Review of Stone Reader (2002) by Nathan H — 02 Apr 2010

One of the most intriguing documentaries I've seen in quite awhile. "The Stone Reader" is the perfect film for literature nerds and avid book readers, a movie that is all at once (a) one man's quest to find the author of a book he admired from the 1970s, (b) a meditation on an individual's reading life, reading habits, and the unique relationship formed between author and reader (there's a very sad moment when the filmmaker reflects upon the death of Joseph Heller, the first literary author he felt had truly spoken to him), and (c) a striking argument about the state of the publishing industry, and how marketing demands can kill an aspiring writer's budding potential.

I really can't recommend "The Stone Reader" enough. The filmmaker sometimes comes across a little too heavy, but if you love literature, this is one of the few movies that will ever make you want to start reading (and reading voraciously) after the credits roll. There's a quick scene in which Moskowitz shows us his personal bookshelf, and as he discusses how it's organized, you start thinking, "Yeah, mine too. Oh, I've read that. That, too." Just as the film is a meditation on the conversation between author and reader, so too is the film a conversation between Moskowitz and his viewers: a conversation about all of the conversations we've unknowingly shared together.