Director
Gus Van Sant follows his pointless Psycho remake with this earnest feel-good drama
echoing his own Good Will Hunting.
In
Finding Forrester, Rob Brown plays Jamal Wallace, a Bronx high school student
who has nothing more than aspirations of becoming a pro basketball player. Unbeknownst
to the people around him, it seems that the young man also has an extraordinary
gift for writing. Following high test scores, Wallace is courted by a prestigious
private school. Help comes in the form of the reclusive Sean Connery as William
Forrester, an abrasive writer who is somewhat a legend in the literary world.
It seems that Forrester once wrote a well received novel and then virtually disappeared
without a trace. He passes his time as a sort of hermit in an old apartment building.
Before too long, Wallace and Forrester form a strong bond.
Finding
Forrester has many strengths. I love the film's take on the love for writing.
Forrester acts as if the artform of writing gives him a kind of orgasmic pleasure.
Much of this film is very insightful in it's deft depiction of the world of literature.
Taking
the film to the highest level are the performances. This is perhaps the strongest
work of Connery's career. He brings a crotchety yet sympathetic attitude to Forrester.
Newcomer Rob Brown is equally effective as the naturally talented Wallace. The
two have a wonderful rapport and really make this picture work.
Finding
Forrester is reminiscent of many films including Scent of A Woman, Searching For
Bobby Fisher, The Karate Kid, and even this year's Wonder Boys. There is even
a sort of Boo Radley quality to the character of Forrester. As stated earlier,
there will also be undeniable comparisons to Good Will Hunting. In the big picture,
however, this story is much different.
Finding
Forrester only falters when it piles things to thick. Forrester's revelation on
the baseball field is a bit much, and I found F. Murray Abraham's Professor Crawford
to be overly callous. It also bothered me that the wonderfully talented Anna Paquin
serves as a mere ornament in this picture. She and Brown build a terrific chemistry
but Van Sant and his writers never really take the relationship anywhere.
These
things aside, it's very hard to resist this picture. It's a well intentioned film
that is usually quite effective and Connery and Brown really add an emotional
charge that lifts Finding Forrester to another level.
Finding
Forrester finds Gus Van Sant in familiar, Good Will Hunting territory. This is
a story about genius and the true, uncompromising power of friendship. It's also
a picture about following your dream and not letting anyone hold you back. Finding
Forrester is a terrific film.
