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www.filmthreat.com - : If you've seen HBO's ''Project Greenlight'' television series, kind of ''The Real World'' on a movie set, you'd probably think that the film ''Stolen Summer'' was going to turn out to be a train wreck. The weekly show documented the misadventures of aspiring Chicago filmmaker Pete Jones, winner of a screenplay competition that gave him the opportunity to direct his vision with a $1 million dollar budget. The struggles with everything from budget to casting to production woes are presented, warts-and-all, and the result is a highly entertaining TV show. But what about the movie? From the show, it looks like a disaster in the making with a story that will turn out laughable at best. Strangely, nothing could be further from the truth. Yes, I watched every episode of ''Project Greenlight'' and I am just as shocked as you are. First-timer Pete Jones has delivered a solidly entertaining and moving family drama. Perhaps that's what has taken so many by surprise - that the final product is an earnest, sweet movie filled with likable characters. But it's also a family film with the balls to tackle serious religious issues. ''Stolen Summer'' will definitely surprise you. more...
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www.eonline.com - : You heard about the Project Greenlight nationwide scriptwriting contest. You watched the drama-packed making-of documentary on HBO. Now you must go see the...um, don't be so quick on that last one. The small indie film, sitting on a mountain of hype, is mixed: It's earnest, if weighed down by drippy sentiments. There are stilted performances by the child players but a group of veteran actors who try to make the best of it. Taking place during the summer of '76 in Chicago, the story circulates around young Catholic Adi Stein, who, rather innocently, wants to convert his Jewish, leukemia-stricken friend Mike Weinberg. Around them are Aidan Quinn, as Stein's loving but hard-ass father, and Kevin Pollak, as Weinberg's Rabbi dad. Under this project's heat lamp, writer-director Pete Jones held this movie together better than you might think, even if it does feel amateur most of the time. But HBO reruns are still a better bet. more...
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Critic Reviews
