Synopsis
Birdee Pruitt has been humiliated on live television by her best friend, Connie, who's been sleeping with Birdee's husband, Bill. Birdee tries starting over with her daughter, Bernice, by returning to her small Texas hometown, but she's faced with petty old acquaintances who are thrilled to see Birdee unhappy -- except for her friend Justin. As he helps Birdee get back on her feet, love begins to blossom.
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Cast
- Sandra BullockBirdee Pruitt
- Harry Connick Jr.Justin Matisse
- Gena RowlandsRamona Calvert
- Mae WhitmanBernice Pruitt
- Michael ParéBill Pruitt
- Kathy NajimyToni Post
- Cameron FinleyTravis
- Bill CobbsNurse
- Connie RayBobbi-Claire
- Mona Lee FultzTeacher
Recommendations
- 63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
This is a frustrating film that takes its cutesy title way too literally. - 60
The New York Times
Hope Floats, which often resembles a rosy commercial, does indulge in too much awkward slow motion, and in occasional embarrassing romps that are meant to signify family fun. - 50
L.A. Weekly
Cloying, unoriginal stuff, rescued -- barely -- by the easy affection that courses between Bullock and Connick Jr., and by the lovely cinematography of Caleb Deschanel. - 50
The New Yorker
Forest Whitaker directed with a slow, sugary touch -- and, one suspects, an eye toward the home-video market. - 50
Chicago Sun-Times
A turgid melodrama with the emotional range of a sympathy card. - 42
Entertainment Weekly
The pond is so shallow in this wan romance that there's no room for anything to float. - 40
Empire
Hope may float, but this bore flounders beyond salvaging. - 40
Austin Chronicle
Hope doesn't float in this film so much as it rises to the surface and then stagnates.
