In high school, there was one class project that was always met with widespread enthusiasm: the video. In an atmosphere where narcissism reigns supreme, the popularity of watching oneself onscreen comes as no surprise. However, with these projects came the inevitable inside jokes—the videos were only entertaining for those that made them. “Be Kind Rewind,” a story of homemade videos, suffers a similar fate.
The story begins when Mike (Mos Def) is given full responsibility for the struggling video store he works in. Mike’s friend Jerry (Jack Black), who recently became magnetized in a power plant mishap, comes into the store and manages to erase all the tapes because of his current state.
In an attempt to save the shop, Mike and Jerry decide to remake all the movies in the store. As customers discover the new movies, their popularity grows and the two are soon a sensation within their community with remakes such as “Driving Miss Daisy” and “Ghostbusters.” “Be Kind Rewind” is essentially the story of a community coming together to save a piece of their culture.
Michel Gondry, who also directed “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” is famous for his eccentric manipulations of reality. It is appropriate that the most entertaining part of the film is how Mike and Jerry execute each remake and manipulate an already-established piece of work. Viewers will be delighted by the clever strategies the pair use to recreate each movie, wondering how they personally would have gone about remaking the movies if given the chance.
This audience engagement is one of the only assets this movie has to offer. Altough Jack Black and Mos Def give entertaining, if elementary, performances, their appeal cannot redeem the film. Instead of exuding quirkiness, “Be Kind Rewind’s” strange storyline gives off an air of indifference.
Although the basic plot is simple, the movie carries several sub-plots between characters that never resolve, leaving audiences unsatisfied and confused. The characters are grossly undeveloped and it seems that, despite the movie’s community theme, these characters are only loosely associated with each other, interacting for the sake of interaction.
“Be Kind Rewind” ends up feeling a lot like a high school video. The audience watches a movie with people they seem to know vaguely and a plot filled with jokes that are aimed at the filmmakers themselves rather than the audience. Although there are some amusing parts, most of the really entertaining bits are crammed into the trailer, resulting in unsatisfying predictability. The rest of the movie gives off a you-had-to-be-there vibe.
“Be Kind Rewind” had all the elements for success: an interesting idea, a good director and talented actors. Something, however, was lost between the idea and the execution. Gondry should take the advice of his film: be kind, rewind and try again.
