Just Like the Son (2006)

A petty thief's mentoring of an apparent orphan takes a profound turn when he kidnaps the boy from a foster home and drives him cross-country to his sister's house in Texas.

Director:

Morgan J. Freeman

Writer:

Morgan J. Freeman

Stars:

Mark Webber, Antonio Ortiz, Brendan Sexton III

4 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Webber	...	Daniel
Antonio Ortiz	...	Boone
Brendan Sexton III	...	Grant (as Brendan Sexton)
Rosie Perez	...	Mrs. Ponders
Dylan Blue	...	Chris
Bruce MacVittie	...	Bill
Adrian Martinez	...	Glen
Bill Ladd	...	Fair Worker
Joel Garland	...	Truck Driver (as Joel M. Garland)
Allen McCullough	...	Detective
Maria E. Heredia	...	Principal's Assistant (as Maria Heredia)
Chris McKinney	...	Highway Patrol
Eva Kaminsky	...	Mrs. Brown
Cara Reid	...	Kelly
Frances Shaw	...	Brenda (as Frankie Shaw)

Storyline

"Just Like the Son" chronicles twenty year-old Daniel Carter's (Webber) attempt to help an eight year-old, Boone (Ortiz), find a better life. Daniel First meets Boone while doing community service at an East Village grade school. The boys strike up a friendship during which Daniel learns that Boone's mother is sick and may be hospitalized. He also learns that Boone has an older sister, Charlotte, who lives in Dallas. When Boone does not show up for school a few days later, Daniel begins to ask questions and learns that Boone was placed into a temporary foster care in Upstate New York. After being turned down as an adoption candidate, and failing to convince his Father to help him gain custody, Daniel decides to rescue Boone from the orphanage. He puts all his street smarts to use and they head to Dallas. While the goal is to locate Boone's sister, the heart of the story is the unexpected bond Daniel and Boone form throughout their road trip adventure.

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Plot Keywords:

foster care | road trip | friendship | new york city | urban setting | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes one chance is all you need to make things right.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief drug use and underage drinking

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 April 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

A pótpapa

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

SpaceTime Films, LaSalleHolland, 11th Street Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"Each Coming Night"
Performed by Iron & Wine (as Iron and Wine)
Appears Courtesy of Sub Pop Records
Written by Sam Beam
Published by Sam Beam Music (BMI)

User Reviews

Another awesome road movie from Freeman

Morgan J. Freeman delivers a heartfelt road movie about twenty yr old small time criminal Daniel (Mark Webber) who drives a 6 yr. old orphan (Antonio Ortiz) across country to reunite the boy with his sister.

Daniel works as a janitor at an elementary school, doing his 240 hrs of community service painting over graffiti and reading to the kids. A bond forms between Daniel and young Boone, a fatherless boy who is about to lose his mom. When Boone is taken to an orphanage, Daniel takes matters into his own hands and drives Boone from NY to FLA, where Boone's sister lives. The pleasures are simple as Daniel and Boone enjoy life on the road. The film has a sweet, dappled 70's vibe as the two camp out, go shopping, and jump on hotel beds. The characters are honestly drawn and memorably portrayed. Webber is especially likable as a young man at the crossroads.

Morgan's previous film, Piggy Banks, is also a road movie, although much different in tone. It's about two young brothers who happen to be serial killers. It's an incredible, tense, enlightening film about a much different kind of life on the road. Freeman has really hit his stride with these two road movies.