Recent Comments About the Feature Documentary
"GREAT!!! I've just finished watching Young Hemingway: The Path of Paris and I found it informative, entertaining and very well produced. Lots of new, at least to me, points of view. And the contemporary scenes are 'blow you away' beautiful. And even my grandson's hand in Walloon Lake did not end up on the cutting room floor. I hope this new editor of your film brings you accolades from the academics as well as financial success after such a long time in production."
"George, I saw the movie last night and found it very well put together and I enjoyed the content. It is refreshing to spend an hour and forty-five minutes celebrating Hemingway’s young life without all the later baggage, and psychological twaddle. It was also nice to hear what so many friends had to say on camera. And my cameo was well presented. I’m amazed that you managed to get something out of our shoot. I had felt ill prepared. Thank you very much for the film. I hope you have great success with it."
"I imagine you'll be fielding all sorts of repeated or new compliments on this streaming day for your Director's Cut of Young Hemingway - The Path to Paris. Here's one repeated from me: the film is gorgeously shot, and it holds up. You should feel proud on every level. That you did it in your mom-and-pop shop "up north" in Michigan...speaks only to the level of pride I hope you feel. From all I can tell you have handled yourself with integrity and professionalism, and isn't that the highest accolade of all, finally? It's our reputation for decency that we are all seeking, whether we quite know it or not. So great, congratulations."
"Anyone who was interested by the Ken Burns documentary on the life of Ernest Hemingway would do well to see George Colburn's film on the author's roots in northern Michigan and the ways that these contributed to his subsequent career.
The recent Burns documentary spent little time in northern Michigan although this is where Hemingway formed his world view and derived the settings and characters of many of his best stories. Colburn supplies the missing information and shows how Michigan was a launch pad to the author's career.
Colburn's film includes gorgeous shots of the actual locations Hemingway drew upon, interviews with a number of noted scholars, some while walking through the settings of the stories. It even includes a trip to the famous Hemingway family cottage, Windermere, hosted by Hemingway's nephew Ernest Hemingway Mainland. This is a unique opportunity, as the cottage is not open to the public, and Ernie Mainland died just recently.
This film is the work of about a decade of filming and research. It should be on the radar of anyone interested in Hemingway's life and career."
"Your new documentary on Young Hemingway certainly transported me to Hemingway's Michigan - the scenery was beathtaking, the commentary and interviews insightful, and everything came together to make that part of Hemingway's life and work come vividly to life. I thought the whole thing was very well done."
"Congratulations on Young Hemingway: The Path to Paris, which I just had the pleasure of watching. You may remember that I had seen an earlier version or two, and this final version is the best of all--thoroughly enjoyable, wonderfully photographed, and nicely paced. Congratulations on your achievement!!!"
"Young Hemingway: The Path to Paris offers a surprisingly fresh take on the physical and emotional territories of the writer's early years. With stunning imagery and expert commentaries from leading scholars, the film will give viewers a new appreciation for the importance of the natural world—both its majesty and its destruction—in the shaping of Hemingway's outlook and his work."
"I'd love for my class to see the film. So many great insights and images, and no one else has focused so intensively and tellingly in Michigan, the country of Hemingway's heart. I do like that new title, too: The Path to Paris. That says it all. I recall you wondering a few years ago how in the world you would get Hemingway to Paris in your film. Well, you have now made it clear why his arrival in Paris after his youthful experiences mainly 'up north' in Michigan, but also in Kansas City and Chicago, was immediate and explosive and transformative "
"George, we watched Young Hemingway: The Path to Paris last night. Congratulations to you for covering a lot of choice territory. You kept the story moving with variety in selection of intriguing visuals. Great photography! The land! The water!"
"In Young Hemingway - The Path to Paris writer/director George Colburn presents a fascinating portrait of a young writer and the importance of place. This is NOT the story of "Papa Hemingway" that many who are not true aficionados of the writer like to dismiss as a macho pop culture stereotype. Rather, this is the story of a deeply sensitive and adventurous boy who is shaped into a man, and then a true writer - and then a famous writer - by not only the times he lives - which were significant times - but also by the landscapes in which he came of age.....Colburn skillfully manages to answer the question many Hemingway fans and scholars ask: Why did young Ernie Hemingway go to Paris to write about Northern Michigan? This beautiful film will not only provide a satisfying answer but inspire a longing to experience these places for yourself. "