WSR Detailed LaserDisc Review

Waterboy, The
Genre:Comedy

Reviewed In Issue 32 Of Widescreen Review® Stars:
Adam Sandler, Kathy Bates, Fairuza Balk, Jerry Reed, Henry Winkler

WSR Review Scores
Picture Rating: 3.5
Sound Rating: 4.5
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Reference Systems
Critics' Composite Score:
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Supplementals

DVD General Information
(Studio/Distributor): Touchstone Home Video
(Catalog Number): 1590 AS
(MPAA Rating): PG13
(Retail Price): $29.99
(Running Time In Minutes): 90
(Color Type): Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access): Yes
(Closed Captioned): Yes
(Theatrical Release): 1998
(LD Release Date): 3/99
(THX® Digitally Mastered): No

Credits Information
(Director): Frank Coraci
(Screenplay/Written By): Tim Herlihy & Adam Sandler
(Story):
(Music): Alan Pasqua
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer): Perry Andelin Blake
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor): Tom Lewis
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers): Adam Sandler
(Co-Producers): Ira Shuman
(Producers): Robert Simonds & Jack Giarraputo

DVD Picture Information
(Principal Photography): Academy Standard Flat
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio): 1.85:1
(Measured LaserDisc Aspect Ratio): 1.82:1

DVD Sound Information
(DVD Soundtrack): Dolby Digital Surround
(Theatrical Sound): DTS, SDDS & Dolby Digital
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(Remastered Dolby Digital): No
(Remastered DTS Digital Surround): No
(Additional Languages):

WSR Narrative Review
Story Synopsis:
Bobby Boucher (Adam Sandler) is a simple-minded Louisiana Bayou boy who loves his squirrel-eatin’ Mama (Kathy Bates) and his job as The Waterboy. When the hot-shot college coach (Jerry Reed) fires Bobby from his job, he finds a home with a rival school’s football program. Soon Bobby’s true talent is revealed when the team’s beleaguered Coach Klein (Henry Winkler) tells him to fight back when he’s picked on, and suddenly he moves from a nobody to the team’s secret weapon and becomes an inspiration to downtrodden losers everywhere.

LaserDisc Picture:
The 1.82:1 LaserDisc exhibits eye-popping vibrant colors that are slightly oversaturated with orangeish fleshtones. Images are sharp and detailed, but often appear plugged-up and occasionally softly focused. Contrast and shadow delineation are mediocre, and often wanting in visual information in the darkest scenes. Minor noise is apparent on both versions. The flashback black-and-white scenes are intentionally poorly contrasted with distracting artifacts and noise.

LaserDisc Soundtrack:
The soundtrack is often “manufactured” sounding with ADR-processed dialogue that has poor spatial integration. The discrete 5.1 Dolby® Digital soundtrack, while at times enhanced with aggressive split surrounds, is slightly less coherent sounding compared to the spatial soundfield image projected by the matrix PCM soundtrack. The music score is well recorded with an especially wide discrete soundstage presence that wraps into the surrounds. While bass is deep sounding on the matrix PCM version, at times the discrete .1 LFE enhancement delivers effective punch.
(Surround Bass Below 50Hz): Yes
(Aggressive System Surround): Yes
(Intense 25Hz Bass): No
(Deep Bass Challenging): No
(Aggressive 0.1 LFE):
(Holosonic Soundfield): Yes
(Aggressive Split Surround): Yes
(Center Back Surround Imaging): No
(Directionalized Dialogue): No
Superb Sound Effects Recording Quality:
Superb Music Score Recording Quality:
Yes
Superb Special Visual Effects Quality:
No
Superb Color Fidelity:
No
Superb Cinematography:
-
Reference LaserDisc:
No
Collector Edition:
No
DVD To LaserDisc Comparison:
The LaserDisc and non-anamorphic DVD both exhibit eye-popping vibrant colors that are slightly oversaturated with orangeish fleshtones. Images are sharp and detailed on both versions, but often appear plugged-up and occasionally softly focused. The DVD, viewed in component video, is slightly sharper in fine detail and definition when compared to the LaserDisc, and colors are not as distractingly oversaturated. Contrast and shadow delineation are mediocre, and often wanting in visual information in the darkest scenes. Minor noise is apparent on both versions. The flashback black-and-white scenes are intentionally poorly contrasted with distracting artifacts and noise. The DVD and LaserDisc measure 1.82:1. The soundtrack is often “manufactured” sounding with ADR-processed dialogue that has poor spatial integration. The discrete 5.1 Dolby® Digital DVD and LaserDisc soundtrack, while at times enhanced with aggressive split surrounds, is slightly less coherent sounding compared to the spatial soundfield image projected by the matrix PCM LaserDisc soundtrack. The music score is well recorded with an especially wide discrete soundstage presence that wraps into the surrounds. While bass is deep sounding on the matrix PCM version, at times the discrete .1 LFE enhancement delivers effective punch.