“Documentaries have long been a favorite of film buffs.This past year has been especially fertile for these true-to-life releases, including Academy Award® winner Bowling for Columbine and underground smash hit Spellbound. Greater Southbridge, a cinematic portrait five years in the making, reaches for these heights and dare I say, nearly attains them.This documentary proves that sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction. Murphy works hard to show that underneath Jerry’s stuttering speech and hulking demeanor is a kindhearted man who’s just trying to make ends meet, as well as make his town a better place, a move that’s earned Sciesnewski the name ‘Mr. Southbridge’. What could have been a horrible display of immature mockery of a disadvantaged population is uplifted into an enlightened portrayal due to the evident connection between Murphy and his subjects.The audience learns alongside Murphy and his crew that those ‘strange folk’ most of us have been guilty of ridiculing at some point or another aren’t all that different from the rest of us.”
- Regina Robo O’Brien, Boston Metro