Review of The Last Brickmaker in America (2001) by Patrick L — 18 Jul 2011

I watched this last night and am ever so glad I did. I had never heard of this film but discovered it in a local store and took a chance on it. Sidney Poitier stars in this film of a widowed man still mourning his wife (neglecting his work on bricks for a local school), a problem kid who vandalizes that same school and his separated parents (the wife works at the school while the husband is a contractor employee on a project building/rebuilding part of the school).

Their lives become intertwined when Poitier sees the kid shovelling at the school (making up for his crime) and talks with him about his work, then offering to show the kid what brickmaking is about. The kid is initially rude but he later comes to Poitier's house and begins to learn from him. The two begin to care about one another and then the parents are slowly drawn back into relationship with their son and then each other. A beautiful story, beautifully acted and performed, this one is one for the ages.