The Samuel Project

I thoroughly enjoyed this indie film and have already purchased tickets to see it again at the Jewish Film Festival on April 28 in Los Angeles. The story is deep and serious, but at the same time funny - very funny! The relationships between Eli and his grandfather (Hal Linden), Eli and his father, Eli and Kasim, Kasim and his father are so realistic and touching, with lots of humor going on between the generations and the friends. Ryan Ochoa's performance as Eli was simply outstanding and he's truly made his mark in this film! Eli's interpretation of how his grandfather escaped Nazi Germany and his telling of the story through his school art project is so creative and realistic, combining animation/modern technology with such a heartfelt story from the past. Hal Linden delivered a magnificent performance as Samuel, in both the serious scenes as well as the more lighthearted scenes. This movie is definitely worth checking out, and talks to people of all ages.

I thought this was a well-done little indie .Part of the film deals with the Holocaust, and while it doesn't gloss over it, it doesn't overwhelm the movie either. Striking a nice balance which made for an interesting story.

Eli (Ryan Ochoa) is a high school kid who doesn't really fit in. He's a bit of a loner and a talented artist. His dream is to become an animator. For his media class, he's tasked with creating an animated film that not only tells a story, but captures a bit of history. He decides to interview his grandpa Samuel (Hal Linden), who he really doesn't know that much about. So he begins to work in his grandfather's laundromat while encouraging him to discuss his childhood. It turns out, Samual hid out from the Nazis during the war and watched as his whole family was killed by German soldiers.

Samuel has kept his family history a secret, and in fact, they were so painful, he never even told his own son about these events. So Eli has a fascinating story to tell, and he does a great job of creating a short animated movie. "The Samuel Project" was a fresh take on a somewhat familiar story. I thought the acting, writing, and cinematography were all great.

--MovieJunkieMark.

It was reminiscent of an after school special, but with profanity. I was mostly bored by it. If the subject matter appeals to in particular then go see it. Otherwise, there are other ways to spend 90 minutes.

This was a surprising type movie that I came across at Prime, and it was surprising Hal Linden was the grandfather. I didn't know that until the end of the movie. I guess I haven't seen him in anything since the 1980s. He looks totally different. :)

The film starts off with loud, obnoxious music. Turn it down, don't turn it off. You don't want to miss this movie if you are interested in the Holocaust and graphic arts. Also, some of the dialogue is hard to understand at times and some of the captions are wrong. A seriously bad caption job.

Eli obviously hasn't spent much time with his grandfather, and his father doesn't spend much time with Eli. His mother left when he was young and his grandmother died when he was young. Thus, this is a small family of males who don't communicate that well.

That changes, though, when Eli needs a topic for a media arts class project, and he discovers his Jewish grandfather's tragic childhood in Germany. The two become close, with Eli even working part-time in his grandfather's dry cleaning store.

It was interesting to see Eli's finished project at a showing of the top ten contenders in a media arts contest for high school kids. Both his father and grandfather show up for the event, too, when neither planned on going. No mushiness, but three males becoming a bit closer.

The film was beautifully written and the script was well acted. When a piece of art can evoke so much emotion, you know you've got a winner! I don't know if I cried more or laughed more because I was all over the place. The Samuel Project looked like it had a multi-million dollar budget. Hal Linden is a great actor and the younger cast members were great as well.Loved it and would definitely see again.