REVIEW
WAITING TO EXHALE
Audiences eagerly await Finding Forrester, the new film from Portland homeboys Gus Van Sant and Mike Rich.

by DAVID WALKER
dwalker@wweek.com

It seems that most Portlanders wait with bated breath whenever Gus Van Sant has a new film out, and with good reason: Van Sant is one of the few Portland filmmakers to make it to the Hollywood big league. But the anticipation for Van Sant's latest, Finding Forrester, runs especially high. Written by first-time screenwriter and former KINK news director Mike Rich, Finding Forrester has a distinctly homegrown feel. But is it a good film?

Before we go any further, let me make a few things clear. I have no loyalty to Van Sant or Rich, and I couldn't care less about alienating anyone in the City of Roses. Gus has made some great films, among them Drugstore Cowboy and To Die For, but I don't know him and don't think my opinion of his films will cause him to lose sleep. Other than one brief phone conversation with Mike, I don't know him either, and though I'm sure his family and friends love him, I would feel no qualms about taking him to task for a bad script.

With that duly noted, let me be the first to publicly congratulate Gus and Mike for what will surely be four--perhaps even five--Oscar nominations. Although I don't want to speculate on the chances of anyone bringing home a gilded trophy, rest assured that Van Sant will be nominated for best director and Rich for best original screenplay. Finding Forrester will earn a best picture nomination, Sean Connery will be recognized (probably in the lead actor category), and, if there is any justice in the world, newcomer Rob Brown will be in the running for best supporting actor.

Brown stars as Jamal Wallace, a Bronx teenager who excels in basketball and, as test scores indicate, may be far smarter than he's been letting on. Jamal and his cohorts spend their time playing hoops on the playground and swapping tall tales of "The Window," a reclusive man who spies on the boys from his apartment across the street. On a dare, Jamal breaks into the apartment, whose mysterious occupant turns out to be William Forrester (Connery), a Pulitzer Prize-winning author who penned only one great novel before going into seclusion. Through a series of events that could be trite--but thankfully are not--the two become friends, and William evolves into Jamal's mentor.

Since it treads dangerously close to the ground Van Sant explored with Good Will Hunting, it's tempting to compare that film with Finding Forrester. But that would only do a disservice to both films. Yes, there are more than a few similarities, but not enough to warrant blindly dismissing Forrester. In all honesty, Rich's script doesn't quite stack up to Good Will Hunting, but Rich also didn't have screenwriting guru William Goldman (The Princess Bride) doctoring his script the way Ben Affleck and Matt Damon did. Goldman's uncredited work on Good Will Hunting is what made that script sing, and even though his golden touch isn't in evidence here, Finding Forrester is very well-written. For a white guy from Beaverton, Rich has written some of the strongest black characters to grace the screen in recent years.

Much of the success behind Finding Forrester lies in Van Sant's direction. Rich's script could not have been handed over to a better director. Van Sant is truly a writer's and actor's director, respecting the written word and knowing how to keep drama from becoming melodrama. His past work shows an astute ability to draw powerful performances from such questionable talents as Keanu Reeves and Ben Affleck. With Van Sant at the helm, Finding Forrester manages to avoid the schmaltzy trappings of films like Mr. Holland's Opus that set off gag reflexes.

Brown and Connery--giving one of his best performances in years--shine under Van Sant's direction. Together the actors create an unlikely, yet convincing, duo. William guides Jamal through the art of writing the same way Obi-Wan guided Luke to being a Jedi Knight. But the relationship is not one-sided, as Jamal helps his mentor wrestle some old demons and reinvigorates the aging writer. Finding Forrester is an entertaining film filled with choice moments--some crafted to prime the tear ducts, perhaps, but few obviously calculated to pump them. And in a year that has been riddled with inferior product being churned out by the Hollywood machinery, it comes as a welcome break. Audiences will be able to breath a sigh of relief.