RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
RT's Blu-ray HQ
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / The Stone Reader
The Stone Reader

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

The Stone Reader (2003)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
81 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:64

Fresh:52

Rotten:12

Average Rating:7.1/10

Consensus: This fascinating documentary will be of most interest to those who read and write for a living.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 2 hrs 8 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Theatrical Release:Feb 12, 2003 Limited

Synopsis: In this labor-of-love documentary, director-writer-producer Mark Moskowitz tackles a project he had been wanting to pursue since he was 18 years old. In 1972 he read a New York Times book review of... In this labor-of-love documentary, director-writer-producer Mark Moskowitz tackles a project he had been wanting to pursue since he was 18 years old. In 1972 he read a New York Times book review of THE STONES OF SUMMER by Dow Mossman, a title which would later became an object of obsession for Moskowitz. Though he shelved the book for 25 years, Moskowitz finally did read it and was amazed at its ingenuity. He was shocked that its onetime author never penned another book. Determined to solve this mystery, Moskowitz made THE STONE READER, documenting his research project in finding the forgotten author and getting to the bottom of the publishing mystery of how so many great works of literature, and great authors, just disappear. Moskowitz's infectious excitement about literature--reading it, collecting it, understanding it, enjoying it--comes through loud and clear in this inspiring film. He interviews some fascinating characters on his search for Mossman, including Frank Conroy, an author and the head of the Iowa University Writer's Workshop; Robert Gottlieb, the editor of Joseph Heller's CATCH 22 and former Editor-in-Chief at Simon & Schuster; and Leslie Fiedler, a literary critic and author of LOVE AND DEATH IN THE AMERICAN NOVEL. [More]

Director: Mark Moskowitz

Director: Mark Moskowitz
Screenwriter: Mark Moskowitz
Producer: Mark Moskowitz, Robert Goodman
Studio: Jet Films

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

Feb 17, 2004

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Stone Reader

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Worthwhile for anybody with an interest in reading or writing.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
10/08/03
Jurgen Fauth
Jurgen Fauth
About.com

Just as in a good read, the point is more in the journey than the destination.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
10/09/03
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

It's an intimate look at the gears inside one person's head and a study of how an obsession, when handled judiciously, can be enlightening.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
09/18/03
John Carlos Villani
John Carlos Villani
Arizona Republic

No review available.

comment Comment
09/15/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

You're not likely to see a more impassioned and heartfelt tribute to the joy of reading.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
02/21/04
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's a tribute to the transforming power of reading and a reminder of the Sisyphean task that reading can be.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
06/20/03
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
07/02/03
Boston Phoenix

As personal memoir, a story of men and the books that bind them, it's fairly complex but verges on maudlin.

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
08/27/03
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

Fascinating and compulsively watchable.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
07/19/03
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Moskowitz has made a wonderful film about readers and reading, writers and writing.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
07/11/03
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Moskowitz may soon find himself in the same boat as many of the artists he is analyzing, because Stone Reader is going to be one tough act to follow.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
07/10/03
John Petrakis
John Petrakis
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film doesn't exactly sell you on the merits of The Stones of Summer, but it does make you want to run out to the bookstore to pick up some Kafka or some Faulkner.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
03/24/03
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

A riveting literary adventure.

Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | comment Comment
03/10/03
Jerry Weinstein
Jerry Weinstein
culturevulture.net

It should delight anyone who loves to curl up with a book, or loves to tell someone about a book worth curling up with.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
05/08/03
Chris Vognar
Chris Vognar
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Such stuff will most appeal to an endangered species -- the devotee of literary fiction -- but anyone who gives a damn about the state of popular culture and the future of language will want to take heed.

Full Review Source: Dallas Observer | comment Comment
05/09/03
Bill Gallo
Bill Gallo
Dallas Observer

Failure can take an enormous toll on a writer, but success sometimes can be just as brutal.

