MOVIE REVIEW - The Bronze

Here comes a small movie that has a ton of local flavor in it, The Bronze.

But a word of caution up front.  This movie although a "gymnastics" movie, is a HARD R rated flick.  Quite frankly this is a pretty funny, naughty movie that isn't for everyone, as this has tons of highly offensive dialogue, and some crude sight gags as well.  But this did make me laugh.

This is the story of Hope.  She was a bronze medalist in the 2004 Olympics as a gymnast. She pulled off a miracle much like the real life Kerri Strug did in 1996, but competing with a badly injured foot.  Hope is from Amherst, Ohio and was supposed to win the gold that year.  So her career ended and she is now years older, and severely bitter about the old says. She hates pretty much everything and everyone.  She is back in her hometown and is a completely out of control, horrible to be around narcissist.  She is then charged with coaching the next possible Olympic champion, Maggie who is also from Amherst.  Will Hope lose her mantle as her little towns "darling?"

This certainly is not a perfect movie, and it will miss the mark with many.  The crudeness is hard to take after a while, and does get very old.  But this is funny parody at times of the entire gymnastics climate.  Haley Lu Richardson is very funny as the overenthusiastic Maggie, and the entire ensemble cast is pretty darn good. This was filmed in Amherst, and that's fun to see, and there is a nice use of an eclectic musical soundtrack.  This may be about 15 minutes too long as well, shorter would have been a bit better.

The Bronze. It doesn't medal at all, but does have a nice showing.  Being honest, I did see some people walk out, I believe because of the crude and crass.  But this does have its moments, and will strike a humor chord with the right audience.