A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

I'd heard about this movie from all the advertising back in 2019 when it was released, but I didn't know much about it other than it focused on Mr. Rogers and starred Tom Hanks. Hanks is a big lure because he tends to do quality work and I often find myself enjoying a movie even if the subject matter isn't something close to me or that I care about. I've always heard about Mr. Rogers, of course, but knew little about him. I did not watch his show as a youngster. It felt too slow for me and for whatever reason, while I saw bits and pieces of it here and there, I never became a regular viewer or fan. Now, the biggest thing to know here is that this movie does not center on Hanks in the Mr. Rogers role. Hence, his nominations for awards that year coming in the Best Supporting Actor categories. The centerpiece is the character of Lloyd, a journalist based on real life journalist Tom Junod. The writer was assigned to write a piece on Mr. Rogers and discovered that doing so was easier in his mind than in reality. The amazing parts of the film, though, are those where you see and feel the inspiration of Fred Rogers on those he meets. There's a restaurant scene that is worth goosebumps alone. While watching this movie for the first time the other day, I kept thinking my sister would love to see this. In fact, as soon as the movie was over, I called her and she was happy I'd bought it and came over the next day to watch it herself. This is a movie needed today, when the world is such a mess. It's needed every day, but especially now as COVID-19 both unites and divides us. The way Mr. Rogers thought and approached life, in understanding, awareness, and kindness is how we should all aspire to be in my opinion. I usually rant about extras, which are vital to me in purchasing DVDs, but the movie alone is a must-see. Still, there are interesting extras on putting this movie together, on the puppets, and on Hanks as Rogers. There's a commentary features the director along with another production person whose name I've forgotten as I write this and since my DVD is out of my possession at the moment, I can't verify his name. I tend to love commentaries and while these two people had interesting moments and related very well with each other, I found it was almost too close. By this I mean their conversation was fun, but directed to each other to the point of exclusion of the audience. There were many scenes I was looking forward to hearing the director discuss, but she'd be talking about other things and not really the scene being played. In fact, more than once, she and other person were out of sync with what was happening. For example, that goosebump restaurant moment that was so serious, she was laughing through because of whatever she was talking about. It's clear both commentators loved the movie and working on it, and they had a lot to say, bu it just wasn't organized and/or spoken at the appropriate moment(s). Regardless, remember the movie is about the inspiration of Mr. Rogers, his way of being, and how he touched others, but it is not a biography by any means. It's about how Junod's life aka: Lloyd in the movie, was changed for the better. It's awesome and while there might be a bit too much of the journalist's life for some, it's well worth seeing and learning from. Keep in mind, it's not a biography of Junod, either. He wrote an article years ago that inspired the movie, but he's quick to point out the movie is not all factual. One of the big trauma scenes is supposed to be at his sister's wedding and he says that never happened. That's Hollywood and typical of any similar movie. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood makes for a beautiful day in most anyone's life when watching it.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood was surprisingly good and not at all what I expected. It is not really about Mr. Rogers himself but about how his kindness and philosophy affect someone else’s life. That angle ends up revealing even more about him than a standard biopic would. The movie captures his quiet strength and genuine compassion without turning sentimental or preachy. Matthew Rhys, who plays the journalist, deserves real praise. His performance grounds the story with authenticity and emotional depth. The way he portrays frustration, doubt, and gradual change feels completely believable. It is a sincere, thoughtful, and unexpectedly moving film that stays with you long after it ends.

Great acting, great screenwriting. If you are a Tom Hanks fan and Mr. Rogers fan, this is an excellent movie

Nice read ...brings back memories.as a young person I didn't realize his extensive background.he lived a good life,set a great example of a good human being

Great movie! Humanity at its core!

