Feel-good flick, ‘Finding
Forresteri, shows bond between recluse writer and genius
Finding Forrester
Three stars (out of five)
PG-13
Starring: Sean Connery, Rob Brown and
Busta Rhymes
Columbia Pictures
By Keenan Singleton
Daily Cougar Staff
Gus Van Sant, director of Good Will
Hunting, has directed another gem for moviegoers. Keeping the theme
of unlikely friendships, Van Sant presents us with Finding Forrester,
a story about a fictional J.D. Salinger-like author becoming the mentor
and friend to a 16-year-old African-American basketball player from the
Bronx.
Aiming for elements that made Good Will
Hunting such a moving drama, Van Sant uses the setting of the South
Bronx for the home of Jamal Wallace (Rob Brown), a junior in high school
and the star of his schoolis basketball team. Jamalis life is suddenly
interrupted when his scores on an aptitude test blow his teachers and administrators
away.
A private school in Manhattan immediately
contacts Jamal and his mother, expressing interest in possibly admitting
the young man on scholarship. Jamal is confused and a bit uneasy about
leaving his friends. For comfort, he usually turns either to his brother
or a collection of journals where Jamal has expressed himself through words
since his father passed away years ago.
In the midst of his big decision, fate
brings Jamal and 70-year-old William Forrester (Sean Connery) together.
William is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of a book that was published
in the early ‘60s. His identity is not immediately revealed to Jamal, but
the two build a relationship when William expresses an interest in Jamalis
writing and offers his guidance.
Demmie Todd/Courtesy of
Columbia Pictures
Jamal Wallace (Rob Brown,
left) and William Forrester (Sean Connery) form an unlikely friendship
in the new Columbia Pictures release, Finding Forrester.
Jamal eventually attends the private school
and finds himself out of place. His only friend is Claire (Anna Paquin),
a fixture in the yuppie private school scene who faces her own struggles
of wanting to break through the walls of black and white. Their relationship
becomes more than a friendship and suddenly, Jamal has another person to
turn to.
The schoolis basketball team welcomes Jamal
with open arms, but there is one player on the team who isnit so welcoming.
Thus, we have Jamalis first enemy at the school. The second is Jamalis
writing professor, Professor Crawford (F. Murray Abraham). Looking through
Jamalis past records and noticing the studentis vast improvement (a level
he at one point calls the work of a genius), the professor begins to suspect
Jamal of plagiarism, among other things.
As the film continues, Jamal seeks guidance
from William, comfort in Claire and confidence from his brother Terrell
(Busta Rhymes). As he becomes stronger as a person, his writing continues
to prosper and his amazing feats on the basketball court are soon equaled
by his ability as a writer.
Finding Forrester isnit as moving
as Good Will Hunting and Van Sant fails to allow all of his characters
to connect with the audience. Jamal is the easiest target and first-time
actor Brown does an exceptional job, considering he has had no experience
in acting and has never undergone any acting lessons.
One of the greatest elements of Brownis
performance is the on-screen chemistry he displays with the legendary Connery.
The two are electric in their scenes together and are able to send out
the father-son vibe with ease.
The rest of the characters fall short and
fail to reach the level of intensity that Brown and Connery display. The
only one close is Abraham (Amadeus, Mighty Aphrodite), who portrays
an arrogant and self-satisfying professor, content with proving everyone
that Jamal is a cheater and not as smart as everyone thinks he is.
The Oscar-winning Paquin (The Piano,
Almost Famous) is not very convincing as the private school girl wanting
to improve her contact with the outside world and rapper Busta Rhymes puts
on a less than satisfactory performance as Jamalis older brother.
The film also contains a few plot holes.
Jamalis conflict with his basketball teammate never takes the audience
in full circle.
At one point in the film, the teammate
says to Jamal after practice that no matter what Jamal thinks, things are
not the same between them. This leaves the audience at a standstill and
the film fails to take us further than that moment.
Jamalis conflict centers solely around
Professor Crawford, and we never hear from the teammate again. Consequently,
there is a sense of incompletion concerning the relationship between Forrester
and his teammate.
Also, Jamalis relationship with Claire
is not explored in great detail. The two have a moment at a party following
Jamalis first game with his new school and they hold hands once towards
the end of the movie.
Claire raises the question of what exactly
is going on between them, but Jamal is unclear with his answer and the
two seem to miraculously come to a conclusion while leaving the audience
out of it. So in other words, there is no true love story in the film,
at least one that the audience can relate to.
Finding Forrester ‘s strong point
is the relationship between Jamal and William.
Connery and Brown give great performances
and a true heartfelt friendship is clearly realized on the screen, much
like it was with Matt Damon and Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting.
Directed by Van Sant and written by Mike
Rich, Finding Forrester embraces friendship, family and a characteris
will to prove his own worthiness. Itis a warm film and is sure to touch
the hearts of drama lovers.
