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Movies / On DVD / Be Kind Rewind
Be Kind Rewind

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Be Kind Rewind (2008)

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Reviews Counted:124

Fresh:81

Rotten:43

Average Rating:6.3/10

Australian Rating: PG [See Full Rating] Mild coarse language and sexual references

Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins

Genre: Comedies

Australian Theatrical Release:
Mar 20, 2008 Wide

US Box Office: $11,028,439

Synopsis: Music-video-director-turned-auteur Michel Gondry continues to charm with his low-tech offering, BE KIND REWIND. Set in dreary Passaic, New Jersey, the comedy centers on two of the town's residents:... Music-video-director-turned-auteur Michel Gondry continues to charm with his low-tech offering, BE KIND REWIND. Set in dreary Passaic, New Jersey, the comedy centers on two of the town's residents: trouble-making Jerry (Jack Black) and well-meaning Mike (Mos Def). Mike works in a video store in an age where the VHS is long dead, but the store's owner, Mr. Fletcher (Danny Glover), doesn't seem to be in any hurry to change. When Mr. Fletcher leaves town for a trip, he entrusts his store to Mike with one piece of advice: don't let Jerry in the store. But after some mischief, Jerry returns to the store in a strange state. Not only is he weirder than usual, but he's also magnetized, which causes the entire store's stock to be erased. In order to keep the struggling business afloat, Mike and Jerry begin remaking the films in the store one by one. Their hilariously low-budget versions of films such as GHOSTBUSTERS and RUSH HOUR 2 soon begin to draw attention and business to the store, but that creates a whole new set of problems for the pair. Though Gondry's three previous fiction films--HUMAN NATURE, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, and THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP--were all essentially love stories, BE KIND REWIND captures another kind of romance. Both the writer-director and his characters are in love with the cinematic medium itself, and their devotion shows. BE KIND REWIND doesn't reach the heights of ETERNAL SUNSHINE, but it doesn't seem to be aiming for that genius. This is simply a hilarious comedy, fun for film fans of all stripes, which celebrates the sheer joy of watching and making films. [More]

Starring: Jack Black, Mos Def, Danny Glover, Mia Farrow

Starring: Jack Black, Mos Def, Danny Glover, Mia Farrow, Melonie Diaz, Chandler Parker, Irv Gooch, Arjay Smith, Marcus Carl Franklin

Director: Michel Gondry

Director: Michel Gondry
Producer: Michel Gondry, Julie Fong, Georges Bermann
Composer: Jean Michel Bernard
Studio: New Line Cinema

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Reviews for Be Kind Rewind

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
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And the film ought to be funny, with Mike and Jerry recreating those films as home movies. But somehow it’s not, the laughs are very thin on the ground.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment 2 Comments
03/19/08
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The remake/parody sequences are outstanding, but Black’s all-over-the-place mania and Mos Def’s bland orphan hero don’t quite tie the rest of the picture together. Still, it has heart.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine Australasia | comment Comment
03/20/08
Kim Newman
Kim Newman
Empire Magazine Australasia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Brilliant ideas dance on the high side of Creative Street, but Michel Gondry's outlandish premise doesn't stretch far enough to go the distance.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
03/16/08
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A comedy hobbled by a preposterous plot and a phony finale.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment 6 Comments
02/20/08
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

The premise of Be Kind Rewind is pure Michel Gondry. The end result is anything but.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment 3 Comments
03/16/08
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Thick stew of awful.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment 3 Comments
02/22/08
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle

Be Kind Rewind should gather dust on both DVD and VHS shelves.

Full Review Source: Washington Times | comment 2 Comments
08/01/08
Christian Toto
Christian Toto
Washington Times

It's central message is that filmmakers are wonderful people, which is pretty much what you would expect filmmakers to say.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment 2 Comments
03/26/08
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

'Be Kind Rewind' is a whimsical adventure with genuine affection for its characters, but Gondry's story is essentially weightless, a fanciful flight in search of a raison d'etre.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment 2 Comments
04/09/08
Rossiter Drake
Rossiter Drake
San Francisco Examiner

Takes a clever concept and cobbles a weak story around it.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment 1 Comment
02/22/08
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The trouble with this movie about amateur film-makers is that the entire film comes across as amateurish.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment 1 Comment
02/24/08
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve

Gondry has merely used the plot to celebrate community, friendship, love, creativity, making something out of nothing and the power of myth to sometimes be greater than truth.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment 1 Comment
02/27/08
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

...quickly devolves into quirky boredom.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment 1 Comment
02/22/08
Laura Clifford
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews

In Michel Gondry's estimation, we're defined by our dreams, our art, and our histories, a conviction he once again expresses with whimsical, lyrical inventiveness.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment 1 Comment
02/17/08
Nick Schager
Nick Schager
Slant Magazine

I felt positive and genial while watching it, but I didn't break out in paroxysms of laughter. It's the kind of amusing film you can wait to see on DVD. I wonder if it will come out on VHS?

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 1 Comment
02/22/08
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lots of heart. But it won't change your life.

Full Review Source: Little White Lies | comment Comment
02/22/08
Little White Lies

Will leave you with a huge grin on your face.

Full Review Source: Sun Online | comment Comment
02/22/08
Sun Online

It’s inviting, undemanding and altogether wonderful. You’ll want to see it again, or at least Swede it yourself.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
02/22/08
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Michel Gondry's latest cinematic breakthrough Be Kind Rewind grants passage into his magical imagination and proves yet again he's one of today's artistic giants.

Full Review Source: HollywoodChicago.com | comment Comment
02/22/08
Adam Fendelman
Adam Fendelman
HollywoodChicago.com

The fake-movie vignettes are a delight to watch, and they would have made for great music videos or short films. What they don’t do is hold together a movie where the characters are forgettable and the situations are contrived.

Full Review Source: MSNBC | comment Comment
02/20/08
Alonso Duralde
Alonso Duralde
MSNBC
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; Australian critics are listed first)
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Latest News for Be Kind Rewind

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