WHY “A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD” JUST MAY BE MY FAVORITE MOVIE As far as movies go, I'm a geek. I love me some Lord of the Rings and (mainly the original) Star Wars, and Braveheart was always up there, too-- But I have to say that "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" might just be my very favorite movie ever, along with another I'll mention here-- "Finding Joe" a documentary on Joseph Campbell, the originator of the Hero's Journey concept and the one who said, "Follow your bliss." These are my favorites because movies can affect our lives. They move way beyond entertainment and at least for me, they truly inspire me to be a better person. No spoilers if you haven't seen it! The movie was a bit sappy, a little formulaic and predictable. But as Mr. Rogers would say, "...and that's okay." What was great is that it was honest about this amazing man, and how he chose to live. To tell you the truth, I didn't really watch Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood as a kid. I found it a little boring, and by the time I saw it, the whole puppet thing had lost its appeal-- But--what failed to strike my imagination as a kid from a broken home, now inspires me as a better way to live. Here are a few of the concepts from the movie that I had to break out my phone and type out on Evernote as the credits were rolling: *THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON The most important person...is you. It's the person with whom I'm talking. Mr. Rogers displayed that in the movie (and in real life), but paying such close attention to whoever was talking--whether that was a three-year-old or a celebrity. He did it for adults, kids, and always made whomever he was with feel extraordinarily special. We can all learn from that. ​ ​*IF IT’S HUMAN, IT’S MENTIONABLE Mr. Rogers brought up topics like death, divorce, and war on his show--because they are all human conditions. He didn't shy away from them, and gave the kids the truth, but painted in a way that could help them make sense of tragedy. One of my favorite lines of his was, "Look for the helpers." That's the advice his mother gave to him when seeing scenes of a disaster.  That's just so comforting...and there will ALWAYS be helpers, those good-hearted people who try to make things better even in the worst situations we can imagine. ​ ​*I’M NOT A HERO (OR A SAINT) Fred Rogers was a minister. He helped build Public Television. He inspired millions of kids, to help make them more kind, compassionate, and loving. But he refused to think of himself as a hero. He maintained a modest lifestyle, he never boasted and made each moment about others whom he was with. That kind of humility is just really inspiring, and truly a lost art form in the age of social media and the sound byte. But, yes, you were definitely a hero, Mr. Rogers. He also acknowledged hard times while raising his son, losing his usually unflappable cool, and never put himself on a pedestal. He was called a Saint by many, and always denied it...but of course, that's what a Saint would do. ​ ​*”AND THAT’S OKAY.” This three-word phrase promoted tolerance in the simplest, most effective way there is. He often said these words to kids who were feeling complex emotions, who were hurt, angry or confused.  He told kids it was okay to have human emotions...to cry, to yell, to let it all out. He made it okay to feel what we were all feeling. ​ For us as adults, it's okay for people to have different opinions. There's a lot of name-calling and demonization in politics these days. But you know what? We have different ideas often...and that's okay. ​ ​*PRAY FOR LOVED ONES BY NAME I'm particularly fond of this one, as my granddad, whom we called Pe-paw did it--and inspires me to do the same. There's just something very sweet about that. I get teary-eyed when I think of my Pe-paw praying for me by name as a kid. I always drew a lot of comfort from that, and I remember specifically being bullied in the 4th grade and knowing my granddad prayed for me, saying my name...it helped a lot some days. Mr. Rogers did that, too. And that says so much for his character. ​ ​*CARRYING A BURDEN When asked if he felt that he "carried a burden," Fred deflected the question. It had to be hard being in the spotlight for decades, dealing with fans that always wanted a piece of his attention and time...of leading kids through responsible ways of acting year, after year. But he never seemed to complain. No matter how hard it was, he considered his position as a privilege and an honor. It was hard--it had to be, yet he would never ask for nor want sympathy. ​ ​*WE’RE ALL STILL LITTLE KIDS Fred often saw people as the children they once were, and in many ways, still are. I know I still feel like a kid, and often act like one. And I bet you do too, sometimes. If you harbor resentment for someone (even yourself), think of them as a child. We were all children, once. Sometimes, when I find my Inner Critic being particularly harsh or I'm feeling down about myself...I remember myself as a child. I think of that smiling, sometimes sad little blonde-haired boy, and I know he wouldn't want me to be so hard on myself. It's a little like the adage, "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle we know nothing about." *BANG THE PIANO. POUND SOME CLAY. SWIM AS HARD AS YOU CAN. "We are trying to give the world positive ways to deal with their feelings." These are the right ways to take out anger, frustration, and sadness. We don't need to do it with each other.  Life is sometimes freaking hard, and bottling up emotions isn't the best way to deal with it. But you can bang the piano sometimes. That can help. ​*YOU ARE PRECIOUS, AND I LIKE YOU JUST THE WAY YOU ARE. I think he actually said this in the movie, and maybe it was to an adult. "I think that the best thing we can do for people is to let each one of them know they are precious." You know what? We are ALL precious, and you shouldn't feel the need to conform or hide what makes you different. As adults, we see simplistic statements like this and get all cynical and defensive--but it's absolutely true. This kind of unconditional love for others...that's really where it's at. We can all strive to have this kind of attitude and caring for others. ​ ​*PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOVED YOU INTO LOVING One of my very favorite moments of the movie is when all dialogue stopped, and no one said a word for one whole minute after Fred encouraged us to think of, "people who have loved you into loving." Okay, I know this is a post and you have some stuff to do--but I challenge you to do this. Set a timer for one minute, close your eyes, and think of people who have given you love in your life, and helped to make you the person you are, whether they're still here with us or if they've moved on from life. Come on! Have a little courage and do it. Once you do--you can realize just how powerful and touching this is. ~~~~ And those, my friend, are some of the reasons I loved this movie. I hope if you haven't seen it, you'll give it a shot. After writing this, I want to go and see it again. With that, I hope you are doing better than well. Remember that you are precious and I like you just the way you are, too! Chip Franks 💙👍

