At 9:05 last night , I walked into an AMC theatre, and watched the newest Michel Gondry film- Be Kind, Rewind. Starring Jack Black, Mos Def, and Danny Glover, there was a whole lot of laughing to behold.
Jack Black plays Jerry, a homely man in his mid thirties and is slightly suspicious that the government is the source of his headaches. He works in a junk yard, and does car customizations, like 'Pimp My Ride' only, radioactive, and on a budget. Jerry, lives in a trailer at the junkyard, and insists that the power plant is trying to take over his brain. (Maybe a Voight-Kampff test is required?)
Mos Def plays Mike, a store clerk at Be Kind Rewind video rental store and thrift shop.He lives in the apartment above the store, next to Mr. Fletcher, played by Danny Glover.Mr. Fletcher has spoon fed Mike the story of Fats Waller, a jazz musician who was supposedly born in their very apartment building.
When Mr. Fletcher goes away on a "memorial trip" to honor Fats, he specifically asks Mike not to let Jerry into his store, because Jerry tends to "destroy everything he touches".That same day, Jerry has a plan to sabotage the power plant, because they're not only the cause of his headaches, but they also are trying to use their radioactive waves to take over his brain. When he tells Mike of the plan, Mike declines, stating that he has to watch the store. After some begging, Jerry gets Mike to agree , and they go to the power plant together that night. After some unfruitful attempts, Mike leaves, and directly afterwards, Jerry gets electrocuted.
When Jerry comes into the store the next day, he causes a ruckus, and manages to erase all the tapes,because he's magnetized. He says" I didn't sabotage the power plant, the power plant sabotaged me!" So, when the store's most faithful patron comes in to rent Ghostbusters, they have to come up with some way to get it to her.Mike has the genius idea to re-shoot Ghostbusters, because Ms Falewicz has never seen it.When Ms Falewicz shows the tape to her nephew, the demand for the custom tapes becomes too much.
Tons of townspeople want to have their favorite movies 'Sweded' as Jerry aptly names their new creations. Popular titles like The Lion King, Rush Hour 3, Robo Cop, 2001:A Space Odyssey have all been reproduced by the low budget, comical duo.
A problem arises, when the housing and zoning department plans to tear down Be Kind Rewind.In order to save the business, and a local landmark, they decide to 'Swede' the movies for a higher price, and make the goal of 60,000. By this time, they have a big team of people involved with their short reproductions- the entire town. More problems occur when the FCC comes to shut their whole 'Sweding ' process down.So, with government authority,and bad attitudes, a steamroller runs over their tapes.
After this occurrence, the film ceases to be a comedy. With every body's dreams of 'Sweded' videos shot to dust, the townspeople decide to film a pseudo-documentary about the town jazz sensation, Fats Waller. Granted, everyone loves the warm fuzzy feeling you get when you see townspeople forget their differences, and unite as one . However, this doesn't happen in real life, unless its in Connecticut. Seeing as the film takes place in a New Jersey slum town, it seems highly improbable. This, for me, is where the film went a bit downhill. Not saying i don't enjoy heartfelt films, I just don't think a great comedy should change to one so suddenly. It seemed like a quick grind house flick, except not R- rated, and with no nudity.It just changed into an entirely different movie at this point. The composition of the movie changed so dramatically with the shooting of the documentary.It had a few funny bits, but not enough that it was totally enjoyable. I prefer laugh out loud Jack Black, not sentimental Jack Black.
Be Kind Rewind, all in all, was a decent movie. The acting was fairly well, no one over acted. The best part of the acting was Jack Black's various roles in the 'Sweded' films, but in total,his role got tiresome. Mos Def's character was played well, however it didn't seem like he put 100% into the character. However, when he played the part of Morgan Freeman's character in Driving Ms. Daisy, that was hilarious, with Jerry dressed up in a dress as Ms. Daisy.
Would I recommend this film? Sure, why not.If you have time on a Sunday afternoon, and you want to get out of the house for some humor, and heartwarming, go see Be Kind, Rewind.
I'm going to give this film a 2 out of 5 stars, because I liked it, but I didn't love it. My reasons are above. Dig In.
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