Mr. Rogers figured heavily in my after-work routine in the 1980's. For 30 minutes my kids would sit in front of the TV and Fred Rogers would work his neighborhood magic and calm those kids down. I loved his home-spun voice, his puppets, the Land of Make Believe, all of it.
"A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" brought it all back, of course. Tom Hanks is a perfect Fred Rogers and the sets were true to what I remember from the TV show. But the movie is so much more than just Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.
This is a perfect movie for right now. It is about Fred Rogers and his relationship with a bitter journalist but it is more than that. It's about kindness, compassion and forgiveness. It's such an antidote to what is happening at this moment all over the world that to watch this film and not cry seems impossible. It's almost as if Fred Rogers gives you the green light to cry, to feel vulnerable and afraid and to know that it's OK to feel all that.
It's $2.99 to rent from Amazon. Just do it. And have a beautiful day in your neighborhood. Won't you be my neighbor?
Be careful and be happy.
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