Like most British people, I had never even heard of children’s TV presenter Fred Rogers until the documentary Wont You be my Neighbour? came out a couple of years ago. Even with that,without growing up with his show, the adoration the American public hold him in is hard to understand. This film goes some way to explaining that, as Fred (Tom Hanks) makes a significant impact on the life of a troubled writer, Lloyd Vogel,(Matthew Rees) who has been assigned to write a story on him.
Lloyd’s fractious relationship with his father is well portrayed and their eventual reconciliation is quite effective. Hanks does well enough in a tough role, but he still can’t totally shake the slight creepiness of the man he is portraying, particularly when he insists on Lloyd talking to some puppets in order to confront his demons.
In the end, it is hard to see this making a big impression on UK audiences. I will probably appreciate the long overdue Brian Cant biopic more!
Rating: 6 out of 10