Bounce: How the Ball Taught the World to Play

Jerome Thelia's documentary focuses on what might seem like the most benign of subjects: the appeal of playing ball games. However, this insightful and (dare we say it?) playful production offers a fascinating consideration of the ball's impact on civilization, while also noting that our prehistoric ancestors might have included such recreational activities as part of their lives. The earliest recorded ball games appeared in ancient Egypt, but games really got bouncing when the Spanish conquistadors discovered the native peoples of Mesoamerica, who were using balls made from the sap of the local rubber trees. A wider appreciation of ball games occurred in the 19th century with the growth of college athletics and sports leagues, and today “playing ball” is a serious, multi-faceted, multi-billion-dollar business. Bounce presents a dizzying array of balls in motion, from a juggler's trickery to a makeshift ball created from a plastic bag, garbage, and string in a rural Congolese village. A good deal of footage is also devoted to explaining how animals incorporate play into their lives. A fun and informative documentary, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)