Many, like Jamal, are afraid of showing their true talent and need some type of change in their life to show it. Jamal began as a basketball player in a public school where he never did good in school work, but showed his intelligence through testing. He is given the chance to make something with his life when he is given the opportunity to transfer to a private school to play basketball and get a better education. He finds a way to improve his schoolwork after meeting William Forrester and it changes his view on how important it is to write; he learns how to express himself and his feeling in his writing.
One of his teachers, Mr. Crawford, believes he is not truly doing his own work and finds that he had used one of William’s old drafts for a paper and attempts to fail him for cheating. Jamal is given the option to win the state basketball championship for his school and clear his name and instead decides that he wants to change and make his own decisions, so he misses on purpose to lose the game. When it looks like Jamal is about to fail his class, William shows up with Jamal’s paper he wrote and speaks in front of the class, changing from his old shut in self through the help of Jamal’s friendship.
In the movie, Finding Forrester, transformations can help an individual to grow, resolve conflicts, and see the importance in an influential setting. Strong relationships can help individuals to transform and understand themselves. After Jamal begins to meet with William more and more, he sees the importance in writing and showing his feelings in writing. His change is shown through his school work, as it increasingly gets better from when he was in the public school. The relationship he creates with Forrester allows him to connect with someone on a deeper level that he never has before.
He is able to finally express himself through his writing. “Under Forrester’s tutelage, Jamal injects new passion into his writing and dedicates himself more” (Movielocity, 2001, pg. 2). The relationship between Forrester and Jamal helps to change Jamal’s writing into more passionate work. The change allows him to show more interest in his school work and he is able to get the good grades he is expected to make with his test scores. William also received help in his problems of social anxiety through his relationship with Jamal. Through Jamal’s help and him caring about William’s past, William is able to see the importance of having a friend.
Due to their relationship, he feels safe enough that he can finally leave his home and explore the world. Variety (2000) states, “An unlikely relationship begins. Jamal gradually becomes committed not only to his writing, but to cracking Forrester’s shell” (pg. 2). William needs Jamal’s support to get rid of his social anxiety and fear of leaving his home. To do so, he needs to adapt from his old lifestyle of staying inside to a person comfortable with other people and the outside world. Having a relationship can help others to adjust to resolve their conflicts.
Transformations can resolve existing conflicts and help the one who changed to grow. Jamal is faced with an important decision that could decide his future. He was given the choice to leave his old school and friends to join a private school with a better basketball team so he could have the chance to make it pro. In order to make it in the new school though, Jamal’s work ethic in school needs to improve. To help his chances of making it pro, Jamal decided to adjust from his old, non-motivated personality to someone who puts more effort into his schoolwork and his writing so he can achieve his dreams.
A brilliant, outcast youngster simultaneously learns from and teaches life lessons to a weary old timer. Forrester tutors Jamal about how to be an author; Jamla encourages Forrester to shake off his fear of the outside world”(Berardinelli, 2000, pg. 2). Both Jamal and Forrester find a way to teach each other life lessons in a way to help them resolve their conflicts, like Jamal’s writing struggles and William’s struggles with accepting the outside world. The life lessons help to transform both men and allow them to grow as a person.
Jamal changed again when Professor Crawford found out that he used one of William’s old draft and threatened to keep him from passing the class. In order to resolve the conflict, Jamal had to truly change how he wrote and he transformed by writing his entire paper due for the class in one night without the help of William and used all his emotions to write it. According to Movielocity in their review, “Jamal encounters a mentor who will challenge and change him forever, and Forrester has his first reason in years to emerge from his self-imposed solitude” (pg. ) Jamal is able to resolve his inner conflicts of accepting himself as a writer and an intelligent person through the help of Forrester. He had to adapt in order to resolve his conflicts, and in doing so, grew as a person and understood how important it was to be yourself and not care what other’s think of you. Transformations can help individuals to mature and resolve their conflicts. Having a conflict in an influential setting can cause individuals to transform to resolve the conflict.
When William was brought to Yankee Stadium for the first time in years by Jamal, it changed something inside him. He had all his childhood memories of spending time with his brother flood back and it transformed him. He saw how much Jamal appreciated him and understood that people still cared for him, causing him to want to explore the world more and see what he had missed for so many years. The New York Times (2000) stated in their review, “In his haste to escape, Jamal loses his bag containing his notebook.
Shortly after Jamal is down on the court when his backpack sails out of Forrester’s window. Opening it, he sees corrections and it isn’t long before he becomes the reclusive legend’s writing pupil (pg. 2). After breaking into William’s apartment, he leaves his notebook and when his bag is returned to him, he sees corrections and decides to go back and ask about them. As he continues to write for Forrester, he in turn helps to tutor Jamal and work on changing his mindset towards school. Jamal’s viewpoint on how he makes decisions was transformed at the state basketball game.
He was told he needed to win state in order to clear his name in Crawford’s class. Instead of having someone else make the decision for him on how he should resolve his conflicts, he decides to do his own things and miss the free throws to win the game. He’s given the chance to do whatever he wants now and it is the most freedom he has had the entire movie. Stated by CNN (2000), “Jamal is chosen for his prowess on the basketball court. He knows that it will alienate him from his other classmates who focus mainly on their schoolwork” (pg. ).
Jamal is outcasted by his fellow students at the private school because of how he first appears as someone who cares more for basketball rather than his grades. He uses his basketball skills and uses that as well as the tutoring form Jamal to adjust and show how much he truly does care about his schoolwork. Conflicts at an important setting can cause someone to adapt to learn a lesson and reach their goals. Individuals can adapt to help grow, resolve conflicts, and see the importance in settings.
Relationships helped those like Jamal and William to adapt and resolve their conflicts and get closer to reaching their goals. Changes in Jamal and William allowed them to accomplish their goals and grow as a person. Having an influential setting, like Yankee Stadium for William or the state basketball game for Jamal, can help an individual to adjust and resolve their conflicts. Transformations play a big role in everyone’s life in Finding Forrester and it helps many to find a way to resolve their conflicts.
