A good story well worth telling ...
about the dark secrets that only parents can keep,
and the deep friendship that only twelve year olds can understand...

A review by Fair from Canada
15th January 2007

The film industry is always so surprising, and never more surprising than when a small little film has so much more to say, over much of what you find in the mainstream channels. Off the radar for most, an immediate gem for anyone willing to discover it, "Rounding First" tells a worthwhile story about a journey of discovery for three twelve year old boys. With this initial offering and obvious labour of love, writer/director Jim Fleigner has crafted a story that feels both familiar, and yet is compelling enough with a powerful ending that sets it apart.

Knowing basically nothing about the story other than I had heard it compared with "Stand By Me", I was only aware that "Rounding First" was a small indie film, and was urged to give the film a chance by a select little film community that needs no description. I watched the film and was fully taken by surprise. It was like "Wow!!" did that just happen... and I just had to watch the film again. I did, the very next day... and then I watched it again the day after that... basically, what a great surprise and a wonderful
discovery. Although I can understand the comparison to "Stand By Me", I would have to say such a comparison is not warranted, as "Rounding First" is not intentionally nostalgic like the other film. The heart of "Rounding First" is not derived from remembering fondly some golden era, but rather from the dark secrets that only parents can keep, and the deep friendship that only twelve year olds can understand.

I watched the film again and again, because it made me want to experience that journey again. Quite simply, for me that was made possible by the two young actors Soren Fulton and Matt Borish. Sam Semenza was all right, but his character was not involved to the same depth as the other two characters, and as the foil for comic relief, he did quite well. That is not to diminish his character in any way, and a big part of being twelve is having fun and finding the humour in just about anything, but for me the film works because of the relationship between the two characters played by Matt and Soren. They were very honest and real in their performances, and although the twelve year old characters would never talk about such stuff, the performances made the love and friendship the two best friends shared very believeable, and is why the dramatic sequence at the end worked so
well.

What makes the film work, and why the ending is so effective, is that the film earns that ending by how we are drawn into the two characters over the course of the film. We get to experience the depth of friendship they have, in how they interact, the moments they share, and how they jump to the other's defence without hesitation when some perceived line that only they know the boundry has been crossed. Sure they are just twelve years old, and are joking around and everything else you would expect at that age, but that age also means they are very open to each other, and is why such friendships are always so well remembered. When the final dramatic scene hits, it is not the love from a parent that can prevent something very tragic from happening, it can only come with "Joe" effectively being "Tiger's" conscience, and telling him not to do something foolish because he needs him. Everyone else is yelling around him, and all that "Tiger" could hear above all that is the whispering voice of his best friend. It is in that moment you find the true heart of the story transformed into the full compass of human emotions. A well scripted scene brought to life by Matt and Soren... it must have been very satisfying for Mr. Fleigner to witness his words on the page become so real. I am sure it looked good on paper, but I have no doubt they brought those words to a whole other level. A wonderful testament to the script, and the performances.

It is amazing Mr. Fleigner got the film made at all, and it was his belief in what he was doing and why it was a good story well worth telling, that really comes through in the finished film. Many thanks to him and everyone involved... and especially Matt, Soren and Sam.