フォレスト・ガンプのTom の成長版、優しい物言いが英語でも理解でき、微笑ましい人間愛物語‼️

It is a sermon. In essence it is a sermon on the commandment "Honour thy father and thy mother". Tom Hanks plays the American young children's tv presenter and Presbyterian minister, Fred Rogers. The film starts in a strange manner, at least for someone like myself in the UK who had never heard of Fred Rogers before seeing this film, but I stuck with it because it starred Tom Hanks, and I am delighted I did stick with it. The film is a feel-good story about a son called Lloyd Vogel falling out big time with his Dad called Jerry Vogel, who then gets back together with his Dad before his Dad dies with the help of Fred Rogers. I thought that Jerry made Lloyd's job easy by being willing to apologise in a sincere and fulsome manner for his misdeeds. In real life parents who misbehave badly tend not to apologise to their children, (or at least I haven't come across any who do), but, fortunately, in many instances do manage a reconciliation nonetheless before they die. There is a hint in this film that people also fall out with siblings, which, of course, they do, but, as this film makes clear, every effort should be made get over the differences and make for happy families all round. Whilst this film is unashamedly Christian in its theology, it never mentions the Occult, when, of course, underlying many a major family bust up is the Occult. Where I have looked carefully at similar family bust ups there is almost always someone in the picture somewhere who I have either known to be demon possessed or who I thought highly likely to be demon possessed. In the film everyone comes across to me as being normal, but, based on what I have seen in real life in other families, it seems highly likely that there'll have been someone, somewhere, who'll have been demon possessed and who'll have been the source, if not necessarily the immediate cause, of the family bust up. How you cover that in a film like this is an unknown to me, and in that I'm probably in good company because I think that just about everybody involved in making this film from Tom Hanks down will have agreed with the message being given in this film, and more than one person will have known full well that the Occult plays a major role in many a major family bust up, but it wasn't mentioned once in this film, ever. There are absolutely no naked bums or breasts, which is great. I thought that the warning about bad language and violence made on the dust cover was overblown, and it isn't that some of the scenes are unsuitable for young children, because it was definitely a family viewing film, but rather that young children are unlikely to understand the message that the film is wanting to send out to the world. Then again, I might be wrong about that. Young children can sometimes be remarkably perceptive. In short, a very good film, worth buying and seeing, but I have to wonder if it is going to be watched multiple times by people. Saving Private Ryan it isn't.

Great movie with surprising insight on his life. We really enjoyed this and knowing about the man behind the children’s show. Quite the human being. A feel good drama!

Buena peli

A beautiful 'feel good' film which is based on the story of an incredible man. Tom Hanks is always good! Excellent!