I saw "Won't You Be My Neighbor?", starring Fred Rogers-Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
This is a documentary about the life of Fred Rogers, an influential and controversial childrens' tv host. His show, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood debuted in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1967 and was picked up by PBS about a year later, going nation wide. He had a way of talking to children that was different from most other shows before him. He died of stomach cancer in 2003 at the age of 74. The documentary covers his past, what he did before his tv show that helped shape his life and it also covers protesters and bad times during his later life-Believe it or not, not everyone liked him.
There are lots of people-both co-workers and others-that were affected by Fred and they appear and talk about their experiences-Yo-Yo Ma was interesting. The Congressional meetings are covered from the late 60's that show Fred making his case for more funding for PBS shows-the government was wanting to cut budgets. There were some things that I did not know about-the significance of 143-or maybe had just heard as out & out rumors, that are talked about here. Most people had a problem with differentiating between whether he was really like the person he portrayed on screen or if it was all just an act. They also wondered about his sex life, all of which is addressed here. Overall, it is a good behind the scenes story that makes you think.
It's rated "PG-13" for thematic elements and language and has a running time of 1 hour & 34 minutes.
I enjoyed it and would buy it on DVD-it would be a good one to watch with your kids.
Review of Won't You Be My Neighbor?
