A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood 2019
In 2018, a documentary about Fred Rogers was released, but I also remember reading a pretty good article about him, probably not the Esquire article this movie is “inspired by.” So I felt like I knew a lot about Mr. Rogers already. This movie got overwhelmingly positive reviews and a lot of acclaim for Tom Hanks’ portrayal of Mr. Rogers. But Hanks was nominated for Best Supporting Actor because the movie’s main character is actually a jaded investigative reporter who is assigned to write a puff piece about Mr. Rogers. Some people felt like the movie was false advertising, with most of the publicity about Mr. Rogers and Hanks, whereas the movie is more about this fictional version of the Esquire writer. However, it is a pretty effective approach, telling about Mr. Rogers by showing how he could affect people, not just through a children’s TV show, but personally. By seeing that effect, the audience gets to know and appreciate the subject. The movie is a little manipulative and there is a lot of personal drama added to the reporter’s life to heighten that. The acting is very good by Matthew Rhys as the reporter, but the portrayals of his wife and father are also very good. Tom Hanks captures Fred Rogers well, but it isn’t as good a fit as it seems like it should be. Tom Hanks has a lot of energy usually and has to slow that down substantially, which, as he spouts nuggets of wisdom, sometimes gets him into Forrest Gump territory. It is still a good performance that captures the essence of Mr. Rogers. Because it is only inspired by real events, I don’t feel like I can give it an A, but I still really enjoyed seeing how positivity can make the world a better place one person at a time, so maybe an A-.
Written: 23 Jul 2020
Owned on: Digital