VicDawg

...this film seemed to take place in some sort of Babysitter's Club fantasy world, where everyone in the school is fresh out of a Gap commercial. The forced, goofy dialogue is what chased me away running and screaming. I didn't see any of the movie after Mandy's line "On one condition, you must promise you won't fall in love with me." Seriously, she actually has to say that, its in a script that was written by someone and later approved by someone else. NO ONE TALKS THAT WAY! Pure Danielle Steele without all the good stuff.

This movie was a piece of crap.

I was lucky enough to catch the world premiere of Written by Franklin Mann at the Cinema Arts Center in Huntington, NY on 1/14/02. Shot with a shoestring budget and (according to the filmmakers) without a script, what you have in Franklin Mann is a confrontational, daring piece of work. L. Marcus Williams gets the most out of his cast, especially Dustin C.C. "Pick up that guitar and talk to me" Manning who gives a fearless performance in the lead. A promising first work and a refreshing brand of storytelling.

8/10

I am not normally one to post a review unless its a movie I hate (check out my review of Titanic), but after reading some ignorant reviews posted by people who have obviously never had to live in the type of environment that these kids had to, I decided to put things into perspective. I, myself, live in an empoverished area full of minorities. Poverty + Minorities = no one giving a rats ass about you. What these kids did was far more important than a simple academic decathlon, what they did was throw a brick through the window of the owner's box.

When you pit the rich against the poor, the rich will always win. There is no competition. And where there is no competition, there is no cheating.

Anyone who believes that this film glorifies dishonesty and deceit is part of the problem.