• Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

Flickering Myth

Geek Culture | Movies, TV, Comic Books & Video Games

  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket

Movie Review – A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)

November 1, 2019 by Tori Brazier

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, 2019.

Directed by Marielle Heller.
Starring Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys, Chris Cooper, Susan Kelechi Watson, Christine Lahti, Wendy Makkena, Tammy Blanchard, Noah Harpster and Maryann Plunkett.

SYNOPSIS:

Based on the true story of a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and journalist Tom Junod.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is the kind of film we all need right now. Simple and sincere, it doesn’t try to be anything other than what it is: A touching homage to a folk hero of American kids’ TV, seen through the eyes of someone whose cynicism couldn’t remove him further from that world.

The opening segment of the film, which fastidiously recreates the beginning of Fred Rogers’, a.k.a. Mister Rogers (Tom Hanks), TV show, will be slightly lost on British audiences, to whom the sweetheart of kids’ television is not a familiar figure. But the framework is there, so we can understand – and it’s a nice, gentle introduction to the style of his show. The old-fashioned and comforting qualities of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood are clear, as well as its host’s trademark relaxed pace.

Tom Hanks is charming as Fred Rogers, always calm, easy-going and never wrong-footed by any challenges journalist Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys, TV’s The Americans) throws his way. There’s no edge to his character, no dark issues to unpack, or any whiff of scandal to anticipate (which again, if you don’t know the figure, it’s easy to feel slightly uneasy over in the film’s first 30 minutes or so). He’s the perfect counterpoint to the tormented, pent-up Lloyd, who is less than impressed to move away from his usual withering journalistic take-downs into writing a “puff piece” on someone so universally admired. As his wife Andrea (Susan Kelechi Watson) implores, “Lloyd, please don’t ruin my childhood.”

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a slightly melancholy but touching true (well, based on truth) tale, far more about Mister Rogers’ effect on someone else’s life than about Mister Rogers himself. The excellent Matthew Rhys is given lots to do as, essentially, the film’s main character. He judges his part well, never becoming alienating in his negativity but remaining sympathetic – and pretty funny. His character’s anger could see him descend into Ben Stiller-esque levels of shouting and extremity, but Rhys keeps him firmly anchored in reality. People will talk a lot about Tom Hanks’ performance, but Matthew Rhys deserves equal praise.

Importantly, despite Lloyd desperately needing to be “fixed”, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood never becomes too cloying, nor gives into corniness. The screenplay is sincere, but also has fun contrasting the opposing outlooks on life held by Lloyd and Mister Rogers.

Nate Heller’s music is lovely, appropriately evocative of Mister Rogers’ show and a nice through-line in the movie. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood feels very ‘90s and nostalgic, but not in a bad way. Some of that is down to its setting and fashions, but it’s also in the structure and style of film. Have we lost the ability since then to make a film that’s unabashedly positive and isn’t accompanied by a more depressing subtext – or context, for that matter? A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood shows that it’s just fine to be simple, and avoid complexity for its own sake. It’s refreshing to watch a film focused on someone so genuine, without agenda. Sure, it’s sentimental, but what’s wrong with that? It’s undoubtedly the perfect Thanksgiving movie for Americans, and – for Brits in particular – it cracks the hard shell of cynicism that’s so popular right now. And that’s no bad thing.

Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★

Tori Brazier

Filed Under: London Film Festival, Movies, Reviews, Tori Brazier Tagged With: 2019 BFI London Film Festival, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Chris Cooper, Christine Lahti, marielle heller, Maryann Plunkett, Matthew Rhys, Noah Harpster, Susan Kelechi Watson, Tammy Blanchard, Tom Hanks, Wendy Makkena

FMTV – Watch Our Latest Video Here

WATCH OUR MOVIE NOW FOR FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

A Better Tomorrow: Why Superman & Lois is among the best representations of the Man of Steel

Cannon’s Avengers: What If… Cannon Films Did the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Fantastical, Flawed and Madcap: 80s British Horror Cinema

7 Underrated Ridley Scott Movies

10 Essential Films From 1975

13 Great Obscure Horror Movie Gems You Need to See

8 Great Cult Sci-Fi Films from 1985

The Enviable “Worst” Films of David Fincher

7 Prom-Themed Horror Movies You Need To See

The Most Terrifying Movie Psychopaths of the 1990s

Top Stories:

Comic Book Review – Star Trek: Red Shirts #1

Movie Review – Saint Clare (2025)

18 Incredible 21st Century Films You May Have Missed

Feel the Heat: 10 Uncomfortably Hot and Sweaty Films

10 Great 1980s Sci-Fi Adventure Movies

James Gunn’s Superman soars with $217 million worldwide box office opening

Movie Review – Eddington (2025)

Movie Review – Superman (2025)

STREAM FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

FEATURED POSTS:

Ranking The Police Academy Franchise From Worst to Best

Great Tarantino-esque Movies You Need To See

Classic Retro Video Games Based on 80s UK TV Game Shows

The Best ‘So Bad It’s Good’ Horror Movies

Our Partners

  • Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

© Flickering Myth Limited. All rights reserved. The reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of the content without permission is strictly prohibited. Movie titles, images, etc. are registered trademarks / copyright their respective rights holders. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. If you can read this, you don't need glasses.


 

Flickering MythLogo Header Menu
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket