Rebound
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that the film includes some mild language and the sort of physical comedy that shows up in kids' sports movies, such as head-whomps with the ball, punches and falls, and near-the-crotch hits. Coach provides a terrible role model for most of the film, concerned as he is with money and stardom; he soon catches on that the game and teamwork are most important. The film also includes brief shots of a smashed-dead eagle (obviously fake, but yucky), beer labels on TV, a child throwing up, coach's bloody nose, and a ridiculous bit where a preacher prays for the team's success.
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Martin Lawrence is a hoot!
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What's the Story?
After he loses his college coaching job, Roy (Martin Lawrence), is a laughing stock the "loser of the week" named by John Salley and Tom Arnold, on Fox's The Best Damn Sports Show Period. He lands a new gig at his former middle school. His team is comprised of predictable misfits, each cute and also troubled in his own way: talented Keith (Oren Williams) hogs the ball, little Ralph (Steven Anthony Lawrence) throws up when he's nervous, Goggles (Gus Hoffman) is fond of snack foods, One Love (Eddy Martin) needs to play defense, and Fuzzy (Logan McElroy) can't make a free throw. Coach adds a couple of more irregulars, tough girl Big Mac (Tara Correa) and six-foot, very sweet geek boy Wes (Steven C. Parker), in order to complete a team who will learn to rely on one another and do all Coach's drills without complaint.
Is It Any Good?
Tired before it begins, REBOUND never figures out how to handle Martin Lawrence's vibrant spacticity. As arrogant, bling-obsessive college basketball coach Roy McCormick, Lawrence is contained by clichés. The movie is most bearable if you consider the adults subsidiary and focus on the kids, in particular Big Mac and Wes, who develop something of a romance once he tutors her in math and she starts punching out kids who tease them.
The plot, such as it is, is rendered mostly by montages of familiar pop music -- practices, pep talks, games, rides on the herky-jerky school bus that Roy and Newirth take turns driving, and headlines announcing the team's miraculous winning streak. By the time you're hearing House of Pain's "Jump Around" on the soundtrack, you know the formula has run its course, that Roy will make the right choice, and the championship game will end unsurprisingly.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the lesson that the coach learns: how is it good to be a team member instead of a selfish showboat? How are friendship and honesty more rewarding than making lots of money and being on TV? More interesting, how does the movie challenge gender roles, by making Big Mac the strongest team member and the home ec teacher a man? How might you make a mistake if you judge someone on first appearance, as Keith's mother judges Roy?
Movie Details
- In theaters: July 1, 2005
- On DVD or streaming: December 20, 2005
- Cast: Breckin Meyer, Martin Lawrence, Megan Mullally
- Director: Steve Carr
- Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
- Genre: Comedy
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts
- Run time: 111 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG
- MPAA explanation: mild language and thematic elements
- Last updated: August 1, 2022
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