Sneakers Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Sneakers Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 25, 2025

Phil Alden Robinson's "Sneakers" (1992) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include archival audio commentary by Phil Alden Robinson and co-writers/co-producers Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes; archival audio commentary by Phil Alden Robinson and cinematographer John Lindley; documentary film; and vintage trailer. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The box with too many secrets

Note: The text below was used in our review of the British release of Sneakers, produced by Universal Studios-UK in 2013.

Robert Redford leads a group of highly-skilled hackers who get hired to do security checks. Their clients are big banks and private corporations that want the best protection money can buy.

A U.S. government agency contacts Redford’s character, Marty, with an unusual offer -- if his team steals a black box with a universal code breaker from a brilliant mathematician (Donal Logue, Blade), the government will forget about his long criminal record and pay him a nice bonus that will allow him to retire. Without knowing much about his target, or the precious black box he has designed, Marty asks his team of 'sneakers' to help him. They are: Whistler (David Strathairn, Good Night, and Good Luck), a blind sound expert, Crease (Sidney Poitier, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?), a former CIA operative, Mother (Dan Aykroyd, The Blues Brothers), a paranoid conspiracy theorist, and Carl (River Phoenix, My Own Private Idaho), a young prodigy. The 'sneakers' are also joined by Marty’s former girlfriend, Liz (Mary McDonnell, Donnie Darko).

Soon after Marty and his team steal the black box, they discover that with it, they can hack any security system in the world. With such a powerful device in their possession, the ‘sneakers’ instantly become targets for foreign governments with big ambitions, the mafia, and a crazy megalomaniac (Ben Kingsley, Shutter Island) with a ponytail who wants to change the world.

Sneakers looks somewhat dated now, especially when it tries to be too intelligent, but it still entertains quite well. It has a good sense of humor, and its different subplots are nicely linked to keep the audience guessing for as long as possible. A few of the big twists are somewhat predictable, but several also come with brilliant extensions that manage to surprise.

The narrative's biggest weakness is its enthusiastic promotion of random political speeches addressing social inequality and the upcoming New World Order. The various sequences where Marty’s old friend Cosmo (Ben Kingsley) recites his grand ideas are particularly annoying. The final act, where the ‘sneakers’ meet an unusually flexible government negotiator (James Earl Jones), also looks like an extract from a parody.

Redford is the most believable of the ‘sneakers’, but there are a couple of action sequences where he looks too relaxed and too old. Aykroyd is likeable but underused. Poitier and Strathairn manage their characters well, but at times they too look slightly underused. Phoenix is easily forgettable because the screenplay treats him almost like an outsider. McDonnell delights as Redford's ex-girlfriend, and at times even effectively overshadows some of the 'sneakers' around her.

Phil Alden Robinson's worked with cinematographer John Lindley (Phil Alden Robinson’s Field of Dreams, Joseph Ruben’s Sleeping with the Enemy), whose camera movement and choices of light and color make Sneakers appear a lot more stylish than it deserves to be. The soundtrack was created by James Horner (James Cameron’s Titanic 3D, Mel Gibson’s Braveheart).

*Professor Leonard Adleman, one of the three inventors of the RSA encryption system, which today is used all over the world, was consulted to ensure that the code breaker appears authentic.

Sneakers Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Sneakers arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release introduces a new 4K makeover of Sneakers struck from the original camera negative. The 4K makeover is also made available on 4K Blu-ray in this combo pack.

I have only one other release of Sneakers in my library, which is this Region-B release, produced by Universal Pictures-UK in 2013. I think that the previous presentation of the film is mostly good, but it has a dated appearance that was undeniable even more than a decade ago. (At that time, virtually all older masters that emerged from the major's vault produced very harsh visuals with unpleasant digital appearance. The old master that was used to produce the previous release of the film was one of the few that had fine organic qualities). After viewing the 4K makeover in its entirety on 4K Blu-ray and then spending time with it on the Blu-ray, I did not think that comparisons with the previous release were needed. The 4K makeover brings substantial improvements in all areas we scrutinize in our reviews, and they are very, very easy to appreciate on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. For example, the darker/dark material where colored light and shadows constantly interact convey outstanding delineation, clarity, and depth. In some areas, there is simply a lot more to see, and the perception of depth is completely different now because of how entire ranges of nuances look. Also, the density levels are terrific on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. The entire 4K makeover is graded with outstanding precision, too. All primaries and supporting nuances are impeccably set and balanced, allowing the visuals to reveal an enormously attractive period appearance. Because of the expanded color gamut and superior dynamic range of 4K, I think that the strength and accuracy of the color grade are more impressive in native 4K. However, I must make it clear that the Blu-ray still offers a mighty fine upgrade in quality. Image stability is excellent. The entire film looks spotless as well. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Sneakers Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I viewed the new 4K makeover of Sneakers in its entirety and later spent time with it on the Blu-ray. The comments below are from our review of the 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack release.

I viewed a good portion of Sneakers with the 2.0 track and liked it a lot. It has a great dynamic range and is very, very healthy. The 5.1 track is good, too. However, I have always felt that it could have had more surround movement to impress as a 5.1 track. Some of the action sequences throughout the film create great opportunities for impressive surround movement, but there is hardly anything meaningful happening there. The dialog is clear, sharp, stable, and easy to follow.

Sneakers Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary One - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director/co-writer Phil Alden Robinson and co-writers/co-producers Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes. The commentators reveal a lot about various phases of the conception and production of Sneakers, some developments in the original screenplay that did not make it to the film, the type of technology that was supposed to be the key piece in the narrative but was altered, the balance between the secrets and clues that are part of the narrative, the casting choices that were made, etc.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by Phil Alden Robinson and cinematographer John Lindley. The bulk of the comments here address the various locations that were used in Sneakers (some were in Los Angeles, and some in San Fracisco), particular lensing choices, the management of light/natural light and color, and even various editing decisions that affected the pacing of the film.

• The Making of Sneakers: Documentary - this archival documentary takes a closer look at the production of Sneakers. Included in it are clips from interviews with director Alden Robinson, writer/producer Walter F. Parkes, writer/producer Lawrence Lasker, Robert Redford, and inventor/hacker John Draper a.k.a. "Captain Crunch", amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (41 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Sneakers. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Sneakers Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Less comedy and political preaching would have helped Sneakers age much better. It is still an entertaining film, but it juggles two very different personalities in ways that at times kneecap it and make it look like a parody. Given the quality of its cast, I think that it would have been a vastly superior film had it been scripted to impress like No Way Out. Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release introduces an outstanding 4K makeover of Sneakers, almost certainly prepared by the same perfectionist party at Universal that delivered the recent 4K makeovers of Sea of Love and Uncle Buck. A 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack release is also available for purchase. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.