Mister Rogers: un vicino straordinario

Won't you Be My Neighbor? was enthusiastically received at Austin's SXSW Film Festival. The film is a beautiful heartwarming tribute to Fred Rogers and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood - a show which changed children's television forever. The film highlights Rogers' humanity and decency and shows how he could bring his message of decency to children. Rogers was a Christian pastor who brought his values to his work on TV without ever trying to preach his religion. Perhaps the most powerful clip was during the first week of his show in February, 1968 (at the peak of the Vietnam War) when his show starts out encouraging that walls be torn down. His message remains amazingly timely today. It also underscores the importance of PBS - which the films shows Rogers defending successfully at a Congressional hearing. The interviews with his widow and his co-workers capture the essence of the human being. The film is well-written and edited and will remind millions of the impact of a remarkable man. Highly recommended.

Best superhero movie of 2018. His superpower? Compassion. I hadn't realized how much I missed him... How the world has changed without his influence... Amazing movie.

My first thought after viewing this film was: How impressive is it that a documentary which presents itself as a story about a life of a man, gets us to think more about ourselves internally than it does make us think of the life of Mr. Rogers. All I could think about was what am I doing to improve the world or improve myself? How can you love your neighbor as honestly or as devotingly as Fred Rogers? Who was it that helped me get where I am today? How do I become the best person I can be? It's these questions that make appreciate "Won't you be my neighbor?" even more every second I think about it. I would consider myself a casual viewer of the original show, only ever seeing the episodes late in its run. But it always struck me as powerful because of the earnestness and genuinity of Fred Rogers and the messages he was trying to get across. Is our world in a better place now than it was before the show? Probably not. But his message of loving yourself and loving your neighbor is something that transcends generations and ideals. I would be hard pressed to find a film that was as emotionally impactful as this in 2018. It's exactly the type of film we need at right now, when our world is at a low. Rogers truly represented the best a man could be and it's time we got back to viewing life the way he did. Love is at the root of everything, love or the lack of it. Wow, if there was ever a quote that could represent an entire population, generation, or world. That may be it.

10/10

Full disclosure: I am a cynical, negative atheist. This was one of the best films I have ever seen. I was profoundly moved by the vision of such a kind, gentle, subtle and genuine human. Fred Rogers was a Christian Republican. Today's "Christian" "Republicans" should be forced to watch and discuss this film. Doing so would change the world.

This is a documentary about the legendary Fred Rogers who created the iconic children's show. I never saw the show other than a few clips although I'm certainly familiar with the ideas of the show. I probably know it more from its many spoofs. What I didn't know about Fred is his religious convictions or that he's a Republican. Neither is that surprising although it sheds some light on his personal views. Like some suggest, this is his sermon to the children of America. His unabashed conviction of the goodness of humanity is undeniable and infectious. He is who he is. One can really see his world view and his natural self in this. The best moments come from the kids with loving open eyes when they meet their best friend from their TVs. It is a touching tribute and it doesn't shy away from the darker material. That's not to say that Mister Rogers had a dark side. It's that there are actual people who hated Mister Rogers. It's an interesting insight into the man when he tells Clemmons that he has to fire him if his homosexuality comes out of the closet. The man has convictions but he's not a revolutionary trying to overthrow the establishment. It's obvious that the children comes first and at the end of the day, he is for the children.