Finding Forrester (DVD)

Unfortunately, a lot of people have dismissed this film purely because the influences were markedly detectable that they couldn?t see beyond what lied in this. A little unfortunate but it?s a good, small film. Our protagonist is Jamal Wallace (Rob Brown) who lives in the inner city with his mother, doing what normal kids of such surroundings do....play basketball with his friends (it is, if you?re a black kid in America....little wonder, it had a small degree of difficulty translating and having the audience on it?s side). In a nearby building, they spy somebody peering at them through a pair of binoculars, who nonchalantly stares right back. One day, ...  Read the complete review

It amazed me that this film was largely ignored by the UK Cinema going public when it was released earlier this year. It was highly acclaimed by US Audiences and starred ever popular Sean Connery. So well thought of was it, that it received several Oscar nominations, yet cinemas in this area screened it for one week – and pooooof, it was gone. In fact it should have been renamed – ‘Couldn’t Find Forrester’. The film starred – like I said – old 007 himself, Sir Sean Connery as reclusive author William Forrester. Now growing old alone in the same New York apartment he grew up in, he takes a black teenage ...  Read the complete review

Finding Forrester is the story of gifted 16 year old basketball player Jamal Warner (Rob Brown) and his relationship with Pulitzer Prize winning recluse William Forrester (Sean Connery). It is directed by Oscar nominated Gus Van Sant, has a jazz soundtrack featuring Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman & Bill Frisell and features Busta Rhymes as Jamals older brother. Jamal is a regular kid who lives with his mother in Bronx and gets C grades in school. The film begins with Jamals recent test results revealing that he is exceptionally gifted and one of the top private schools in the New York to offering him a full academic scholarship and ant the chance to play ...  Read the complete review

Finding Forrester is the brand spanking new film from Gus Van Sant the director of Good Will Hunting, and it shows. The similarities are striking, except that where before we had a mathematical genius growing up in a bad white neighbourhood, we now have a literary genius in The Bronx. Professor Robin Williams is replaced by Pulitzer prize winning Sean Connery as the mentor and father figure of the piece. So those who liked or disliked Good Will Hunting can probably make an educated guess as to whether to give this film a try but for those unfamiliar with either, read on. Robert Brown plays Jamal Wallace a 16 year old with a passion for two things, basketball and ...  Read the complete review

In some ways, this is the cinematic equivalent of a Will Smith single - lots of samples, lots of extra stuff laid down over an essentially old sound to convince you that this is something new, and if you like it, that's fine, but it's still Stevie Wonder's record underneath. That Gus Van Sant is actually remixing his own movies is neither here nor there, fundamentally, you have probably seen 'Finding Forrester' before. Stop me when you've guessed; young inner city genius with no self-belief develops unlikely friendship with older bearded man who helps him to deal with his issues and achieve his full potential, which in turn helps the ...  Read the complete review