Customer Reviews

The Last Brickmaker In America

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Last Brickmaker in America, starring Sidney Poitier, is a great family movie. Poitier gives a strong performance as Henry Cobb, an elderly gentleman suffering from the recent loss of his wife and ready to give up his brick making business. He meets Danny, a troubled 13 year old, and the two click. As Danny helps Henry make bricks and Henry helps Danny realize what is important in life, they both change.

This is one of those movies that make you feel good, and makes you wish problems in life could always have such happy endings. I highly recommend this movie for everyone who likes good family films. You won't be disappointed.

Poitier has been a favorite of mine ever since I saw him in his Academy Award winning performance in Lilies of the Field in 1963. I felt that I really got to know him when I read his autobiography, The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club)and I recommend it to anyone interested in learning about Poitier.

This is a great film on many levels, from family-appeal to African-American studies. Produced by Paramount Pictures and Nasser Entertainment as a CBS-TV prime-time movie, LAST BRICKMAKER far exceeds the production standards of most releases and virtually all other TV movies. Other notable performances are delivered by Piper Laurie and Bernie Casey. Check it out!

I watched this movie recently on Hallmark Channel and could not stop watching. The whole family can enjoy this over the holidays. I had to buy it!

The movie begins with two story lines--an older man at the grave side of his not too long deceased wife, who is obviously struggling to find meaning in his days anymore since he can't share them with her, and a young boy tagging the brick of a school building with the words "Washington Sucks". Washington is the name of the school. Next we see him sitting between his obviously concerned parents in the principal's office. You learn that Danny has been in trouble a few times recently which seems to coincide with the time that his parents separated. Danny is suspended from school and is supposed to work for his Dad during the day and spend evenings with his Mom doing his schoolwork. The parents can't get past their troubled relationship to deal with their son's behavior in a united way and he can't stand any more of their bickering and blaming, so he runs away. He had met Henry Cobb (the grieving man) one day when he was working for his Dad and Henry had invited him to come to his place and see how brick was made. Danny had taken him up on it and was fascinated with the ancient process of brickmaking and Mr. Cobb's knowledge of the history of it. Now he runs to Mr. Cobb for refuge from his own unhappy home.

Before his wife's death Henry Cobb had been commissioned to make the brick for the new library at the Washington School. His wife had been librarian there and he knew this was important to her, but he couldn't find a passion for his work since she died.

It just so happens that Danny's father is the project manager for the new library and his boss has been on his case to get Mr. Cobb to sign off on his contract for the brick. The boss owns a brickmaking company and he wants to use their brick for the job--and he is sure Mr. Cobb won't have his brick ready in time and they would have to sue him for the delay. But Henry Cobb won't sign. He plods along making his brick and when Danny arrives he pitches in to help. Danny's parents semi-reluctantly agree to let him stay with Henry for a while.

*SPOILER ALERT*

Henry and Danny grow to trust each other and literally have to "weather a storm" which wipes out several days' work and makes their goal seem impossible. Henry tries to approach Danny's father about an extension of just a few days, but with the pressure his boss has put on him, he can't give in. Danny goes to his Mom to see if she will come work with them after her teaching hours for the school choir, but she has just been given a big program to prepare for and it will require extra hours after school. Danny feels let down by both of his parents. It has become so important to him to help Henry get the bricks made on time.

You begin to see glimmers of hope as Danny's parents start to realize the consequences of the choices they have made. Danny learns a surprising fact about Henry's past and a choice he had made that he always regretted. You can see that his experience has given him insight into what Danny's family needed.

This is a movie about relationships, motives, choices and consequences--all centering around what really matters in life. It is worthwhile viewing and family friendly, though there are a couple of incidents of swearing which may not be to the liking of some.

This is an excellent story about mentoring a young boy. Parental disharmony took him to a different home setting for awhile. This story will be used to show our university class on Discipleship an example of what mentoring really is- not just sitting and teaching but doing something together.

Twenty months ago, I saw this movie on Hallmark station, I began the search that night to own the DVD, I found The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn, but it took 19 months to find the new release of Brickmaker. I have 18 Poitier movies, searching for TO SIR II, but that does not seem to be out there. This is a great movie to watch multiple times.

It seems anymore all the movies tend to go towards who's sleeping with who, who killed who, who stole or terrorized who or who's taking over who. And even though it seems to be what is happening in life these days in a world without the Lord Jesus Christ in people's lives we already have enough of that kind of thing everywhere you look. This story has a good story line, a great set of actors in it and is also a refreshing break away from this mixed up world we live in!!

What a wonderful story. Too many old trades our now gone and forgotten. This was a real art.

This is a wonderful heart warming movie. Sidney Poitier is an excellent actor and he plays a wonderful part in this movie.

As usual, Sidney Poitier delivers an understated yet powerful performance in a movie I found charming. This is a gentle film, with a good storyline and plenty of emotion. Believable characters, and interesting twists make this a must-see for the whole family.