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This film has everything needed for
critical and commercial success. First off, it is based on the
novel by legendary author Elmore Leonard, whose books have equaled
marvelous films like "Get Shorty" and "Jackie
Brown". Secondly, it was directed by the great George
Armitage, whose last film, 1997's "Grosse Point Blank",
was one of the best romantic comedies of all-time. Finally,
there is the dream cast assembled: Owen Wilson, Charlie Sheen,
Vinnie Jones, Morgan Freeman, Sara Foster, Gary Sinise, Willie
Nelson, and Harry Dean Stanton. So, what in the flying hell
went wrong? Beats me -- but it did.
Owen
Wilson stars as a beach bum/athlete named Jack Ryan, who falls for
Nancy Hayes (Sara Foster), who unfortunately happens to be the
mistress of resident bad guy Ray Ritchie (Gary Sinise), whose right
hand man Lou Harris (Vinnie Jones) gets into a televised fight with
Ryan. Charlie Sheen co-stars as Bob, Jr., Ritchie's henchman
and Morgan Freeman rounds out the cast Walter Crewes, the man who
gives Ryan a job at his resort, which is what really sets up all the
mayhem. As you can tell, with most any Elmore Leonard
adaptation, this plot has a lot of characters, a lot of motives, and
a lot of things going on at the same time. In some ways, that
reminded me of the superior Dave Barry adaptation, "Big
Trouble", which was really an homage to Leonard.
THE
CAST: Surprisingly, the performances are decent. Every
actor adds his/her own flavor to their role, and they seem to be
having fun. You just have to wonder if they didn't know what
kind of train wreck they were in for. Surely, Morgan Freeman
had to have just been there for the paycheck, unless he is just such
a huge Elmore Leonard fan that he would risk his reputation.
And, Owen Wilson is one of the rising stars in Hollywood -- it makes
you wonder what moved him to this project? Charlie Sheen and
Vinnie Jones have the most fun with their roles, and they seem at
ease with their characters. I kept waiting for Dennis Farina
to pop up in a tree house with a sniper rifle, but that never
happened -- only in Dave Barry's world.
THE
DIRECTOR: George Armitage has this knack for making
aesthetically pleasing films, and "The Big Bounce" does
have that going for it. Hawaii is filmed in a very minimal
way, with little attention to the stereotypes and clichés we are
usually force-fed about the islands. In this film, the
characters seem like they are living in their own little colorful
worlds. And, that is the only thing that works -- more
attention is paid to the colorful characters than to the colorful
surroundings. Had the film been set in Boston, that would not
have worked. Since it is set in Hawaii, it succeeds. I
just wonder how many scripts Armitage passed over during his seven
year break between "Grosse Point Blank" and "The Big
Bounce"?
As a
whole, "The Big Bounce" just doesn't cut the mustard.
There are some aspects of the film that are pretty clever and worth
watching, but the majority are just the same old material we have
seen time and time again. There is an older version of this
film from 1969, starring Ryan O'Neal, that I find to be much more
enjoyable and entertaining. If you can find it on VHS or DVD,
check it out instead. If not, "Big Trouble" always
makes me laugh. Also, don't forget about the plethora of good
Elmore Leonard adaptations, like: "Get Shorty",
"Jackie Brown", "Out of Sight", and
"52-Pick Up".
-- Billy
Ray (
1 1/2 out of 4 pops )
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