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I Saw It: Be Kind, Rewind

posted by Carlye at 12:31 am.

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I had wanted to see this movie since I originally heard of its concept and director, and it was well worth the wait. Directed by Michel Gondry, the movie stars Mos Def as a video store employee and Jack Black as a kook who becomes magnetized and accidentally erases all of the tapes, causing the two to re-film the videos and continue to rent them.

The film’s remakes were as funny and precious as I had expected, and the cinematography was different from that of Eternal Sushine of The Spotless Mind (my favorite Gondry film), while still channeling the same overall feel. There were some flawlessly fantastic shots that I would describe further if I knew the movie buff terms for them, but alas, I don’t.

Jack Black was half-excellent at his “creep who lives down the street” part, and half, you know, Jack Black, with his screaming-shaking-kicking body moves and loud scream-talking, even if it came in handy at times while acting as characters in remakes — or “Swedes,” as they call them — of films like Ghostbusters and Rush Hour II.

Mos Def though, was phenomenal. Having only known him for his music (which I’ve dug for a while now), it’s still hard for me to believe that someone could be as good as he was in the film while still having a primary career as a rapper. He played his part perfectly. (And he’s a cutie pie.)

Overall, the quirky characters and concept were great, and I’d recommend seeing it if you can still find it at a theater (we had to go to two, since one didn’t have it anymore.) If you’re a Gondry fan, it’s a must-see (there’s some really cool cinematography, though one scene where someone gets electrocuted is very, very ’80s, perhaps an homage to Ghostbusters), but if you’re not, it’s still worth checking out. Hell, it’s gotta be better than 10,000 B.C., right?

Play around on their highly interactive website at bekindmovie.com, where you can…well, I’ll let you experience it for yourself.

Carlye Wisel: if sarah silverman, stacy london, buster bluth and ari gold had a love child, it would be me.