Review: "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" Gives Its Audience a Nice, Warm Hug

Scene from A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Over the past few years, it has been argued that public access TV icon Fred Rogers was a radical. Despite being a homely man known for his kindness and sweaters, he presented complex ideas to a young audience that others may consider too mature or even inappropriate. These themes included war, death, and divorce among others and presented a discourse that helped to prove that what the world needed wasn't to shield children from problems but help them understand and accept their emotions in healthy ways. It was the stem of an idea that inspired director Marielle Heller to tackle the power of Rogers' words in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, cast impeccably with the nicest man in Hollywood himself, Tom Hanks, playing a man perceived to have no reason to despise. The results get to the heart of why audiences love Mr. Rogers, but it's nothing revelatory. It's a decent film that shows the power of understanding with warmth, but it lacks anything regarding any further depth of character that could make it a satisfying character piece.

The story follows Esquire Magazine journalist Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys) when he is assigned in the late-90s to write a piece on "American hero" Mr. Rogers. It seems simple enough, but there's plenty to know about Lloyd going in. He is a skeptic whose interviews lead to cruel takedowns of his subjects. He believes it's fair journalism, but leaves many to wonder how he will find the darkness of Mr. Rogers. He's not supposed to, but Lloyd feels like the kind of man who sees the worst in people, setting him up as the perfect foe for a man who is prone to love his enemies and solve every problem with a conversation. All the while Lloyd is presented with those around him saying things like "Don't ruin my childhood," believing that any bad press on Rogers could hurt feelings that Rogers long ingrained in them as positive. It's not supposed to be this bad, but given that Lloyd also had a falling out with his father (Chris Cooper), things are on a downward slope.

That's the thing about driving to Pittsburgh to see Mr. Rogers in action. He takes time to listen to everyone, often delaying the filming of his TV series Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood because of how engrossed in a conversation he is. He believes that he needs to be genuine, allowing his flaws to be seen so that children know that adults aren't perfect. There's so much that, if viewed from Lloyd's perspective, is unwholesome in his niceties. One would think that Rogers isn't genuine and faking it. It's the type of meat for this puff piece that Lloyd wants, but it never comes. All that comes is an understanding of who Rogers is to the general public. It comes in the quiet conversations when Rogers turns the interview on Lloyd, asking him how he feels about his own personal relationships. It maybe feels uncomfortable because as a society Lloyd embodies the average person: groomed to expect some level of cynicism and deceit by even those who love him. Giving into happiness is just not going to happen.

Heller's technique for the film is rather novel. Despite playing a supporting role, a lot of the film is seen from the perspective of a Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood episode, where the familiar toy miniatures replace exterior transitions and Rogers opens the film with the titular song. He even presents the plot like one of his episodes, presenting Lloyd bruised and sad on a picture board. While there's some salacious behavior throughout the film to keep this from being even PG-friendly, it's the perfect subliminal tool that pays homage without being a caricature. By having Rogers address the audience this way despite the majority of the episode is more traditional, it allows for the story to feel like a direct engagement of his show from the other perspective. Whereas he was known to talk to children about adult issues, he's talking to adults about issues in a way that compares beautifully. Somehow even an angry journalist mad at the world can be talked about and explored in a way that fits his show. It just shows how secretly radical his program was.

If there's an issue with the film, it's that nobody could truly match the charm of Mr. Rogers no matter how much they try. The best that can be said is that this is Tom Hanks at his most wholesome, bringing a quiet performance that is more intent on listening than showing off. There are entire scenes where Hanks' performance involves just looking into the camera, expecting the silence to allow for a moment of thought that gives levity to the audiences' personal life. It works and makes for a performance that is curious, but Hanks lacks any real attributes beyond that to being Mr. Rogers, making it a bit distracting. It also doesn't help that the story lacks any of the subtle revolutionary power that Mr. Rogers had in life with a story of Lloyd coming to terms with his familial problems. It's in part because none of the cast feels developed enough to have these cathartic breakthroughs and that what's here is more conventional wisdom. Heller creates a film that should work and has every technique down for that story, but here it feels like Rogers is more of a cipher for ideas than an actual character, and Heller's subliminal use of hero worship throughout is a bit too twee to always work.

It's a film that sets out to make the audience understand the appeal of Mr. Rogers, and in that way, it's a success. The film is warm and safe even when presenting a man in a downward spiral. Rogers is attracted to the darkness because he wants them to understand that it's possible to overcome struggles and express themselves in meaningful ways. Why not punch a lump of clay or clang a piano? The film barely scratches at the idea of Rogers as a man with secret anger issues, but it could've done better to parallel the conflict of Lloyd and him in that way. As a film exploring Rogers from the outside, it's good enough and finds so much comfort in the loving embrace of what's good in the world. In that way, it's an essential film of the moment. Otherwise, it doesn't really cover new ground, nor gives the most interesting perspective on a man who remains so powerful in troubling times like this. It's the equivalent of a man going to the nicest therapist for two hours and coming out a better man. It's a decent plot, but Rogers being said therapist feels too coincidental for it to matter.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a touching movie that gives enough warmth and honesty to a world hurting. If one needs to have a movie that reflects how negative energy can be transitioned into good, then this is a good one to watch. It plays with techniques that audiences know from Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and supposes that the world is his neighborhood. Everyone just needs to treat each other better and learn to listen. It's a simple enough statement and one that makes this underwhelming as an ode to a great man. However, it's good enough to serve as a hug in a cynical world, reminding audiences that it's okay to be mad. It's just a matter of how you go about releasing that energy.