A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Marielle Heller, USA, 2019o
The cynical journalist Lloyd Vogel reluctantly accepts a commission from Esquire magazine to write a portrait of Fred Rogers, who captured entire generations of American children with his television show "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" (1968-2001). In his conversations with Rogers, however, he meets a completely different man than he had expected. They change his attitude to life forever.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood doesn’t reinvent the Rogers mythos, and even its innovative devices fall short of rescuing the material from some of the more obvious revelations. Fortunately, it’s not devoid of payoff. The wondrous closing scene, a wordless moment with Rogers after the production wraps up for the day, arrives as a final poetic gesture. It’s a reminder that this sweet, unassuming movie has deeper sensibilities lurking beneath its surface, just like Rogers himself.
Eric KohnA Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood side-steps any attempt to get under the skin of its subject, concentrating instead on the idea of Mr Rogers and what he represented to several decades of American children. It’s a group therapy session of a movie which delivers its folksy wisdom with a song and a smile. (…) Even in territories where audiences are unfamiliar with Fred Rogers’ hokey appeal, the film’s humour, its amiable charm offensive and its gentle weirdness should disarm all but the most cynical.
Wendy IdeLe récit est à l’image de l’acteur nommé pour sa performance à l’Oscar du meilleur second rôle : bienveillant, modeste et délicat.
Stéphanie BelpêcheL'extraordinaire Mr. Rogers déborde d'humanité, interroge sur les concepts d'éducation, de famille et traite subtilement de la parentalité comme une seconde jeunesse, un nouveau départ. Le long-métrage s'impose comme un film parfait pour rester confiné et respirer un bon coup. Une belle surprise.
La RédactionGalleryo
