The ultimate moment in "Roll Bounce," the new roller-skating movie set in the late 1970s that can't firmly decide whether it's a knee-slapping spoof or a teary-eyed melodrama, may be the entrance of Chicago's he-man, Afro'd, roller-rockin' Sweetness. Portraying the film's sinister, roller-skating phenom, actor Wesley Jonathan strides on skates into the neon-lit rink in flowing, cream-colored polyester, his preening posture screaming the Travolta aura of the disco-swirling "Saturday Night Fever" and his open shirt revealing a muscled chest with pecs that explode like Vesuvius. We haven't seen this much overblown onscreen manhood since Ricardo Montalban burst onto "Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan" with enough chest prosthetics to poke out a bystander's eye. Read the full review
In the late '70s when roller skating was a way of life, X (Bow Wow) and his pals ruled supreme. But when the doors of their local skating rink close, the boys venture into foreign territory: uptown's Sweetwater Roller Rink, complete with its over-the-top skaters and beautiful girls.
Director: Malcolm D. Lee
Starring: Bow Wow, Chi McBride, Mike Epps, Wesley Jonathan, Meagan Good
Run time: 112 minutes
Release date: Sept. 23, 2005
Rating: PG-13 for language and some crude humor.
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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: C
"Roll Bounce is creatively bouncy. It's worth watching, and then it's not. It's entertaining, and then it's not."
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