Review of Be Kind Rewind

I'm not usually a fan of Jack Black, even though I know darn well that he's actually a fine actor when he's not playing something outrageously stereotypical, but he snuck up on me in this one, as did Mos Def. Nice ensemble cast -- engaging, non-Hollywood dialog, strange happenings that, nonetheless, sucker you in so that you just go ahead and buy into the odd little plot premises. Most importantly, these characters, despite their strangeness, are more recognizably human than a whole lot of film characters. They might live next door, or in the next town, or just down the street. Not smart, particularly. Not always attractive. Just Human. Loved the cleverness of these shoestring budget movie makers (as a director of HS theater, I've been there and done that on stage) Finally, loved, loved, loved what this film says about how Americans are always buying into their own mythology -- or creating it out of whole cloth (or cardboard) when the facts are inconvenient.