Rating: 
Summary: The Moose Hole - 'Finding' Good Will Hunting Again
Review: Sound familiar? A kid from a rough neighborhood and an old man with former ambitions meet and both their lives are completely turned around. The boy realizes that he is smarter then his former bad grades let on and the old man learns that he can still find a life past his recent failures. Good Will Hunting, right? Well, yes, but it is also the basic premise for Finding Forrester. Though the story is tweaked a bit and toned down from the R-rated Hunting, Forrester does come off as being a little too familiar, being released around three years after the Miramax feature, but can the similarities really hurt it? In actuality, not really. There have been plenty of Dead Poet Society knock-offs that have made pretty decent coin at the box office in recent years but none of them equal the quality of the original. So in essence there is both a good side as well as a bad side to this situation. Can Forrester break this trend? History is against the film but Connery is pretty select on his choice of scripts, so there is at least some hope for it.The story is pretty much the same as Good Will Hunting minus the witty charm of Ben Affleck and Robin Williams. William Forrester, a vibrant writer from New York, wrote the great American novel nearly four decades ago but ever since then he has basically vanished from the face of the earth. Or so many people thought. A sixteen year old student named Jamal Wallace meets up with the famous author when he breaks into his apartment one night and leaves his backpack behind. Jamal is amazed to find that his writings are returned with corrections made to the documents. When Mr. Wallace is accepted to an elite Manhattan prep school, he returns to the old recluse seeking help and inspiration for writing. After some time Mr. Forrester agrees but on two conditions: Jamal can not tell anyone about the whereabouts of William Forrester and no questions on why he only wrote one book. As time goes on they begin to look beyond the stereotypes they once believed and teach each other something about life. The story for Finding Forrester is quite well done despite borrowing several influences from the previously mentioned Good Will Hunting. If you are literature buff then you will greatly enjoy some of mentioned works in the film. If you're not then you will find the several scenes a bit confusing but your overall experience shouldn't be greatly affected. Though the cast is a relative bunch of no names, the leading roles, for the most part, perform exceedingly well. Sean Connery shows that he can still act off much younger co-stars amazingly well as he does with Rob Brown. Connery really showcases a former writer who had enough of what society thought his book was about and sunk into a deep depression especially after the loss of the several members of his family. The most enchanting scenes with the veteran actor have to be him riding his bicycle through the streets of New York. It seems so awkward that it becomes quite charming and heart-warming to witness in this feature. Rob Brown, as ill experienced as he may be, does a wonderful job considering he is performing opposite one of the prominent veteran actors of our time. One of the few flaws in the film has to be the character played by Anna Paquin, who recently appeared in the summer hit, X-Men. It has nothing to do with the performance, Paquin did an excellent job with the material that was given to her, but has rather to do with the character itself. The film suggests a growing romantic relationship between her and Brown's character but once the main premise of the feature rises to its climax, the whole romantic side story disappears completely. Overall, Finding Forrester managed to do what many of its predecessors couldn't by actually being entertaining despite borrowing several elements from critically-acclaimed Good Will Hunting. One those borrowed elements would have to be the talented actor Matt Damon, who cameos as Mr. Forrester's lawyer near the end of the feature. The timing and way the scene was handled made the cameo quite a delight considering thoughts of Hunting had to be on the minds of many movie-goers. The few problems with feature would have to include the longer then needed time length and some side stories including the romantic relationship between two characters that aren't explored fully in the film. Outside of those small complaints, Finding Forrester succeeds at being quite an entertaining romp despite feeling all too familiar to movie-goers. Not as entertaining as Good Will Hunting but it can be said that filmmakers never intended that to happen.
Rating: 
Summary: That's classic.
Review: The reviewer a few below me talks about how bad this movie was, but then goes on to trumpet how good Spiderman was. That alone should be enough not to take his/her review seriously. They apparently feel a need to brag about knowing an insider, yet give no reason as to why this movie isn't any good other than it's "sloopy" editing. BTW, Jamal attended a prep school, not a college or university. Regardless, this is an excellent movie about an unlikely friendship that is very entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: First Classic of the New Century
Review: To me, a classic is something that you can watch and watch again no matter when without the story, the setting, the dialog, and the theme becoming tired and aged. This one fits my criteria completely. The ending, although conventional and without surprises, is still extremely uplifting and leaves you with a good feeling afterwards. The haunting mood of the sound track - hope among the hopeless - fits the movie hand in glove. You have to be an extremely cynical person not to like this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: This is not the director's cut.....
Review: Recently I met someone at a film class who was involved with the production of this movie and some rather interesting information was revealed about this movie. Prime of which, what you see in this movie now is not what the director had planned. he had apparently wanted to do a more in depth story about the Sean Connery character and a bit less on the Rob Brown character. There were also apparently a lot of footage shot that showed the support characters in better defined roles but for some political reason, the suits at Colombia Pictures had that end up on the cutting room floor. Rob Brown was apparently so uninterested in playing the role, that he has streed clear of acting ever since.
