Experience the antics of two outcasts as they attempt to save a local video store. Studio: New Line Home Video Release Date: 09/30/2008 Starring: Jack Black Danny Glover Run time: 101 minutes Rating: Pg13 Director: Michel Gondry
A daffy, adorable, and very funny celebration of DIY spirit, Be Kind Rewind stars Mos Def (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) as Mike, a clerk at a failing video store in a rundown New Jersey neighborhood. When his friend Jerry (Jack Black), who's been magnetized in a power station accident, wipes all of the videotapes blank, the two of them decide to recreate the movies themselves rather than face the store's owner (Danny Glover). The pure charm of Be Kind Rewind can't be captured in that spare plot synopsis. The blend of the movie's great cast (which also includes Mia Farrow, Melonie Diaz of American Son, and Sigourney Weaver) and pitch-perfect writing and direction from writer-director Michel Gondry (director of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, writer-director of The Science of Sleep) culminates in a truly delightful movie--sweet without being saccharine, richly comic without irony or sarcasm (which, given the presence of Black, is surprising), sentimental without losing sight of the hard edges of life. Mos Def turns in a standout performance, deeply sympathetic without a moment of grandstanding. An absolutely winning film. --Bret Fetzer
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
Fine Feel-Good Flick Worth Every Second:
Sweet, sentimental, intelligently written and shot, at times hilarious movie about community, history, neighborhood, family, and film-making. Jack Black is thankfully understated, Mos Def is truly talented to a level I hadn't noticed before, Mia Farrow is funny and nuanced, and Danny Glover is solid as always. Somehow largely overlooked, but if you are thinking about a quiet little movie to watch some night or Sunday afternoon, this one absolutely will not disappoint, and just may become one of your... more info
An homage to DIY filmmaking:
I am really surprised and befuddled that this film did not do better with the critics. I would venture to say that most filmmakers will recognize their own early attempts at special effects and "Hollywood" style shots with Mom and Dad's 8mm camera or camcorder. Although this starts as almost a slapstick comedy, the premise is unique and the characters have a depth usually not seen in today's movies. Mos Def does a great job as Jack Black's foil. But the wonderful thing about this film is the warmth and... more info
Warning: Not fit for children or adults:
Some people seem to think that funny and stupid are the same thing. SORRY, this movie is just plain stupid and not the least bit funny. Like several other reveiwers of this movie, I was not able to sit all the way throught it. PLEASE do yourself a favor and avoid this movie as if it were the plague.
wacky, funny & surprisingly touching:
I won't mince words: I adored The Jane Austen Book Club. It was intelligent, warm and real. Impressively, in less than two hours, the film managed to deal with more than six storylines well. Sure, it's a little schmaltzy, but it's oddly satisfying. The film (based on Karen Joy Fowler's book of the same name) is not only an ode to Jane Austen, but to literature as a whole, especially its resonance over the years. As Jane Austen's novels are too, this movie is about life, love, loss, trust and friendship.more info
