Review of Hope Floats (1998) by Kyle D — 11 Oct 2016

Hope Floats starts with Birdee (Sandra Bullock) appearing on a live talk show together with her best friend and her husband where her best friend confess that she is having an affair with Birdee's husband Bill. shattered by the situation, Birdee takes her daughter Bernice (Mae Whitman) and moves back to her hometown Smithville, to live with her mother Ramona (Gena Rowlands) where she can start a new life. Birdee finds out that the situation is more difficult than what she was thinking. She tries to find a job and strengthen the bond with her mother and daughter. She also meets her old friend Justin Matisse (Harry Connick) and they fall in love with each other.

The movie has a simple story, concentrating more on relationships but has many flaws.

The Good Stuff:

- Gena Rowlands: Her part and character was the best as the lovable mother. She gave a nice performance while the same cannot be said about the rest.

- Music: The music was cool. there were some good country tracks going on.

The Neutral Stuff:

- Sandra Bullock: I love Sandra, but I think here she was just OK not the Bullock we know who is full of energy but again not a bad performance either.

The Bad Stuff:

- Cinematography: I did not like the way this movie was shot. It did not appeal to me at all. A romantic family drama film should have a brighter cinematography. More vivid.

- Direction: The development of characters was weak. The film starts with Bullock getting a shock. even though you get to know how she used to be before the incident from the dialogue but again this was not enough to make you feel sorry for her. The direction was not good. You can feel it because it felt like there were so many missing things between the scenes.

Some Interesting Facts:

- This movie has generated over $81M of revenues at the box office.

Avoid it unless you are a die hard Sandra Bullock fan.

Final Verdict: To be Avoided.

The Ratings:

-Entertainment: 30%.

-Performances: 60%.

-Direction: 40%.

-Cinematography/Special effects: 30%.

-Background Music: 60%.

-Duration: 40%.

Overall: 43% ====> 40%.