Review of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) by Electronicoffee — 27 Nov 2019

KNISSEN already hit the 2-3 points I was going to make. "knissenNov 22, 2019.

The documentary "Won't You Be My Neighbor" was much better. Like "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood," it explored where the line was between Mr. Rogers' character and Mr. Rogers the real person and whether or not that hokey touchy-feely persona could be authentic. But in the documentary, that exploration felt charming and nostalgic and hopeful. It also went beyond Rogers as a cartoon character and showed his political activism. In the fictionalized version, both Mr. Rogers and the movie itself came across as cloying and silly and boring. I love Tom Hanks, who doesn't, but this portrayal was rather comical. The real Mr. Rogers was childlike; Hank's portrayed him as a child. In this film version, we saw how Mr. Rogers touched one person and it felt a little like "who cares;" in the doc, we got to see how Rogers inspired so many -- it was just more impactful and moving. Chops, though, to some of the creative and artistic elements in the movie, like the recreated neighborhoods; that aspect actually elevated the experience from dull to watchable.