The Bounce Back (2016) Reviews

• Man, I got absolutely nothing from this move.

  subxerogravity2016-12-10

  Shemar Moore and Nadine Velazquez are two of the hottest people you could possibly put on camera, And yet The Bounce Back was sooooo flat. So flat it's actually impressive how flat and lifeless these two are on screen. Just proof that looking good is not enough to be a tolerable actor. I mean Shemar Moore has Been doing this for years right? I'm realizing I've never actually seen him in anything else or I could have been warned. I seen Nadine Velazquez in things like My Name is Earl and Real House Husbands of Hollywood. Both I love and both I love her in, cause she did good on both shows.... as a supporting actor. I'm guessing she's not ready yet to co-support a film. And I've seen Bill Bellamy at his prime when he was able to hold down his own flick (How to be a Player) so very surprise how his comedy bounce off of me like I was bulletproof. The movie was not awful but it was not good, it was flat very flat like a soda without the fizzle. Everything was lined up correctly, but somehow nothing sizzles. It's something to catch if you have nothing else, but it does not leave any after flavor. http://cinemagardens.com

• lazy, but pleasant romantic fare

  dave-mcclain2016-12-09

  I was wrong. When I included "The Bounce Back" (PG-13, 1:44) in the "Movie Fan Community" Facebook Page's "Wait for It Wednesday" post with the weekend's other nationwide releases, I referred to this film as a "romantic comedy-drama". It's not very accurate to imply that it's a rom-com. It's really more of a drama, without much comedy in it. I was also wrong in our "Throwback Thursday" post in which I related this movie to a "Retro Reel Review" of "Ride Along", referring to "The Bounce Back" as having a "mostly African-American cast". Actually, this cast is very ethnically diverse and, more importantly, the film almost completely ignores race and racial differences. Very refreshing for a bi-racial romance! Shemar Moore plays Matthew Taylor, a self-help relationship guru who has written the book of the film's title. He's confident, charismatic and, as one character says, "He's gorgeous". As the movie opens, with Terry Twist (Bill Bellamy), Matthew's agent and best friend at his side, he is busy promoting his book on local TV talk shows and conducting seminars in which he explains the principles in his book to rooms full of lovelorn women. He advises the women that the best way to get past heartache is to pretend the past doesn't exist, identify the future they want for themselves and focus on their goals. It's a message that clinical psychologist Kristin Peralta (Nadine Velazquez) thinks is naïve and uninformed – and she isn't shy about sharing her opinions. When her girlfriends (Megan Stevenson and Robinne Lee) take her on a weekend getaway that ends up involving attendance at one of Matthew's seminars, she tells him exactly what she thinks of him – in public. This leads to a joint talk show appearance which makes for great TV and leads to other offers for them to appear together. As the two of them spend more time together, since this IS a romance, they develop feelings for each other. But both Matthew and Kristin bring their emotional baggage on their travels – and into their relationship. Matthew wrote his book as a way to get past his divorce, but it's obvious that he may not have moved on as completely as he thinks he has. His frequent visits with his daughter, Aleya (Nadja Alaya), keep him grounded, but he's still romantically closed-off. Likewise, Kristin has had her heart broken, but she has been a little less successful at moving on with her life as Matthew has. Meanwhile, Terry has to deal with his dislike for Kristin, as he develops a love-hate relationship with a TV producer. "The Bounce Back" is a typical romance in some ways, and very different in others. Its story is uninspired and will remind Movie Fans of similar (and better) movies like "The Perfect Match" (2016), "The Ugly Truth" (2009) and "You've Got Mail" (1998). The script, by Victor Teran, Staci Robinson and Youssef Delara (who also directs), is mostly dull and lifeless and settles for characters who are as much cardboard cut-outs as those of Matthew, which appear in bookstores throughout the film. Delara's direction is lazy, which is especially apparent during the obligatory romantic montage which isn't much more than Matthew randomly pointing at stuff in Times Square. There's also a lack of realism in the casting which seems like simply a Parade of the Pretty People. Where the film does deserve credit is during its third act which is pleasingly romantic – and extra credit for its post-racial approach to relationships. Also, the performances of Bellamy and Alaya are very good. But those things aren't quite enough to warrant my recommendation. If you see this film and are disappointed, don't worry, you'll bounce back. If you see it and decide I'm wrong about my criticisms, that's okay. I know how to bounce back too. (Bounce back too – NOT Bounce Back Two. I don't want to give producers any ideas.) "C+"

• It is so bad that...

