Review of Be Kind Rewind (2008) by Dawdlingpoet — 23 Nov 2021

I was quite pleasantly surprised with this movie, I thought it could be a one-joke movie, so to speak but I thought it was better than that really. I like the fact that its really a 'movie within a movie', in as much as there's the main story about Mike and Jerry filming remakes of old movies but there's also the more serious side to it with the story about the rental store being earmarked for demolition and there's also the story about the store having a historical significance as being a place that Fats Waller stayed in. Some might think that its quite sentimental, as it is quite, which perhaps doesn't entirely fit in whats marketed as, and predominantly is, a comedy movie but I thought it was touching and enjoyed it all the same.

Some of the movies that Mike and Jerry remake, or the 'swedes', are funnier than others, I think my favourite one was Rush Hour II, followed by Driving Miss Daisy. Its quite funny to see how they try to remake such originally large budget movies, on a significantly smaller budget, like how they re-create the famous opening scene from Ghostbusters, with the ghost in the NY public library, at their local library. I don't think the staff there were much impressed, put it that way! but it is quite funny. The two of them, Mike and Jerry, have their fair share of arguments and sometimes its rather awkward for them to recreate certain scenes (especially if one of them is supposed to be portraying a female character!), as you can probably quite imagine! yes it is rather silly humour but I thought it was quite funny all the same. Its nice to see that these characters clearly do care enough to want to make something to give back to the community and how the community respond to this with a big demand to see more and more of these budget 'sweded movies'.

This is a funny and entertaining yet sentimental and touching movie, that I would recommend to anyone who thinks it sounds interesting. Okay it might not be perfect, in as much as the science behind it might not be entirely plausible and the ending may disappoint you too, I don't want to give it away but it might not be quite what you'd hope... but there again, people might be happy with it because it may be seen as being more realistic, perhaps. I'll leave that to you to decide.

I think there is a nice message implied there on one hand and I like that it does seem to have quite an upbeat and optimistic kind of a feel to it, you might live in a run down area with little to look up to but become creative and you can become the next big thing I suppose is sort of whats being put across.

I thought that Mos Def gave a good performance in this movie, you can tell that he does care about the store and he wants to do a good job for Elroy, knowing he was entrusted with it while he's gone and acting alongside Jack Black, who gives his usually sort of lazy unemployed guy performance, he does quite well. Danny Glover also gives a good performance, again you can feel the emotion from him when he talks about Fats and you can tell how much the video store means to him too.

I thought that this was quite an amusing and entertaining movie, with a sentimental side to it that added to it quite well. Its not totally a throw away movie, although I don't know that I would want to watch it more than once really. I don't feel its excellent as such but I do think its worth seeing, the story could have become rather weak by the middle or end of it, had it been the one joke movie I thought it might be but instead, I thought it was better than that and I like that there are two or three sort of separate stories within the one movie.

Some probably would/will be put off by the sentimentality it has, if you think it sounds a bit too sickly sweet then you might not find it so great, although thats not an aspect thats present throughout the whole movie but moreso at the start and towards the end of it. This movie doesn't break any new ground for Jack Black but Mos Def and Danny Glover do quite well.

I'd say that its worth renting but maybe don't buy it, as im not convinced its the sort of movie I would really re-watch. Overall, I feel that this movie was better than I had expected and I would recommend it to others, there is more to it than meets the eye, although it depends on whether you like such sub stories, whether this will appeal to you. If it sounds like something that would interest you, then definitely check it out, otherwise maybe leave it for now, im sure it'll be shown on TV within the next few years, like most movies are.