Review: 'Won’t You Be My Neighbor?' Offers an Emotional Look at Fred Rogers
This review was originally published on UW Film Club, but has since been reuploaded here with the author’s permission.
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This film was seen at the 44th Seattle International Film Festival. The film is now in wide release in Seattle.
In 1968, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” launched and ushered in one of the longest running kids programs with over 900 episodes across 31 seasons. The show was a profound take on child’s television for the time, offering low production values, but earnest messages that helped with early development. Behind it all was Fred Rogers, a Presbyterian minister who saw how television of the time was negatively influencing younger audiences with sought to do something about it.
For 33 years, Rogers created television that raised generations of kids to be the best version of themselves, and Morgan Neville’s (20 Feet from Stardom) latest documentary, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, aims to tell the story of everyone’s favorite neighbor. Using a combination of interviews, archived footage, and animated segments, Neville is able to dive deep and provide an introspective into Roger’s life. Doing so, gets at the heart as to how important Rogers was not only to children, but also society at large.
As with most good documentaries, there’s a revelatory quality to them that enlightens you about a subject matter. In this case, you really get a sense of how influential Rogers was. Rogers effectively raised an entire generation of children with his show, but you would never know that as a kid who grew up with him. At a young age, you may have watched “Mister Roger’s Neighborhood” and kept the lessons you learned, but never know the context of Rogers himself or how he was presenting wholesome, progressive values in an era when it was radically uncommon. What this documentary does so well is shine light on Fred Rogers’ ability to encourage children to to understand empathy, to be loved, and to be the best version of them self all from a single television program and one man’s dedication to improving the well being of children around the nation.
From his kind hearted nature revealed by behind the scenes stories to how he saved government funding for PBS, Won’t You Be My Neighbor? thoughtfully lays out key moments in Roger’s life and not only translates them to character moments for Rogers, but also attaches a sentiment to them. Each ‘section’ of the film deals with a certain theme ranging from love and acceptance to race and war, and with each, you add another dimension that builds to more wholistic image of who Rogers was as a person.
The doc is incredibly powerful at converting these themes into messages that echo into 2018. Even though the show started in 1968, there are stark parallels that are almost uncanny in resemblance to today. King Friday wanting to build a wall to prevent change, Nixon wanting to defund PBS for its counter opinions to the administration, and the state of decency within the public are all represented in the show and brought up in the doc to expose some inherent reality we experience today.
With each aforementioned ‘section’ of the film, you’ll find yourself holding back the tears as periodic moment converges on an emotionally rich touching point. These points often relate to Rogers’ character as we see how much a good man he really was and frequently tie into the relevant themes noted above. Since its often so diverse, one moment you’ll be crying at Roger accepting a gay man despite his religion and the next you’ll be tearing up when you hear college students profess their gratitude to him. It’s hard to believe the film can illicit tears at so many moments, but it earns them, as it conveys a broad array of emotions like grief, love, and anger in a very concise package.
But of course this is a documentary about Fred Rogers, and one of its stronger elements is illustration of the unsung hero that is Rogers. Using first hand experiences of people who knew Rogers, the doc gives audiences an image of a man that had an unrivaled passion for helping children understand and interpret their emotions, and it shines light on how Fred Rogers influenced generations of kids to be the best version of them selves. Being able to connect with children in ways others could not and using his platform as a vessel for positivity, progressive ideas, and social acceptance are the ways in which Rogers shaped his audience to be better people. As one of the most influential personalities on television, Neville accurately paints the positive impact he had on them and the legacy he left because of it. In many ways the documentary lets us experience our own emotions by observing the man who helped us understand them.
It maybe hard to draw with words, but the weaving of relevant themes, emotional moments, and ovation worthy depiction of Rogers all mix and mingle incredibly well within Won’t You Be My Neighbor?. Collectively, the film uses these elements to showcase a man that made us better people and makes us strive to be more empathetic human beings. Rogers may have touched us in ways we may not recognize, but we certainly carry his lessons with us, and in a world as bleak as this, it’s nice to know there’s always someone out there as good as Fred Rogers.
