Be Kind Rewind Review - Blake

Views of poster does not reflect the views of Kori, nor does it reflect the views of those in this household, Lindonites (Lindononions?, Lindings?), Utahns, Americans, North Americans, Western Hemispherians or earthlings.

Unfortunately for those of you familiar with my previous post, this will not be as funny. In fact it will be the opposite of funny, but I hope you still read.

Now for the review.

Before I extol this movie to a sickening degree I want to say what is bad in this movie. The acting was okay, nothing super special. The story took a bit too long to get going, the relationship between the lead characters was a bit inept and in some cases not as genuine as one would have hoped. The last 20-30 minutes of the film seemed a bit out of place as well as the movie changed from one point to another.

**Spoiler Alert** I'm not giving away much more than what you can see from previews or guess.

Now onto the meat and potatoes, or rice and beans for those vegetarians, squash and corn if your trying to reduce your carbon footprint.

Be Kind Rewind is making three points in this film. Two of these points are real cuts to the hollywood machine, to production companies and to anyone trying to make more than just an extra buck from movies.

• Point 1: Movies do not belong to any company.
  With the latest attacks from RIAA and MPAA over copyright infringment and a push by production companies to keep people from stealing their movies there is a fundamental question that is faced when it comes to the artistic element of the media. Certain actors, certain filmmakers, writers, makeup specialists, costume designers, key grips and others that truly want people to have a visceral experience with their efforts. This point comes across in the movie as Mos Def and Jack Black recreate 20 minute shorts of every movie using junk and equipment from around their neighborhood. I felt the film lightly touched over this point and missed a few key opportunities to drive it home. The fact that characters were recreating these films from memory shows a real love of cinema. When the evil lawyers swoop in to destroy their creations they hardly have a reaction other than stunned silence. For a light-hearted comedy I wouldn't expect (for good reason) to have the characters break down into sobbing conniption fits in this scene, but not a single tear was shed and that seemed unlikely. So for me I saw a great message and not enough follow-through.
  
  
• Point 2: This is a call for more independent films.
  Not just a call but an appreciation for the efforts. Let me reiterate that. Make more indie films. Anyone want to make a movie with me? Just bring the camera and a cast.
  
  
• Point 3: A call for regional films.
  Around here it was Napoleon Dynamite that really started a nationwide appreciation of regional quirks. Be Kind Rewind shows through some effort that our stories that we share in our communities is part of the glue that keep us together. Though universal concepts are easy to rehash and create movies from, the regional stories can evoke a more visceral experience. In Be Kind Rewind, Mike (Mos Def) uses the entire community to help retell a story made famous by constant retelling by his mentor Elroy Fletcher (Danny Glover). As more and more people are involved with the storyline, adding to its absurdity, the more apart of them it becomes. In the end their existence in the world is confirmed by the films existence. AND, the purpose of the art is fully realized.
  

I love the message of this film and encourage any film lover to take an evening and watch it. The film isn't a work of art (at least to me) but an appreciation of art. It allowed me to remember and internalize some of my favorite films as my own. It also told me to let other people love their films and not be too critical that connection. Don't worry, that doesn't preclude me from truly hating some films.

Blake