The sloopy editing of this movie is most apparent when the Rob Brown character shows his love of writing and reading while working in the apartment where the Sean Connery charecter lives, but is cut shot to go back to the college where he is attending. Where's the motivation here? Where's the purpose of the movie? Anyway, it certainly shows that Colombia Pictures sure can make bonehead decisions that can ruin what could have been good movies. I'm sometimes amazed that Spider-Man has turned out as good as it is.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent story
Review: A great story showing what can be achieved when race is put off to the side.
Rating:
Summary: masterpiece
Review: this movie is the greatest movie of al time. it is a heartfelt story about a great writer and basketball player who meets william forrester an famous writer who's a shut in. this leads to one of the greatest friendships of all time. this movie is an inspirational masterpiece abount finding yourself mostly.
Rating: 
Summary: "Dead Poets" plus "Good Will" plus "Karate Kid" equals ...
Review: ... unfortunately, a mess. I had high hopes for a movie that purported to take writing seriously, a movie with talented actors like Sean Connery and Anna Paquin (with whom newcomer Rob Brown holds his own). And it starts well enough: Jamal Wallace (Brown), a star basketball player whose true, hidden gift is writing, happens to meet William Forrester (Connery), who wrote one Pulitzer Prize-winning novel then disappeared. The two begin an uneasy friendship, and Forrester helps Jamal with his writing, even as Jamal receives a scholarship to a private school and is befriended by the mature, understanding Clare (Paquin). From there, however, the plot implodes with cliches and nonsense--a professor out to get the jock, a writing contest, a bitter teammate, allegations of cheating, the state championship game, the redemption scene, and so on. (Why did Forrester never write another book? The answer is less than satisfactory.) Starting with the _______-ing ________ title (both words of course starting with the same letter), the screenplay has the marks of excessive Hollywood handling all over it, and so it lacks the passion of Dead Poets Society, the raw energy of Good Will Hunting, and the excitement of The Karate Kid. I'd recommend watching any of those three before this one. And before that, I'd recommend reading (among others) The Great Gatsby, Cry the Beloved Country, All the Pretty Horses, and To Kill a Mockingbird. (Or reading them again.) If you're a hard-core fan of Connery or "feel good" movies, this could be a decent weekend rental. Otherwise, the above-mentioned films and books are much more satisfying. (Some other decent, writing-related movies: The Hours, The Whole Wide World, and Shakespeare in Love.) A disappointing 2-1/2 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful movie
Review: Finding Forrester is a movie about a young, talented, African-American teenager who becomes friends with the most unlikely person. His name is Jamal Wallace, and he is a student in a public school in the Bronx. He loves basketball with great passion, and plays with great skill. He has a secret passion though, which is writing. Forrester is a reclusive , rather old white man, who stays in his apartment permanently. He has shunned modern day society, and lives a life of reading and spying with his binoculars and camera. Basketball provides the link between Jamal and Forrester. Eyeing the pickup games that Jamal and his friends play, Forrester becomes a mysterious figure in the teenager's eyes. They have heard strange stories about him, such as him murdering someone. Jamal's friends dare him to sneak into this reclusive man's apartment. Surreptitiously breaking in at night, Jamal is startled by a scream and runs off, leaving his backpack. If you want to learn how this unlikely friendship between them develops, I suggest you watch this movie. It's a very emotional movie, and a movie that inspires. It shows how one young black man's determination and talent brought success. I especially liked this movie because I like basketball, and reading. This movie has something that everyone can relate to. It's also a realistic movie, which is refreshing considering all the movies out. With an all-star cast (Sean Connery, Rob Brown, Anna Paquin) and a great storyline, this movie is sure to delight.
Rating:
Summary: Another great one from Gus Van Sant
Review: From the director of the Academy Award winning Good Will Hunting comes an unforgettable film of an unlikely friendship. Finding Forrester introduced Rob Brown, a natural on the big screen, and put him with veteran Sean Connery. The two had great chemistry on screen together and it brought a fun reality to the film. Finding Forrester was fantastic. It was one of the best films of the year, in my opinion. I would recommend this to anyone from 15 years old to 50 years old. It is probably not one for the younger kids though. It has pretty heavy language for a PG-13 film. Aside from the continuous language, the PG-13 rating reflects some sexual references. Other than that though, the supporting cast is excellent, with Oscar winners Anna Paquin and F. Murray Abraham. I recommend that all watch this at least once. You won't regret it.
Rating:
Summary: great movie
Review: I am a high school student in thornton co. i thought that the movie was great. it had a good story and never viered off of the main subject. the movie had some real good points and made most of them clear. It showed how some people should stick up for one-an-other in hard or un fair times.
i would recomend this movie to any one who likes great stories and a different stile of telling them. It kept me watching the whole time so hopfully it does the same for you. Enjoy
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