Rating: PG13
Genre:
Drama
Release Date: 04/24/2001
SubTitles: English/French
Dubbed: English/French
Sound: DD5.1/DDS
Run Time: 136 Minutes
Distributor/Studio: Columbia TriStar
In the spirit of his Oscar-winning
Good Will Hunting,
Gus Van Sant directs this tale of the unlikely bond that develops between an aging, reclusive novelist named Forrester (
Sean Connery) -- who hasn't written anything since winning a Pulitzer Prize decades earlier -- and Jamal (
Rob Brown), a 16-year-old with a hidden desire to be a writer. When Jamal is cited for his athleticism in basketball by an elite Manhattan prep school, he is forced to adapt to an environment far from his South Bronx upbringing, and a small mishap leads him to the eccentric, uneasy Forrester. After their initial apprehension of each other, they begin to fuel each other's fire for writing, and become unlikely friends despite their ages and backgrounds. Forrester's devotion to Jamal becomes enhanced when he must defend allegations of plagiarism enforced by Professor Crawford (
F. Murray Abraham), jeopardizing Jamal's future. The film also features
Anna Paquin,
Busta Rhymes, and
Zane Copeland, Jr..
~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide