I dare you not to like this film. Tom Hanks is the perfect Mr. Rogers. (Even almost creepy now and then. Look for the scene in the coffee shop.) Matthew Rhys - the consummate actor from Wales who does Americans better than Americans - makes being a troubled soul seem effortless. (It's not easy at all.) Chris Cooper brings off one more disagreeable character, and he makes it quite different from any of the same characters you've seen him do before. Susan Kelechi-Watson - as the long-suffering, patient wife makes more out of the role than the script seems to give her. And Christine Lahti gives Ellen - the "shut-up-and-get-it-done" magazine editor - a subtle humanity that was barely expected and beautifully woven in. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is NOT about Mr Rogers; he's really a supporting player. But the story - which could have been told without him - would otherwise not have worked. I dare you not to like it.
Review of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