  Sherazade2017-04-21

  you can literally feel the cast struggling (with their d-rate talent) to grab at the strings of what should be the script. Characters pop-up everywhere and anywhere even when them being there makes no sense at all, the scenes (while trying not to be) are whiny and preachy and even the actors cannot seem to commit to the delivery of the insipid lines they are reading. On one end the film is saying therapy has no purpose but you're letting a life coach tell you what to do, on another end you're saying life coaching serves no real purpose but you're letting your vapid friends tell you what to do. This film has no real mission and therefore the only logical moral to any of the tales it tells is to solve your own life issues as you see fit, preferable without the help of this POS excuse for a film.

• Not as bad as I thought.

  Lovestories2019-01-31

  I actually enjoyed looking at all these beautiful people. And Bill was quite refreshing!

• Abs overload

  sweetdoxy2019-01-24

  I don't even know where to start. I saw the film about a week ago and thought of writing a review right after but thought I'd be too harsh so I waited in hopes to feel more positive about it. I don't. I can't say there was anything in the movie that I liked. Maybe the daughter character/actress. She was the most sincere thing in it. Now onto the things I didn't like, aka basically the whole thing. 1. I feel like this was made just to show off Moore's abs. Like, he is likable to me and he's handsome in a way but please!!! enough with the ab talk and how gorgeous he is. It would have been just as dumb if they had put in a fake boobed woman and then throughout the film keep mentioning how amazing her tatas are. So it was basically like a porn movie without the sex. No story, just showing off a person's body and heavily foucsing on mentioning how hot they are without any point to it whatsoever. 2. The lead female character was so unlikable. She was an angry mess and should never go anywhere near psychology or patients in need of psychotherapy. She can drive you insane all on her own. She was just nasty, unpleasant, unlikable, unstable, erratic... just horrible. There was no way to connect to her at all. She was made to look un-connectable too. Just a cute face or something. A nasty cute face character. 3. Now I don't exactly know what pills she took when she was about to get it on with the lead male but that's when I really lost hope for the film. They looked to be meds not illicit drugs and the ignorance was unbearable in the bed scene while she was drugged. You in no way shape or form start acting drunk when on those kinda meds and you never have a hangover/amnesia type of thing aftwerwards. It was so embarrassingly ignorant. It's horrifying how the writers, director and actress herself didn't know about this kind of thing. No research of any kind. It takes away from the credibility, depth and essence of the film. It's just random nothingness. 4. The film was just so shallow, mostly cause it was focusing heavily on Moore's appearance, it was impossible to connect to it emotionally. It was just showy. Showing off abs. How can one make a real emotional connection with abs!? 5.The girlfriends in the film were just useless characters. No depth no anything. 6. Moore's sad faces didn't really work that well either cause they were over shadowed by his abs. 7. Moore's speeches about love and life didn't work either cause they were over shadowed by everyone ooh'ing and aah'ing over his abs. 8. Okay, one little thing that was almost good was the rib bar scene where they owned each other with their agendas. If the whole film had been of the same level of that scene it would have been "fine" but right now, everything else was so much weaker. 9. The male lead's friend was supposed to be the comedic part I guess. The guy had potential and he peaked within the low standards of the film. I'd definitely watch him in something good. All the other characters were so empty and forgettable, the friend too but he stood out a little. All in all, a waste of resources. Everyone who wasn't part of writing this thing, I feel bad for cause I know I wouldn't want this poor thing attached to my CV. I hope they can all do better than this. I'd give it a 1 but for the daughter and friend character, I'll give both of them half a point so the total is 2 stars.