Be Kind Rewind: Sparks of Comedy Genius review

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Be Kind Rewind shows sparks of comedy genius, but sporadically so, writes Justin McGuire

In brief: Jerry and Mike erase every video in Mr. Fletcher's video store, a local landmark that is close to being torn down, and have to re-film them before Mr. Fletcher returns. They do so by re-filming requested films as no budget, 20 minute spoofs.

Jack Black plays Jerry as Jack Black. Mos Def, whose name I love, plays Mike, and mostly succeeds as the real actor of the duo. Crispin Glover plays what older men play in Hollywood, a non-intrusive, kindly old man--but in a surprising turn of events, not a sagacious one.

On one hand, Be Kind Rewind is a conventional comedy: a funny movie (two people re-film popular films with no budget) built around a typical, emotionally resonant core (save a small business and a local landmark).

On the other hand, it is entirely unconventional in its ending, simply in that it does not let up the emotional weight. Common comedies let the protagonists cleverly solve all their problems at the end to their own ultimate victory, great comedies let the endings stand alone and force the characters to live with the consequences of their misbegotten selves. It is what separates PCU from Animal House. Be Kind Rewind might not be the next Animal House, but the movie lets the ending stand alone, and I thank writer and director Michel Gondry for that.

Be Kind Rewind shows sparks of comedy genius, but sporadically so. There is a nearly-random subplot involving a Jack Black turning radioactive, which is what causes the VHS tapes to get erased. This plot thread could have been funnier. Or briefer. Or replaced entirely with something else. It is irrelevant to the rest of the movie, and disappears without another thought in the middle of the second act, when Jack Black pees it out of him. There is no typo in that last sentence. He pees it out of him. If that made you giggle, just know that it is funnier typing that than it was watching it.

This movie is at it's funniest when our unstoppable duo are filming their new versions of movies, it's at it's most heartfelt when Crispen Glover is on the screen, and it's most blasé during most of the rest, which accounts for an unfortunately amount of time. It could have risen higher.

Nonetheless, Be Kind Rewind is the only good testament to the legacy of VHS format I have ever seen. Low budget films have come to be associated with million-dollar marketing blitzes by Miramax, and ultra-low budget now means a two thousand dollar Apple computer and a similarly priced DV handheld. Be Kind Rewind presents the kind of low budget filmmaking that only exists with VHS: no budget. DVDs do make an appearance in this film, as a cameo that nearly derails the dreams of our protagonists.

The VHS format died for good reasons, and much like the end of Be Kind Rewind, its destruction was inevitable. However it also introduced a few generation of film lovers to film, and it will always be looked upon fondly because of that, and this is the heart of the film, this is what Be Kind Rewind captures. I only wish that it were consistently hilarious throughout, instead of just in scattered moments.

[rating:3]