Won't You Be My Neighbor?

One of the big surprises of the Oscar nominations announcement was that Won't You Be My Neighbor?, Morgan Neville's documentary on children's television host and advocate Fred Rogers, was left out. I have only seen one other of the nominees, RGB, and I think Neighbor was a better over all film, and not quite as hagiographic (although there is little to find fault with on Mr. Rogers). Both are equally worthy subjects, but the topic of the film is not being judged, the quality of the film is. Oh well.

That being said, Won't You Be My Neighbor? is a fine film, covering its very important subject completely, from soup to nuts. Fred Rogers was an ordained minister who thought television could be a tool to help children learn the most important thing--that they were unique individuals, and they were worthy of love.

If you can find fault with Rogers, it's that he comes as a bit of a prig, not finding slapstick funny (his disdain for pie throwing clowns got him into television in the first place). I think children deserve some silliness, too, but certainly he had a point. His show, as we see in several clips, was extremely slow moving, with occasional long stretches of silence. He did not show cartoons, but instead had a world of make believe that was not violent but sought to stretch the imagination. His set was simple, the puppets, especially Daniel the Tiger, seemed to have plucked out of a Good Will box, and his lessons were subtle. When black children were not allowed to swim in pools for white children, he pointedly shared a foot bath with the black policeman character.

Rogers worked tirelessly as an advocate for children. He addressed contemporary concerns, such as trying to explain the word "assassination" after the death of Robert Kennedy. After 9/11, when he had retired, he was asked to say a few words, and struggled, but still offered some healing balm.

The film includes interviews with his widow, his sister, his sons (it's hard to imagine Rogers as a dad--I'll bet he had to yell sometimes) and with his production staff. Perhaps the most touching moment is when he interviews a boy in a wheelchair, and they talk about what that's like, but agreed that the boy still has a meaningful life. Tears!

Another key event is when he testified before the Senate to keep funding for PBS. His speech, in front of Senator James Pastore, did the trick (Pastore says so as much when he says, "Well, I think you got your twenty million dollars"). Interestingly, Rogers was a life-long Republican. I doubt he would feel that way today, with a Republican administration separating children from parents at the border. Rogers was a tolerant man, and did not have a prejudiced bone in his body.