Post by Yvonne on May 17, 2007 1:35:48 GMT 7
The movie, Finding Forrester, mainly describes how an old man, called Forrester, interacts with a young man, named Jamal. During the time when they get along with each other, they gradually have mutual understanding and become very good friends. However, before they are friends, we know from the film that Forrester and Jamal are as different as day and night not only in personalities but also in views about the relationship with people. Despite the fact that some discrepancies exist, we are still able to find a little similarity between Forrester and Jamal.
One obvious difference between Forrester and Jamal is their personalities. Forrester is extremely morose and curmudgeonly. He likes to limit himself in his own environment and never wants to go outsides even when he needs to buy some daily commodities. According to Danny Leigh and Geoffrey Macnab in ¡§Video,¡¨ ¡§Forrester stays secluded in his New York apartment, where he has groceries delivered and sometimes watches neighborhood teens play basketball in the park below¡¨ (62-65). In addition, Forrester treats things around him with a more pessimistic way and doesn¡¦t want to face his true emotions. For example, he has never gone back to his hometown, Scotland, since his family died. By bereavement, he is so sad that he is always scared to recall beautiful things as well as life of hometown in the past. In contrast, Jamal is a more optimistic and active person than Forrester. For example, often Jamal is looked down upon by his professor and basketball team leader due to his race and the color of skin. Just as Jay Boyar has
mentioned in ¡§Features Film of the Week: ¡¥Finding Forrester¡¦,¡¨ ¡§This professor simply can't believe that a black kid from the Bronx can write as well as this one does.¡¨ Instead of feeling disheartened, Jamal vouches his abilities by writing good articles and winning the basketball match.
The other area of difference between Forrester and Jamal involves their views about relationship with people. On the one hand, Forrester is almost not willing to trust others and seems to have malice toward anyone, so he keeps away from other people and has no friend. In addition, he doesn¡¦t accept other people¡¦s opinions and stands for his cranky ideals stubbornly. As Peter Howell stated in ¡§Good Film Hunting Returns with a Fistful of Hair,¡¨ ¡§Forrester constantly bellows his often bizarre theories (¡§Women will sleep with you if you write a bad book¡¨).¡¨ On the other hand, Jamal is more gregarious as well as easy-going. He thinks that there is the relationship of the mutual dependence among human beings, and people, especially
friends, should voluntarily help and care about each other. Therefore, Jamal constantly tries to guide Forrester to open the heart to believe people and to accept the wonderful things of this world. For example, Jamal once takes Forrester to go outside to contact with the crowds and then go to the baseball stadium where Forrester has a lot of remembrance with his family. Just as Lee Luaine stated in ¡§Connery Says He has no Sense of Holidays or of Retiring,¡¨¡§ He [Forrester] is coaxed back into life by a young African-American writer who not only reawakens his sense of humor but his sense of humanity.¡¨
In spite of these differences, Forrester and Jamal still have a common similarity; that is, both of them are worried about not being taken in by people. For Forrester, he has many thoughts that are different from most people. To prevent disputing with
others, he chooses to isolate himself from the crowds purposely. In addition, he is not willing to publish other books anymore so that his works can avoid being commented by some opinionated critics. For Jamal, most of his friends are interested in playing
basketball rather than reading or writing. To become a part of his peer group, Jamal hides his writing ability and hobby. Therefore, he can only create words on his notebook secretly.
In summary, despite the fact that Forrester and Jamal have very different qualities no matter in personalities or in views about relationship with people, they still have certain likeness about the fear of not being taken in by people. For Forrester and Jamal, the key that promotes they become bosom friends is that they both need each other to complement and overcome their own shortcomings. According to Jami Bernard in ¡§Finding Forrester,¡¨ ¡§Jamal needs the training and discipline only this
mysterious old man can offer, and Forrester needs to learn to breathe again before life passes him by. Each helps the other find his voice.¡¨ An encounter between an old man and a young man seems to go for naught but they build a firm and touching friendship unexpectedly, which I think is the most successful and praising aspect in this film!
One obvious difference between Forrester and Jamal is their personalities. Forrester is extremely morose and curmudgeonly. He likes to limit himself in his own environment and never wants to go outsides even when he needs to buy some daily commodities. According to Danny Leigh and Geoffrey Macnab in ¡§Video,¡¨ ¡§Forrester stays secluded in his New York apartment, where he has groceries delivered and sometimes watches neighborhood teens play basketball in the park below¡¨ (62-65). In addition, Forrester treats things around him with a more pessimistic way and doesn¡¦t want to face his true emotions. For example, he has never gone back to his hometown, Scotland, since his family died. By bereavement, he is so sad that he is always scared to recall beautiful things as well as life of hometown in the past. In contrast, Jamal is a more optimistic and active person than Forrester. For example, often Jamal is looked down upon by his professor and basketball team leader due to his race and the color of skin. Just as Jay Boyar has
mentioned in ¡§Features Film of the Week: ¡¥Finding Forrester¡¦,¡¨ ¡§This professor simply can't believe that a black kid from the Bronx can write as well as this one does.¡¨ Instead of feeling disheartened, Jamal vouches his abilities by writing good articles and winning the basketball match.
The other area of difference between Forrester and Jamal involves their views about relationship with people. On the one hand, Forrester is almost not willing to trust others and seems to have malice toward anyone, so he keeps away from other people and has no friend. In addition, he doesn¡¦t accept other people¡¦s opinions and stands for his cranky ideals stubbornly. As Peter Howell stated in ¡§Good Film Hunting Returns with a Fistful of Hair,¡¨ ¡§Forrester constantly bellows his often bizarre theories (¡§Women will sleep with you if you write a bad book¡¨).¡¨ On the other hand, Jamal is more gregarious as well as easy-going. He thinks that there is the relationship of the mutual dependence among human beings, and people, especially
friends, should voluntarily help and care about each other. Therefore, Jamal constantly tries to guide Forrester to open the heart to believe people and to accept the wonderful things of this world. For example, Jamal once takes Forrester to go outside to contact with the crowds and then go to the baseball stadium where Forrester has a lot of remembrance with his family. Just as Lee Luaine stated in ¡§Connery Says He has no Sense of Holidays or of Retiring,¡¨¡§ He [Forrester] is coaxed back into life by a young African-American writer who not only reawakens his sense of humor but his sense of humanity.¡¨
In spite of these differences, Forrester and Jamal still have a common similarity; that is, both of them are worried about not being taken in by people. For Forrester, he has many thoughts that are different from most people. To prevent disputing with
others, he chooses to isolate himself from the crowds purposely. In addition, he is not willing to publish other books anymore so that his works can avoid being commented by some opinionated critics. For Jamal, most of his friends are interested in playing
basketball rather than reading or writing. To become a part of his peer group, Jamal hides his writing ability and hobby. Therefore, he can only create words on his notebook secretly.
In summary, despite the fact that Forrester and Jamal have very different qualities no matter in personalities or in views about relationship with people, they still have certain likeness about the fear of not being taken in by people. For Forrester and Jamal, the key that promotes they become bosom friends is that they both need each other to complement and overcome their own shortcomings. According to Jami Bernard in ¡§Finding Forrester,¡¨ ¡§Jamal needs the training and discipline only this
mysterious old man can offer, and Forrester needs to learn to breathe again before life passes him by. Each helps the other find his voice.¡¨ An encounter between an old man and a young man seems to go for naught but they build a firm and touching friendship unexpectedly, which I think is the most successful and praising aspect in this film!