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Loved it. It's not a Mr. Rogers biopic. He's not even the main character. Some unconventional storytelling, too.
Tom Hanks is solid, but he's so familiar and Mr. Rogers is so familiar that it was hard to see Mr. Rogers in him. They also seemed to downplay the role faith played in Mr. Rogers kindness and approach to life.
But those are minor beefs. I loved the way the film uses the miniatures of the neighborhood for transitions — and expanded to create miniatures of Pittsburgh and New York. On a larger note, I loved how the movie shows how a person can make an impact in another person's life even without knowing them especially well. Listening and kindness.
There's a scene where the writer is talking to Rogers' wife, and asked what it is like to be married to a saint. Paraphrasing here, but she said he's not a saint, and if you make him out to be one, then people will think what he does is unattainable. The point, I think, is that anyone can have an impact like that if they work at it.
I think it works because we know Mr. Rodgers, and we go into it aware of his kindness and goodness. Had it been total fiction with a made-up television host, I'm not sure it works as well. My daughter went with me. She's in her early 20s and didn't grow up with the show like I did. I don't think it had the same impact on her. She liked it, not sure she loved it.
I went back and read the Esquire article the movie is based on. It's a good read.
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