Jumping the Broom 2011

Christy Lemire, Associated Press: Bowen is likable and has strong-enough timing to make these moments less cringe-inducing than they might sound. It's the rest of the movie that'll probably make you cringe. Read more

Adam Graham, Detroit News: It's fun at times, if a bit over-dramatic and a lot over-the-top. But by the end, you're ready for it to be over. Read more

James Rocchi, MSN Movies: ... a perfectly acceptable rom-com ... may not get too high off the ground, but it does, as they say, stick the landing, and that's good enough. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: Instead of being a wild mixture of tones, it has very little tone at all, and moments of dramatic or comic intensity erupt awkwardly and then fizzle out. Read more

Alison Willmore, Time Out: While Jumping the Broom showcases rarely depicted class issues within the black community, the film still relies on wince-inducing stereotypes to delineate them. Read more

Logan Hill, New York Magazine/Vulture: "The comedy is as familiar as the ceremony at a cookie-cutter wedding factory: Much feels old or borrowed; nothing feels new." Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: [It] is wildly overaccessorized, giving virtually every character an elaborate subplot (sometimes more than one). This results in a long, lumpy middle section of the movie, before everything comes together for a sweetly romantic ending. Read more

Tasha Robinson, AV Club: It all adds up to a more tasteful, restrained film than the average Perry joint, but taste doesn't imply quality, an escape from hoary rom-com cliches, or characters worth caring about. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: Everyone here is trapped in the movie's limited ideas of blackness. Read more

Andrea Gronvall, Chicago Reader: Class differences and family resentments add to the hubbub surrounding an African-American wedding on Martha's Vineyard in this perceptive, faith-based romantic comedy. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: A picture that gave me considerable satisfaction, partly because it wears its themes of trust and belief and faith lightly and easily, while taking them seriously. Read more

Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle: True, the script overreaches, crammed with too many characters, subplots and stereotypes. But at least it's trying. And at least there isn't a phony in the bunch. Read more

Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News: It shouldn't seem as novel as it does. Read more

Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: "Jumping the Broom" combines tried-and-true oil-water class tensions with the challenges of modern romance and family, then adds some African-American flavors. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Yes, there really is a way to make a boisterous, dramatic comedy about African-American life better than Tyler Perry does. Read more

Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: Family matriarchs played by Angela Bassett and Loretta Devine go up against each other in a wedding comedy that grows increasingly unfunny with each passing minute. Read more

Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: Clashes of class within the African American community are not often depicted on the screen, but "Jumping the Broom" tackles them head-on with humor, compassion and plenty of wisdom. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: Proof that you can have a movie like this without a polemic against successful women, or some man in a dress threatening to take off his earrings and pull out a gun. Read more

Ian Buckwalter, NPR: Every wedding comedy hinges on creating threats to the union, of course, but Hunter and Gibbs pile on half a dozen potentially ruinous scenarios and subplots where one or two would have been sufficient. Read more

Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: "Broom" doesn't take any risks or offer many surprises. But then, do most weddings? Read more

Kyle Smith, New York Post: It's the snobs against the slobs at a Martha's Vineyard wedding in "Jumping the Broom." Mostly, it's a tie: Both sides are equally irritating. Read more

Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: It's relatively raunch-free, it has a sparkling cast that reunites Waiting to Exhale stars Angela Bassett and Loretta Devine as combative matriarchs, and it likes its characters well enough to forgive them their faults. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: The bride and groom are in love, but their families are not. That was good enough for "Romeo and Juliet," and it still sorta works with "Jumping the Broom." Read more

Kevin C. Johnson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: The film's main thread, the class clashes, simply aren't enough to make this unnecessary movie worthwhile. Read more

Stephen Cole, Globe and Mail: What prevents the film from being a real crowd-pleaser, the Philadelphia Story that it clearly wants to be, are the marrying couple. Read more

Ashante Infantry, Toronto Star: When the sushi-vs.-soul-food jokes wear thin, this film is carried by its universal themes, such as parenting, commitment, sacrifice and loss. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: The humor arises naturally from situations, but the story teeters into melodrama. Still, watching impressive actors like Bassett and Devine face off is a highlight. Read more

John Anderson, Variety: A wedding movie that may have viewers rooting for divorce lawyers. Read more

Melissa Anderson, Village Voice: A wan attempt to mine class clash for both jokes and teachable moments. Read more

Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: No matter how crazy you think your mother is, it can't get much worse than this. Read more