A Beautiful Day In the Neighborhood

So on Sunday afternoon, Andrea and I ventured forth from the Fortress of Ineptitude to go to a special neighborhood to visit with a very kind man in a red cardigan.

 

A Beautiful Day In the Neighborhood is a remarkable film. But let’s be clear about what this movie is not.

 

It is not a bio pic about Fred Rogers, the host of the beloved and influential children’s program, Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood.

 

It is a story that demonstrates how and why Mr. Rogers was so beloved and influential.

 

We meet Lloyd Vogel, a magazine writer with a reputation as a hard nose investigator with a penchant for exposing people in unflattering ways.

 

Lloyd is under stress as a new father with a new born son. 

 

Lloyd also has a major chip on his shoulder as it relates to his father, Jerry. At his sister’s (latest) wedding, Lloyd has a hostile encounter with Jerry where punches are thrown. 

 

Lloyd is given an assignment by his editor to do a puff piece on Fred Rogers.  Lloyd doesn’t want to do it but his editor reminds him who’s the boss.

 

So Lloyd Vogel is off to Pittsburgh to the public TV station where Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood is produced to interview Mr. Rogers.

 

It is an interview that gets turned on it’s head as Mr. Rogers starts asking Lloyd questions. Mr. Rogers’ genuine and sincere interest in Lloyd Vogel is palpable. Lloyd is a bit rattled to discover that Mr. Rogers backstage is the same guy who talks to children in front of the camera. 

 

Lloyd Vogel cannot believe that Fred Rogers is really that kind, that caring.

 

But over the course of the movie, as the spiraling pressures of fatherhood and the fraught relationship with his own estranged father push harder on Lloyd, he find in his repeated encounters with Mr. Rogers that the man is really what he seems to be, sincerely kind and genuinely concerned with the welfare of others. 

 

There are very brief hints of some fractures in the Mr. Rogers persona. Certain questions from Lloyd seem to give Fred Rogers pause and there’s hint in his eyes of regret or even anger. It is only a hint that barely even registers but its enough to remind us that Mr. Rogers is still human even as he has an almost preternatural influence on people around him.  

 

Enough cannot be said about the performance of Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers. Hanks captures the cadence and tone of Fred Rogers without descending into caricature. There are several quiet moments where Mr. Rogers says nothing but Hanks still captivates with his eyes, the sincerity of his gaze as he ponders Lloyd Vogel’s life and seeks to guide Lloyd to a better understanding of his anger and his frustration. 

 

A Beautiful Day In the Neighborhood is a beautiful couple of hours with a dear friend, a caring and kind friend.