones	Hunter
Rick Gonzalez	Rudy Bonilla,David
Chad Lindberg	Joe David West
Angelo Spizzirri	Joel De La Garza
Royce D. Applegate	Henry
Russell Richardson	Brooks
Raynor Scheine	Frank
David Blackwell	Cal
Blue Deckert	Baseball Scout Dave Patterson
Daniel Kamin	Durham Manager Mac,Mac
Robert Logan	Steve Dearborn
Matt Williams	Owl Player No. 1,Orlando Umpire No. 1
Miguel Salas	Owl Player No. 2
Eddie Alvarado	Owl Player No. 3,Wack's Sister
Brandon Garner	Owl Player No. 4
Ernest Vidaure	Owl Player No. 5
Canuto Rey Guerrero	Owl Player No. 6
Rebecca Spicher	Jessica
Raymond Rivera	Janitor
Marco Sanchez	Sanchez
Cynthia Dorn	Esther
Cory Shane Harris	Cory Jones
Seth Spiker	Tryout Catcher
Beau Holden	Orlando Heckler
Brandon Smith	Orlando Manager
Chris Sheffield	Snow Covered Catcher
Cameron Banfield	Jimmy's Brother
Barbie Burke	Female Student
Kyle Scott Jackson	Baseball Scout,High School Umpire No. 2
Bert Beatson	Player With Headphones
Tony Moore	Kenny Justin
Brian Shoop	Durham PR Director
Mark Ciardi	Tim Stewart
Matt Targac	Player Behind Backstop
Tiger King	Durham Catcher
Willie Dirden	Locker Room Attendant
Chuck Morgan	Texas Rangers P.A. Announcer,Young Jim
Eric Nadel	Texas Rangers Radio Announcer
Richard Dillard	Devil Rays Manager
James Fletcher	Devil Rays Pitching Coach
John Wayne Shafer	Reporter No. 1
Charles Sanders	Reporter No. 2
Randall Wallace	Texas Oilman
Quincy Wickson	Little League Umpire
Keith Mears	High School Umpire No. 1
Jim Morris	Orlando Umpire No. 2
Gavin Forbis	Orlando Catcher
J.D. Evermore	Relief Pitcher No. 1
Robert Ellis	Relief Pitcher No. 2
Julio Cedillo	Relief Pitcher No. 3
Fred Osuna	Major League Umpire No. 1
Mark Baletka	Major League Umpire No. 2
Thomas Newman	Composer
Carter Burwell	Composer

Technical Credits

Mike Rich

John Lee Hancock	Director
Mike Rich	Screenwriter
Mark Ciardi	Producer
Gordon Gray	Producer
Mark Johnson	Producer
Ronna Kress	Casting
Randy E. Moore	Special Effects
Philip Steuer	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

Stylish and well-crafted, this sports melodrama doesn't offer up much that is new in its oft-clichéd milieu, but the well-traveled paths down which it trods are reliable ones. If not for the film's badly distended running time it might have ended up, despite its lack of originality, in a genuinely affecting place. It's too bad that director John Lee Hancock and screenwriter Mike Rich don't get that their project is fundamentally G-rated schmaltz that's been road-tested and sanitized for Middle American bourgeois viewing. There's nothing wrong with candy corn cinema when it's self-aware, but the filmmakers seem to be laboring under the delusion that they're crafting a 21st century Field of Dreams (1989) instead of the latest family-friendly Disney concoction. The bloated two-hours-plus length betrays their pretensions, with nearly every scene slogging on long past the point where it should have been cut. The Rookie is definitely not a bad film; it benefits from its factual origins enough that the third-act payoff is genuinely affecting, and the performance by Dennis Quaid is thankfully free of irony or self-pity. It's just that the art of editing at either the script or at the final cut stage could have helped tremendously to disguise the artificiality that's being employed to manipulate viewers.