6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Two guys who make a pact to lose their virginity before prom find their friendship tested when one of them comes out of the closet.
Starring: Sarah Hyland, Dakota Johnson, Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally, Gary ColeTeen | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Comedy | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.34:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
English, English SDH, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
UV digital copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 2.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
It had to happen sometime: in the seemingly endless litany of rom-coms, bromances, coming of age films and “lets lose our virginity together” outings, someone somewhere was ultimately going to figure out that there was a segment of the population not being served by these frequently tiresome and repetitive films: namely, gay folks. And so we have Date and Switch, an entry that is somewhat less raunchy than other films like, say, American Pie, but nowhere near as insightful as, say, The Spectacular Now, The Way Way Back or The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This is a “high concept” reworking of a pretty low concept formula, specifically two high school buddies making a pact to “lose it” before prom, or at least at prom, a vow which is thrown for a loop when one of them comes out of the closet. What's especially odd about this potentially interesting material is that the creative crew chooses to focus more on the straight guy than on the newly out gay guy, something that would seem to suggest that for all the hip and happening quotient of the premise, Date and Switch is resolutely old school when you get right down to it.
Date and Switch is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.34:1. This is a perfectly fine if ultimately unremarkable presentation, in fact rather like the film itself. Colors are solid and accurate looking, and the image is well detailed and consistently sharp. Contrast is also strong throughout the presentation, but overall nothing ever really pops in any meaningful way. Date and Switch again may remind some people of a sitcom filmed in high definition—it's absolutely fine on all technical levels, but it's not going to impress anyone with its visual brilliance. The transfer offers no artifacting issues of any note.
Date and Switch's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix falls pretty much in line with the rest of the film's content and technical presentations, meaning it's professional and well crafted but not very inspirational. The film's source cues are well utilized in the surrounds, and some of the noisier crowd scenes, like the party where the guys spill the beans to their girlfriends or (later) the big prom finale, do allow for some nicely effective immersion. Dialogue is very cleanly presented and there are no issues of any kind to report on the track.
Date and Switch is a middling effort which will serve as an adequately entertaining time killer for those who are in an undemanding frame of mind. While both Nelson and Yang show some promise here, there's a too facile approach to this material to ever generate much emotional connection with the characters, and as a result things just kind of happen without any great impact. The technical merits here are very good but, like the film itself, ultimately unremarkable.
(Still not reliable for this title)
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