In movies, inspiration sometimes comes from unlikely characters. Meet some improbable mentors in films available to borrow from the Lititz Public Library.
Mr. Church (2016)
A little girl and her dying mother are given the services of a talented cook and what begins as a six-month arrangement spans fifteen years and creates a bond that lasts forever.
St. Vincent (2014)
A single mother and her twelve-year-old son become neighbors to a retired curmudgeon with a desire for alcohol and gambling.
Secondhand Lions (2003)
A shy boy is sent to live with his uncles, two mysterious old men reputed to be hiding millions of dollars.
A Man Called Ove (2015)
A grumpy, isolated retiree, who spends his days enforcing neighborhood association rules and visiting his wife’s grave, decides to give up on life until an unlikely friendship develops with a boisterous young family.
About a Boy (2002)
A good-looking, smooth-talking bachelor, who avoids responsibility of any kind, invents an imaginary son in order to meet single moms and gets a lesson in life from a bright but geeky twelve-year-old boy.
Finding Forrester (2000)
A talented young basketball player, whose secret passion is writing, meets a reclusive novelist and together they learn lessons about life and friendship.
Uncle Buck (1989)
An idle, good-natured bachelor, left in charge of his brother’s kids during a family crisis, meets hostility from his rebellious teenage niece.
Scent of a Woman (1992)
Hoping to earn extra money, an innocent and reserved scholarship student at an exclusive prep school agrees to look after a blind, retired Lieutenant Colonel who takes him for a weekend in New York City.
Léon (1994)
An enigmatic hit man becomes the unwilling guardian of a twelve-year-old girl who doesn’t want protection, she wants revenge for her parents’ murder.
The Karate Kid (2010)
When he becomes a target of the school bully, a boy turns to an aging kung fu master for help and learns maturity and calm are the skills he really needs.
Gran Torino (2008)
A grumpy, tough-minded old man, who can’t get along with kids or his neighbors, sets out to reform a youth pressured by his gang-member cousin to steal the widower’s prize possession.
True Grit (2010)
Determined to avenge her father’s death, a fourteen-year-old enlists the help of a one-eyed U.S. Marshall and a hardened Texas Ranger to track the fleeing murderer.
Kolya (1996)
A confirmed bachelor is in for the surprise when a get-rich-quick scheme backfires, setting off a wild set of circumstances and leaving him with a pint-sized roommate.
Take the Lead (2006)
After witnessing an act of vandalism, a professional ballroom dancer volunteers to take over a detention class of troubled students and teach them how to dance.
The Intern (2015)
Discovering retirement isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, a seventy-year-old widower seizes an opportunity to get back into the game as a senior intern at an online fashion site.
Hardball (2001)
A down-on-his-luck gambler, in debt to dangerous loan sharks, reluctantly takes a job coaching a youth baseball team.
March 10, 2017