Stone Reader

Year: 2002

Grade: B

Country: USA

Director: Moskowitz

Review

a documentary that is similar in structure to “roger & me” and “sherman’s march” – he’s looking for someone (like roger and me) while discovering something about himself (sherman’s march), but it’s not as well-made as either. it follows the writer/director while he tries to find the lost author of a long out of print book (“the stones of summer”) which he has recently rediscovered. naturally it becomes more about the journey than the destination and the audience is sucked into the quest along with the filmmaker. the film is a little loose and could use some editing, but it doesn’t suffer too much. more than being about the journey, the film is about a love of books (or art) and it conveys the filmmaker’s love perfectly while also allowing you to ponder your own experiences with books/art. though it’s not the best documentary i’ve ever seen, i think this is one that is likely to resonate with more people because it’s sort of open-ended in the way it allows the viewers to interject themselves into the experience. whether it be when he’s talking about great under-rated novels or when he gets the lead that finally brings him face to face with the author he’s been searching for. good stuff.