THE BIG BOUNCE (1969): Before Tom Clancy made the name Jack Ryan synonymous with Cold War heroics, Ryan O'Neal broke into the movies by portraying a decidedly different Jack Ryan in this lurid drama. O'Neal's Ryan is picking cucumbers when he picks a fight with a Mexican immigrant coworker... [More]

THE BIG BOUNCE (1969): Before Tom Clancy made the name Jack Ryan synonymous with Cold War heroics, Ryan O'Neal broke into the movies by portraying a decidedly different Jack Ryan in this lurid drama. O'Neal's Ryan is picking cucumbers when he picks a fight with a Mexican immigrant coworker (Victor Paul). The brutal beating sends Ryan to look for work elsewhere and he lands in roadside motel. Trouble continues to follow the ex-con as both a secretary with a seedy reckless streak (Leigh Taylor-Young) and a troubled, sexy transient (Lee Grant) make plays for the handsome young Ryan. A revelation, this meandering work exudes attitude and boasts a highly unusual score by Mike Curb, who would later become Lieutenant Governor of California. THE BIG BOUNCE (2004): Based on the Elmore Leonard novel that inspired both the 1969 film and this remake, THE BIG BOUNCE is a comic film noir about an everyman who finds trouble in the form of a beautiful blonde. Jack Ryan (Owen Wilson) is a small-time scam artist who is determined to leave that life behind after yet another run-in with the law. But when he meets the mistress of his former boss, Ray Ritchie (Gary Sinese), all bets are off. Nancy (newcomer Sara Foster) is hot, mischievous, and up to no good, but Jack is too smitten to use his better judgment. It isn't long before he's agreed to help her steal $200,000 from Ray. Along the way, he must contend with a series of potentially shady characters, who might not be what they seem (Morgan Freeman, Charlie Sheen, and Bebe Neuwirth). [Less]