Stevie (2002)

91% of critics liked it
(74 reviews)
82% of users liked it
(2,496 ratings)

In the early '80s, Steve James was a student at Southern Illinois University who volunteered for the local Big Brother program and served as a mentor for Stephen Dale Fielding (Stevie for short), a troubled 11-year-old boy with unhappy family relationships. Given up by his mother when her husband… More In the early '80s, Steve James was a student at Southern Illinois University who volunteered for the local Big Brother program and served as a mentor for Stephen Dale Fielding (Stevie for short), a troubled 11-year-old boy with unhappy family relationships. Given up by his mother when her husband decided he didn't want him in the house, Stevie was primarily raised by his step-grandmother and had already begun to reveal a stubborn and easily distracted personality when he met James. After he graduated from college, James lost contact with Fielding, but in 1995, after James had gone on to a career as a documentary filmmaker (and won acclaim for his film Hoop Dreams), he was reintroduced to Stevie, only to learn that his life had taken a number of wrong turns. After a number of scrapes with the law and on-going battles with his family, Fielding had been charged with molesting his eight-year-old cousin, and he'd opted for a trial (which could lead to a twenty year prison sentence) rather than receive counseling, due in part to his experiences in a mental hospital. James and his wife (who counsels sex offenders) wanted to offer Stevie whatever help they could, and James opted to make a film about him, hoping to discover where Stevie's life and gone wrong and how his tragic turn of fate could have been prevented. At the same time, James (like many others in Stevie's life) began to wonder what they could have done, and to what degree they let him down, with James torn between his feelings for his friend and his need to portray all sides honestly. Featuring interviews with Fielding, his family, and his friends, the documentary Stevie examines how society's safety net failed to catch one young man before it was too late. Stevie was shown in competition at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr. 25 min.
Directed By: Steve James
Genres: Documentary, Special Interest

In Theaters: Apr 11, 2003 Limited
On DVD: Sep 9, 2003
Studio: Lions Gate Releasing

Critic Reviews

Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press
Stevie is a tough movie to watch and an even tougher one to leave, because once you're involved you're implicated.
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
A spectacle of suffering and liberal guilt.
Desson Thomson, Washington Post
A powerful chronicle of a human life.
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News
A haunting documentary/ personal essay that provokes violently mixed feelings toward both subject and filmmaker.
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
Filmmaker James -- whose wife is a social worker -- should be applauded for his courage and commitment.
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Some viewers will feel moved to tears of compassion, and others will point to Stevie Fielding as an argument for more barbed wire on the prison walls. But there's no denying this is an important film.
John A. Nesbit, Old School Reviews
emotionally drains while steadfastly refusing to provide easy solutions
Jeffrey Overstreet, Looking Closer
... a potent reminder that grace, healing, and resolution are possible for the most broken of families.
Derek Smith, Apollo Guide
A touching and unique documentary, Stevie brings the filmmaker and his subject closer together than most films.
Robert Roten, Laramie Movie Scope
Steve James, as he did in "Hoop Dreams," gets amazing access to this entire extended family and friends to create a very moving film.
David N. Butterworth, Movie Boeuf
Steve (Hoop Dreams) James's deep and singular commitment to his subject shines through in this compelling documentary.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
An engrossing but not always pleasing cinema verité documentary.
Larry Carroll, Big Picture
Although it isn't the type of film that will jump out of your speakers, it will creep out and grab on to your heart.
James O'Ehley, Movie Gurus
If a two-and-half hour long documentary about a redneck child molester doesn't seem particularly appealing, you'd be pleasantly surprised . . .
Josh Gilchrist, rec.arts.movies.reviews
It stumbles at points because of an overlong running time, but it speaks volumes
Jon Popick, Planet Sick-Boy
I liked it in the same way I love watching Big Brother and every other stupid reality show on television.