Full Review Source: Des Moines Register | comment Comment
10/06/03
Jeffrey Bruner
Jeffrey Bruner
Des Moines Register

This filmed travelogue, a cinematic one-man's-diary -- or whatever you care to call it -- never really gives a reason for the audience to care about its subjects or its central thesis.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
09/20/03
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

The mainstream nature of Moskowitz's taste in books undermines his proselytizing for Mossman, whose prose we barely meet in the movie. "I like subplots and twists in stories," he counsels us at one point.

Full Review Source: DVDTalk.com | comment Comment
04/26/03
D.K. Holm
D.K. Holm
DVDTalk.com

No review available.

comment Comment
08/16/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

The most improbably thrilling movie you'll see in 2003 -- an utterly absorbing, invigorating celebration of creativity and its symbiotic and replenishing relationship with the human spirit.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Today | comment Comment
05/05/03
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Entertainment Today
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by source)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 >> >|
See All

More DVDs

Close
Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
66% 66% Public Enemies
83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
44% 44% Night at the Museum: B…
75% 75% Julie & Julia
32% 32% Terminator Salvation

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
90% 90% District 9
86% 86% 500 Days of Summer
63% 63% Extract
06% 06% All About Steve
78% 78% It Might Get Loud

More New Releases…

See All

RT On Current TV

The Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current TV

DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...

Learn how you can be part of the show

More...

What’s Hot On RT

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes

New clips from the detective reboot!

Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2

Watch the brand new trailer now!

Awards Tour

Awards Tour

Keep up with latest nominations and awards!

RT on DVD & Blu-Ray

RT on DVD & Blu-Ray

District 9 & 500 Days of Summer

Other News

Close
  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Danny Trejo Talks Machete, Possible Sequels Source: Collider.com
11
  • It's Official: Jackass 3-D Coming in 2010 Source: Collider.com
16
  • Bryan Singer Returning to X-Men for First Class Source: Superhero Hype
102
  • Mark Strong Talks Kick-Ass, John Carter, and Robin Hood Source: Collider.com
1
  • How Avatar Happened: The Path to Innovation Source: CinemaBlend.com
19
  • Rob Marshall Says Pirates 4 Is Still a Maybe Source: ComingSoon.net
32
  • ET Teases Iron Man 2 Teaser Source: Collider.com
28
  • Tobey Maguire Refutes Hobbit Rumors Source: Hollywood Reporter
9
  • Prince of Persia Featurette Posted Source: Yahoo! Movies
4
  • Trailer Bulletin: Robin Hood Source: ComingSoon.net
61
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Critics Consensus: Avatar Is Certified Fresh
309
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Avatar Soars to #1 Spot
217
  • Awards Tour 2009: Golden Globe Noms Here!
145
  • Brittany Murphy: 1977-2009
98
  • Total Recall: James Cameron Movies
89
  • Awards Tour 2009: SAG Nominations Are In!
43
  • Weekly Ketchup: Bryan Singer Teaches X-Men: First Class
43
  • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
28
  • Friday Harvest: Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, and more!
14
  • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: District 9 and (500) Days of Summer
12
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
28
  • Robert Downey Jr. talks Sherlock Holmes & Iron Man 2 - RT Interview
21
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
23
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
24
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • The Stone Reader at Rotten Tomatoes
  • The Stone Reader at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
MSN's Year in Review
MSN's Year in Review External Link

Take a look at MSN's choices for the Top 10 films of 2009.

Moviefone's Year End Poll
Moviefone's Year End Poll External Link

What were your favorites? Least favorites? The funniest and scariest? Moviefone wants to know!

Tarantino's Characters
Tarantino's Characters External Link

Hollywood.com explores why QT's characters resonate so well with audiences.

Top 10 Movies of 2009
Top 10 Movies of 2009 External Link

TIME chimes in with their own list of the best films released this year.

Top 20 of the Decade
Top 20 of the Decade External Link

Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!

Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Follow RT on Twitter External Link

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.