By Claire Convis
Staff Writer
Grade: A
See it if: You love Mister Rogers
Skip it if: You’re heartless
Opening with shots of the classic set from the beloved television show “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” this film sets itself up to be a heartwarming tearjerker, and it delivers. When Mister Rogers, played superbly by Tom Hanks, strolls in to swap his suit jacket for a cardigan and sing “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” viewers who grew up watching his show will want to sing along.
“Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” features cute puppets, such as Daniel Tiger and King Friday, but also touches on deep topics such as war, divorce, anger and making mistakes. Rogers sought to help children manage their emotions in a healthy way on his television show that ran from 1968 to 2001.
The film is shot mainly from magazine writer Lloyd Vogel’s perspective, as his editor assigns him to profile the beloved television personality Rogers. Vogel seeks to find some dirty secret or underlying motive beneath Rogers’ gentle demeanor, but the more he tries to turn the article into an exposé, the more Rogers has a powerful impact on Vogel’s personal life.
Mister Rogers describes forgiveness to his audience as a decision that we make to release others from the feelings of anger we have towards them.
“It’s strange, but sometimes it’s the hardest to forgive people that we love,” said Rogers; in the film, Vogel is struggling to be present for his newborn son, and to forgive his own father for abandoning him many years ago.
As Vogel continues his interviews, Rogers tells him that he always tries to give children “positive ways to deal with their feelings,” and to be real with them about the experiences and challenges they will face in the world.
In one scene, Rogers films an episode where he is supposed to set up a tent, but he wrestles with the tent to no avail, before stopping and saying that assembling a tent must be a job for two grown-ups. When Vogel asks Rogers why he didn’t allow the television crew to help him set up the tent, Rogers says, “Children need to know that even when grown-ups make plans, they don’t always work out.”
Even those who didn’t grow up watching “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” can still enjoy this film, which has a “Saving Mr. Banks” vibe to it. In the words of Mister Rogers, “Let’s make the most of this beautiful day,” and go see this touching movie—it doesn’t disappoint.
