Summer's End

Trouble comes in the form of a retired black man, to a small lakeside community. Almost immediately he is confronted by prejudice and hate. Two local brothers then come to terms with their hatred and tolerance over the racial situation. One brother wants to learn more about the man while the other couldn't care less. The movie is narrated by one of the brothers and proudly calls the black man friend. Its interesting to see how two brothers diverge and differ in their feelings even tho they are from the same house. Their mother too has an opinion of her own and in the end the black man is invited to dinner to meet her family and hear what he has to say. Altho the black man decides he can't live in a community that is openly racial, he does decide to give it a chance. Grade C

This is a great family movie that deals with the ever important issue of racial bigotry in a way that is never "preachy" but instead, moving and thought provoking. The performances are outstanding making each character multi-dimensional rather than the standard fair of bigot vs. liberal. James Earl Jones is remarkable as always, drawing us into the life and history of his character and making us care. Another stand out performance is that of Wendy Crewson - who never ceases to amaze in that she can take a small part, and create something memorable from it. This small movie is a real gem that you don't want to miss. And be sure to share it with someone, as the message is always relevant and bears repeating again and again until this world finally gets it right.

I've seen many movies lately, but this one won my heart. Summer's end brings to you the warmth of a sincere friendship between a man and a young boy, but more than that, it shows this friendship as it's seen by the boy, who is capable of anything to keep this relationship based on trust and love...

I can compare this movie to Mel Gibson's The Man Without a Face, where again we have a great movie about a friendship between a man and a boy, both overcoming all the hate that comes from the people around them.

The initial premise of the film is a little questionable. A single black doctor electing to settle in an all white neighborhood in Georgia is taking things a bit too far. But leaving that aside the acting of James Earl Ray, Brendan Fletcher, Wendy Crewson and Jake LeDoux as the little boy are worth mentioning. The story progresses in the only way it can, with all the requisite clichés that one expects to see in this genre of movie. It is beautifully shot in cozy summer colors designed to bring a warm flutter to mainly female hearts. But the fact remains that this film is just a confection wrapped up in sentimental syrup to make bigotry acceptable to the US viewer. This movie is 11 years old. America now has a black President, but Americans have still not learned anything yet. Time alone will tell whether they ever will. They like to discuss their racism in these beautiful sugar-coated easy-to-digest nuggets. This film left me cold, but after all it's made for TV... American TV. What more can you expect?

Very powerful performances by James Earl Jones and Jake Ledoux elevate this film above the average made-for-TV movie. It's worth watching just to see James Earl Jones' controlled rage on the one hand and his tenderness on the other -- it's amazing to behold. I was also impressed with the acting ability exhibited by Jake Ledoux. I hope he continues his acting career, because he has honesty and an emotional range that many current young actor "stars" should envy.