Jumping the Broom
TriStar Pictures | Release Date: May 6, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
56
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews
Positive:
12
Mixed:
13
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanMay 4, 2011
You'll laugh - a lot - but you'll also shed tears of recognition at this funny, salty, strife-torn look at the agony and ecstasy of family. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasMay 5, 2011
This endearing picture is proof that it is still possible for a major studio release to be fun, smart and heart-tugging and devoid of numbskull violence and equally numbing special effects. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliMay 5, 2011
In style and structure, it mimics an old-style studio effort, a culture-clashing comedy of manners that's tinged with melodrama and filmed in a smart progression of medium shots. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsMay 5, 2011
The film works because the screenwriters, Elizabeth Hunter and Arlene Gibbs, have a knack for juggling a dozen-plus major characters without succumbing to the obvious class-warfare gags every 90 seconds. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertMay 5, 2011
The cast is large, well chosen and diverting. The ceremony is delightful. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderAndrea GronvallMay 5, 2011
Perceptive, faith-based romantic comedy. Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyMay 6, 2011
This buoyant, multigenerational comedy that takes its title from the African American wedding ritual has other distinctions as well. 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 full review
63
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottMay 6, 2011
These characters are so likeable, and so well-portrayed, that it's easy to go along with it all. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen ColeMay 6, 2011
Jumping the Broom also benefits from a great soundtrack (Al Green, Aretha, El DeBarge, Curtis Mayfield). Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia PuigMay 6, 2011
As wedding stories go, it's an improvement over the dreadful "Something Borrowed," though it doesn't have anything terribly new to say. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisMay 5, 2011
It's a self-conscious, inherently absurd tale of a rich black family invaded by secrets, lies, working-class loudmouths, and one or two pairs of pants found down around the ankles. Read full review
63
Orlando SentinelRoger MooreMay 4, 2011
The funny moments outnumber the warm ones. There's a touch of religion and plenty of melodrama, especially in the contrivances of a cluttered and drawn out third act. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanMay 6, 2011
Director Salim Akil has found actors skillful enough to enhance Elizabeth Hunter and Arlene Gibbs' conventional screenplay. Read full review
60
MovielineMichelle OrangeMay 5, 2011
Despite heavy-handed characterizations, Devine and Bassett make their stake in the union felt, and it's anything but superficial. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonMay 5, 2011
While Broom largely isn't a broad comedy, it still rarely goes for restraint in anything but tone. Read full review
50
St. Louis Post-DispatchKevin C. JohnsonMay 6, 2011
Amid other wedding movies crowding screens these days, not to mention Perry's "Madea's Big Happy Family," Jumping the Broom feels instantly familiar. And tired. Read full review
50
New York PostKyle SmithMay 6, 2011
It's the snobs against the slobs at a Martha's Vine yard wedding in Jumping the Broom. Mostly, it's a tie: Both sides are equally irritating. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. ScottMay 5, 2011
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 full review
50
Boxoffice MagazineTodd GilchristMay 5, 2011
Smarter than expected, even if it's too ragged to truly resonate. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovMay 5, 2011
The actors, particularly the icy Bassett and the fiery Devine, excel in their roles and drive home the film's multifaceted messages. Read full review
50
Village VoiceMelissa AndersonMay 3, 2011
A late-act crisis precipitated by scandalous maternity news is straight out of the Tyler Perry Academy of Plotting, and all the beseeching of the Lord sounds like little more than product placement. Read full review
45
NPRIan BuckwalterMay 6, 2011
Director Salim Akil deserves credit for keeping the film from falling apart completely. He sets a the brisk pace, and uses the picturesque oceanside setting to give the movie an inviting gloss even as the overstuffed narrative threatens to push viewers away. Read full review
40
Time OutAlison WillmoreMay 3, 2011
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 full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterKirk HoneycuttMay 2, 2011
A wedding comedy that grows increasingly unfunny with each passing minute. Read full review
40
VarietyJohn AndersonMay 2, 2011
A broad African-Amerian family comedy that manages to avoid many of the more predictable cliches of the genre, yet also leaves out the warmth and, too often, the laughs. Read full review
38
Washington PostStephanie MerryMay 19, 2011
Thank goodness for Tasha Smith's character, Shonda. She supplies the only reliable laughs as Pam's fun-loving best friend. Read full review
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