Stonebrook

Why oh why do people insist on spoiling movies by making the plot far to difficult understand or keep up with? This film (Web of Lies is the Title in the UK) had a lot of potential and actually started quite well. I liked the bits when the boys were trying to hussle for money but all this got lost in a script that dissappeared up its own backside .I'm lost as to explain what happened in the end partially because there were to many twists and partly because i lost interest. Brad Rowe looks promising as an actor even if he is a clone of his name sake Brad Pit , apart from that i would advise you to do something more interesting for an hour and a half. 5 out of 10

Young Brad Rowe thinks he's fallen into some of what he's been shoveling for the past few years. He's a country kid who's lost the family farm to back taxes and been working on other people's land as a farm hand. A friend of his father's who is a big city cop, William Mesnik, got him into the expensive Ivy League school of Stonebrook and off he goes to the big city.

But the scholarship doesn't materialize and he has to pay his own way. But Rowe has a roommate in Seth Green who is both a computer hacker and a con artist. He gets Rowe into his schemes which start off with pool hustling. It goes quite a bit beyond that as the boys start ripping off money from the mob.

Poor Brad Rowe, cursed with the same first name and a general appearance that closely resembles the more well known Brad Pitt. I don't think Rowe's a bad actor, but apparently unless he's fated to be cast as a brother to Brad Pitt some day, Rowe will get all the roles that Pitt probably turns down.

On the other hand in his own quirky way, Seth Green has a lot of appeal and his part here generally fits in with the characters he's usually cast as. It's like Dr. Evil's son has decided to branch out on his own and enrolled at Stonebrook.

Stonebrook is not a bad film, but it has a way too many plot twists and turns and they're not introduced in a clever Hitchcockian type of way. Still it's not too bad and some will enjoy it.

To sum-up: Stonebrook isn't anything new but I still found it interesting as it progressed. Brad Rowe plays a college loner who sort of befriends Seth Green and gets caught up in some small time crime that gradually blows up in his face in a big way. The plot twists were very "expectable" but still enjoyable all throughout the film.

Pro's & con's:

+ Good storyline with fitting character's

• It has the feel of a Television movie

Co-writer, co-producer and director, Bryon W. Thompson, has created a very under-rated thriller. A story about a country boy (Rowe)who seeks a better life through the help of an old family friend (Mesnik). He applies to Stonebrook Uni, meets a beautiful girl (McLellan), as well as an eccentric room-mate(Green)who is in his own mind 'a very dangerous man'. Life is great, that's until he and his room-mate accidentally steals from a mob boss (Kamel). From here it's a rollercoaster ride full of unexpected twists. If the story doesn't sound interesting enough, wait til the underlying story unfolds. The performances are good. You believe every character. The direction is also good. There are many cut away reminiscing scenes (much like 'The Usual Suspects') that are needed due to the intricate plot. This allows the viewer to keep up with the story causing the plot twists to work more effectively. Good thriller. Not quite great. But if you like a thriller with a twist. I recommend you check it out.

Con games are fun and we often look at them and wonder who can be so dumb!?!! In STONEBROOK, there are a number of con games which fill the bill, and there is some tension and drama that builds in the process. Seth Green is slick and Brad Rowe does some good work. Along the way is a bit of moralizing. Is love more important than money?? STONEBROOK is a step away from being super, but it's not a bad way to while away a summer afternoon.