Product Details

• Actors: Joanna Cassidy, James Earl Jones, Lynne Moody, Georg Stanford Brown, Tim Reid
• Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Mti Home Video
• DVD Release Date: October 24, 2006
• Run Time: 87 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000HDRBAW
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,652 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Reading Room" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Feel Good Story For All Ages, November 3, 2006

By	Timothy Kearney (Hull, MA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

THE READING ROOM is a made for television film that I stumbled upon when looking up something else. I read the summary: a widower opens a reading room in the inner city neighborhood of his youth and saw that it starred James Earl Jones, so I assumed that I'd probably enjoy it and wasn't all that surprised that I did.

It's somewhat predictable. We meet James Earl Jones' character William Campbell just after he buries his wife. He watches a videotape with her last words to him. She has the insight to know that her husband will need something to do with his time and since the two never had children, will need a way to give of himself. She tells him to take the wonderful collection of books the two shared and open a reading room in the area they grew up in, a neighborhood that has in the past few years, seen troubled times. In a short period of time, the room is opened. The kids in the neighborhood begin visiting, if for nothing else than the free soda. Campbell has to stand up to gangs, a teacher who seems bitter because of the struggles she faces in the classroom, and a minister who does not trust a wealthy man opening up a reading room as a hobby. Campbell has to also contend with gangs, thieves, and vandals who burn down the building. As we watch we may know what is going to happen, but the characters re likable so we want to see how it all works.

Since the film was a television film and not a theatrical release, there are interruptions for where commercials ought to be and since it has to fit a specific time slot, the story is fast paced. Perhaps a bit to fast paced for while I thought it was a touching story, it did take place in too fast a time frame. The action takes place over a sixty day period. Six months or a year would have been better and more realistic. To do the work that Campbell completes, he'd need to form alliances and give people time to trust him. This would also have given the characters a bit more dimension. Of course while this may be the way it would happen in life, we are talking about television where everything is possible in a 90 minute time frame and since it is just feel good entertainment, I suppose I should just leave it be.

My thought is that this would be a good film for classroom use. The commercial breaks provide an excellent opportunity for a pause and discussion. The love of books and the transforming power of literature as well as the importance of reading are evident throughout the story. It also shows how people can make a difference and could lead to ideas for service projects.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars motivational, January 20, 2008

By	Starlette Casey (Lemoore, california USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This movie shows what it means to make a difference. Life is hard for many people and meeting daily challenges can be unbelievable difficult. All of us have the ability to make a difference in the future of everyone's child. This movie made me feel like not only could I make a postive impact but that I should.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, December 20, 2007

By	Willie Montgomery "colorado" (Denmark,South Carolina) - See all my reviews

This is a very good and powerful movie.The cast and acting were wonderful.George Stanford Brown's performance as the minister was great.The movie helped exposed a big problem here in the United States,illiteracy.The storyline about the gangs touched a nerve and I was glad that it was written in.Here is a sad fact about the United States,the richest nation in the world.45% of African-Americans graduate from high school,our education system is now about to fall out of the top 20 nations rankings in the world,and I watched Lou Rawls UNCF telethon back in the 1980s in which it was revealed by a state prosecuter that 78% of African-Americans he is prosecuting in court cannot read.We are talking about those in their late teens and adults.If you were to give them a copy of this review and ask to read it out loud,they will have trouble reading the smallest words.Hello Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton,are you reading this?You should be addressing the education problems in the black community and don't blame racisim.Thank you James Earl Jones for starring in a great movie.