“Rebound” (리바운드)

By Jae-Ha Kim
Substack
September 16, 2023

☆☆☆☆
Kang Yang-hyun (played by Ahn Jae-hong)
Cheon Ki-beom (played by Lee Shin-young)
Bae Gyoo-hyeok (played by Jeong Jin-woon)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

“Rebound” is based on the true story of Busan’s Jungang High School basketball team. Long past its glory years, the team isn’t a priority for the school’s administration. They hire a young and inexperienced basketball coach, Yang-hyun (Ahn Jae-hong), who during his own Jungang school days was a champion athlete.

Though the gym is run-down and he is given almost no budget, he cobbles together a scrappy team of players who will eventually beat the odds to reach an elite level. Will they win the 2012 championship against teams that are more seasoned? The ending may surprise you and I won’t it by telling you what happens. But what I can say is that this film is both sentimental and rousing, in the same way that “Racket Boys” was. And it’s full of strong performances by the actors, who have some basketball experience.

Since this is a fictionalized version of real events, the timeline has been condensed. What took about three years to achieve in real life occurs within one school year. Though anyone who has seen underdog stories about teenagers will be able to guess some of the story arcs, there are some nice plot twists to keep viewers on our toes.

One of the things I really appreciated about this film is that while winning is the goal for any athletics team, the process is also important. This was stressed throughout “Rebound.” Teaching sportsmanship and how to show support for team members who you don’t even necessarily like — all of this helps teenagers grow. The reality is that most student athletes will never reach the elite pro level, and that’s OK. But a good coach can help his players navigate life better, regardless of what they end up doing when they’re older.

Written by Kim Eun-hee (of “Kingdom” fame) and directed by her husband Jang Hang-jun, “Rebound” isn’t a revelation. But it is a lot of fun and a film well worth watching. In the final moments, the filmmakers show archival footage of the real-life Jungang High School basketball team. And, truth be told, it made me a little verklempt.

Film release: This 122-minute movie released on April 5, 2023 in South Korea. I watched this on my recent flight to South Korea on Korean Air. [ETA: I rewatched this with my family in 2024 on Viki.]

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