Great athletes can come from anywhere and some of the greatest have the most humble origins, which only makes their potential underdog or rags to riches stories all the more entertaining. Based on a true story, A Mile in His Shoes is about a young man with Asperger’s Syndrome plucked from his pastoral life in the care of his parents and recruited to play for a semi-professional baseball team. It’s a simple film with a basic plot we’ve seen countless times before, with the only addition here being the Asperger’s and the complications that come with it. A Mile in His Shoes is harmless family-focused entertainment that never attempts to do anything truly impactful or daring. Every emotion is toned down so as to be safe and sterile for children of all ages, and even the brief moments of intimacy or terror are drained of their potency for the sake of keeping everything a G-rated as possible.
Coach Murphy (Dean Cain) and his baseball team, the River Rats, have had a slow start to their season, and three weeks in they’ve yet to break their losing streak. Their manager sends Murphy into the countryside to find a new recruit, and what he finds is Mickey (Luke Schroder), a young man with Asperger’s syndrome and a throwing arm that just might save Murphy’s team. After negotiating Mickey’s addition to the River Rats, the team starts to rise in the standings while the former pitcher of the Rats grows ever bitter.
Considering what it is, A Mile in His Shoes has fairly good writing and coaxes decent performances out of Cain, Schroder, and the supporting cast. It’s nothing special, but as wholly and universally safe features go, A Mile in His Shoes goes the distance.
DVD Bonus Features
A simple making-of featurette is the only true extra, with a trailer and Thomas Kinkade art gallery rounding out the disc.
"A Mile in His Shoes" is on sale January 10, 2012 and is rated PG. Drama. Directed by William Dear. Written by Jason Koornick. Starring Dean Cain, Luke Schroder.
