Double Review: First Reformed & Won't You Be My Neighbor

Two movies I highly recommend have two ordained clergymen taking very different paths on finding the meaning of life and love.

In Paul Schrader's First Reformed, Ethan Hawke is Reverend Toller, who runs a tiny but historically significant Dutch Reformed chapel. It's more of a tourist stop than a real church as sightseers make up the number of visitors than parishioners. The place is supported by the Abundant Life megachurch lead by Pastor Jeffries (Cedric the Entertainer who is credited with his real name Cedric Kyles) who is organizing the 250th anniversary of the little chapel.   

Reverend Toller(Ethan Hawke) meeting with Mary(Amanda Seyfried)

One day a fellow parishioner named Mary (Amanda Seyfried) ask's for the Reverend to talk to her insecure husband Micheal (Philip Ettinger), a paranoid environmentalist. What follows are a series of events that threaten to re-awaken Toller's inner demons.

As the end credits rolled, I sat there staring blankly at the screen comprehending on what I had witnessed. Such a feeling I recall when I saw Martin Scorcese's Silence, Roland Joffe's The Mission and Darren Aronofsky's Noah. Emotions of anger and sorrow but at the same time a bit of enlightenment. It's like going to church, when in the right mindset you grasp the readings from the old and new testament and the homily of the priest. The feelings range from comprehension, puzzlement and shame but like First Reformed you leave pondering on what you have heard.

Ethan Hawke gives an astonishing performance. A man haunted by his past; being a man of the cloth has helped maintain his sanity, now his perception is challenged in an unimaginable way that isn't far off in today's world with the teachings of the past not having the same effect on current ears even among the walls of the church.

Known for mostly comedies Cedric Kyles does a terrific job in this dramatic role. 

The final outcome is rather bleak (this is the same man who wrote Taxi Driver)that will definitely put off many people. A couple in the audience walked out during the movie, and I was at a point of losing my lunch during one scene. So much corruption, cynicism and no easy way to find a solution and yet the characters are desperate in trying to find some sort of redemption.

Final Verdict: (A-)

First Reformed along with the other films I mentioned earlier are great examples of christian-themed films. It's challenging and thought-provoking whereas the likes of Kirk Cameron and Pureflix falter. Disturbing and haunting but brutally honest, it's one that'll be sticking with me for a long while.


Moving to more lighter fare is a film that the characters in First Reformed could use more of.

Won't You Be My Neighbor? is a fantastic and heart-warming tribute to Fred Rogers, better known as Mr. Rogers from the classic children's program Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. Through interviews with his family, friends and the people he worked on the show, Morgan Neville's documentary is a fascinating portrait of a man unlike no other, from his days as a Presbyterian seminarian, to working on public television.

I have fond memories of watching Mr. Roger's Neighborhood as a child and his lessons have always stuck with me than any other children's program. Every episode felt genuine and never fabricated, no matter the topic if it were on death, divorce or war. Delicate subjects that many children shows  wouldn't dare address he did in gentle manner and never dumbing it down. We see him applying his philosophy of kindness and love in senate hearings for continued funding on public television, his response to parodies of himself, and the importance of viewing what a child watches on television.

An interesting aspect I found was with Rogers' puppet Daniel Striped Tiger. During the program, Mr. Rogers would use a variety of puppets in the Make-Believe segments from X the Owl, and King Friday but Daniel proved to be the more significant of them all. As told in in wonderful animation, Daniel served as a sort of alter-ego for Rogers that echoed much of his youth; something that many children watching could relate. I can see why this character served as the inspiration for its predecessor Daniel Tiger's Neighbor.

Final Verdict: (A+)

In all honesty, describing this movie isn't enough. This is a definite must-watch for anyone who grew up with the show. Even if you aren't familiar with Mr Roger's Neighborhood, it's still a worth-while viewing of a man who asked the simple and sincere question to everyone around, "won't you be my neighbor?"