Finding Forrester

2000 "In an ordinary place, he found the one person to make his life extraordinary."
7.3| 2h16m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 21 December 2000 Released
Producted By: Columbia Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

Gus Van Sant tells the story of a young African American man named Jamal who confronts his talents while living on the streets of the Bronx. He accidentally runs into an old writer named Forrester who discovers his passion for writing. With help from his new mentor Jamal receives a scholarship to a private school.

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Reviews

MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting
SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.
BelSports This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.
Ava-Grace Willis Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.
abusamhi I like the most when it says that Jamal Wallace is playing basket ball for acceptance amidst the friends and that is not his passion... people do that a lot.. they do so many things for acceptance. Two equally passionate people from different world, colour, ages shares the love of passion makes millions of feelings inside.
matthewmccleary-85607 Raised in the Bronx along side thugs and criminals, Jamal Wallace possesses an impressive set of intellectual skills which many do not. Afraid to stand out, Jamal hides his intelligence only showing it on the school's standardized test. Shortly after revealing his gift, Jamal stumbles upon William Forrester, a famous book writer that had been out of the media for years. After Jamal discovers Forrester, a bond forms as the two create works of writing together which Jamal will uses for his school. After receiving Jamal's test scores, a prestigious private school, Mailor Callow, ask Jamal to attend their school for free. Accepting their offer, Jamal has to overcome the challenges of changing schools and face new people such as his professor Mr. Crawford who is not as smart as Jamal therefore feels threatened by Jamal's attendance. Jamal battles through school with the help of his new found friend Forrester who in the end, gets Jamal into a tangle by helping him. Jamal and Forrester grow close to each other as time goes on helping each other with their battles and finding peace and happiness in each other.The film Finding Forrester is possible one of the best films in existence. Showing the challenges of life and how a well bonded friendship can fix nearly anything, the film reaches out and touches your heart while still being humorous and showing what life is like in the Bronx. Unlike most other films Finding Forrester allows the viewer to see that not everyone's life is cotton candy and rainbows, however it does show that even with a tough life, everyone still has the opportunity to succeed in life. I believe that many people would enjoy this film seeing that it is a story of success and who doesn't like to hear about other peoples accomplishments. Also if, like myself, you come from a family of people that don't attend college let alone finish high school, this film is easy to connect with giving it a personal touch.Throughout this movie the director had several different archetypes that made the movie almost seem like a fairy tale. One major archetype in this film was William Forrester who was "the mentor". Teaching Jamal several life lessons Forrester helped Jamal through the tough times and even helped fight off Jamal's "evil adversary" Mr. Crawford. Mr. Crawford repeatedly attacked Jamal throughout the film until finally trying to kick him out of the school due to Jamal's intelligence. Jamal's "mentor" Forrester lived in an apartment that could be seen as a "tower". This apartment was his tower of solitude which he hardly ever came out of and almost seemed if he was locked away for life hiding from pesky paparazzi. Throughout most of the movie the scenes show a dark and gloomy sky almost as if their is a darkness over Jamal, however in the end of the movie after both Jamal and Forrester have overcome their challenges the skies clear up and everyone is happy. I believe that the writer and director created these different archetypes to represent that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that just because you were born somewhere or in a family of certain people, that does not mean you have to live your whole life in that place.
lisetgomez In most movies there are people characterized as villains and heroes, although the may not be wearing a cap or have super powers. Heroes are described as the people that help others while the villains are the ones that bring down people and maybe try to destroy them. In the Film "Finding Forrester" Directed by Gus van Sant and Written by Mike Rich, Williams apartment can be considered his tower in which he uses to get away from everyone due to the fact that he lets no one in and he lives by himself. His apartment is located on the top floor in the corner of a building in the middle of the Bronx, New York. Williams tower is the place where William ran to after his first book was a huge hit and he couldn't take in all the attention he was getting. Williams apartment was filled with books all over the place all of them being his although he only had one book published during his whole life span. The main character is a teenage black male named Jamal Wallace that loves to write and play basketball in which he is considered the hero of the movie due to the fact that he helps William Forrester his mentor who is/was a famous writer, realize that there is more to life than just staying in his apartment. Jamal first meet William when he snuck into his apartment at night due to a dare that his friends told him to do. Moreover that dare did not go as planned due to the fact that he left his backpack that had all his writing notebooks in his apartment; after a few day William threw Jamal's bag out of his window in which later Jamal found out that William had written inside all of his journals. Jamal also helps William get fully out of his apartment for the first time since he had moved in. After Jamal went back and complained to William about him writing in his journals he asked him that if he kept his mouth shut then he would have to help him on his writing. In which then William became the mentor of the movie because he gave Jamal some tips on how to win over a girl and he also taught him how to be a writer not a reader. Because "writers write thing to give readers something to read." Although a movie cannot be a movie if there isn't a villain. Professor Robert Crawford also known as the failed/ rejected writer believes and accuses Jamal of stealing someone else's work because he believes that Jamal couldn't have wrote that due to the fact that it was an excellent essay and because Jamal had not done so good in his previous school. In conclusion Jamal breaking into William's apartment and leaving his backpack was not a bad idea because he got so much out of it not just the ability to write better but he also learned new things about life from Forrester. Whereas William realized that there is no time to waste because eventually your time will be up so you have to make the best of it while you're here.
huntersmith-83060 Hunter SmithPeriod 1Mr. Kullman10-13-16Finding Forrester Film ReviewFinding Forrester is an enjoyable film that explores basic archetypes of a hero disguised as the journey of a young boy who forms a bond with and old writer, and together they find a new purpose. Finding Forrester is directed towards those who are seeking a more sentimental watch, complete with love, death, and friendship. Although it lacks a certain "action movie" aspect, it makes up for it in acting as a movie that revolves around giving a certain feeling to the watcher, but those thrill-seekers who are searching for a more fast-paced film should look elsewhere. The movie is clever as in it explores many archetypes that are concerned with the hero, but we're only going to focus on four; the journey, the mentor, the tower and the hero.First, the journey of the hero. The hero starts off as a normal kid living in a run-down district, but over time he advances forward to a private school to enhance and use his abilities to write. He grows and matures over time, eventually turning into someone greater than he was before. Second, the mentor. Every hero needs someone to guide them, to teach them the ways of the path they're going. The hero finds a mentor, and he gets taught the ways of writing to a higher standard. Over time, they develop a relationship that goes well beyond teacher and student, to becoming close friends. This magnifies the films overall appeal to the watcher for the better. Everyone expects them to be friends, otherwise it would get dull later on. Third is the tower. This one requires a little more close- up attention to detail, but the mentor lived at the top of a building alone. Just the one room. A tower symbolizes isolation, and the mentor was trying to avoid society as best he could. He never left the apartment, and he had other people do his work for him. At least until the hero came along and helped the mentor see that leaving and re-aligning himself with society would be better than being alone for the rest of his life. Finally, the hero himself. Every story needs a hero, the main person, the one who does it all. The character in the film fits the role of the hero perfectly. He experiences conflict, love, pain and in the end still forges onward. Overall, the film was a really magnificent piece. All the pieces wove together perfectly, some things making sense later on than when they first show it. Gus Van Sant (Director) played this movie out really splendidly, and those who are looking for a more peaceful movie, will find it here.