A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Review
I think this movie is made for the cynics out there and I happen to be one of them. Sometimes it's good to be good. But it's great to be good in a bad world. Loosely based on the Tom Junod Esquire article "Can You Say... Hero?" and the friendship that spawned from Junod and Rogers, it tells a tale of a jaded journalist (named Lloyd Vogel in the movie played by Matthew Rhys) and his turbulent relationship with his estranged father (Chris Cooper). The movie is mostly about him and his family and Tom Hanks' Mr. Rogers (the only logical casting choice, of course) just so happen to be there to make things a lot better. It's framed like a high concept extended episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood -puppets and mini docs intact- and gives insight to Rogers through the people he knew and worked with. The dynamic between Lloyd and Fred work beautifully and the film takes a lot of visual risks that pay a lot of homage to the TV show and Rogers' legacy. It's also a very fragile film to watch in a crowd. Tender moments might be seen as cheesy and ridiculous for those who are uninitiated to Rogers' relentlessly altruistic philosophy. But I wouldn't want things any other way. It's a very mature film punctuated by Marielle Heller's gritty style -qualities that you wouldn't think would work for a movie featuring Mr. Rogers. But here we are. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is the ultimate feel good drama. It's good to feel good, wouldn't you agree?