Be Kind Rewind (2008)

From the previews, Be Kind Rewind looked to be another hilarious hit for Jack Black. The concept was different, the plot was unique and it appeared to have promise by putting an interesting comedic spin on cinema classics without stepping down into spoof film territory. So the question is, does the film succeed the way former Jack Black classics have? And is Be Kind Rewind worth the rewind at all?

Be Kind Rewind is a small video rental store on the corner of a small urban community. When the owner, Elroy Fletcher (Danny Glover), leaves town to attend a jazz memorial, his trusted employee Mike (Mos Def) is left in charge to run the store with only one rule... keep Jerry out! Jerry (Jack Black), is Mike's quirky friend who runs the local junk yard, and believes the power company is out to control people through the electrical waves, which are causing him headaches. Jerry attempts to sabotage the power plant but only manages to give himself one severe electrical shock, turning him into a human magnet.

Mike fails in keeping Jerry out and ends up paying the price when all the stores video tapes are erased by Jerry's magnetic abilities. Now the two of them must come up with a way to replace the tapes and satisfy their small customer base before Mr. Fletcher returns. The two get the crazy idea to remake the films themselves, and coin the word "sweded" which they describe to their customers as a special import version of the film, which is quite expensive. Surprisingly the public love them and Be Kind Rewind goes from making less than $20 a day to hundreds. The sweded versions become so popular that Jerry and Mike begin casting people in the neighborhood to play parts in the film so they can meet the demand. But while Be Kind Rewind finds new life in the hands of Mike and Jerry, Mr. Fletcher returns with some disturbing news that might put the small neighborhood video store out of business for good.

Be Kind Rewind has some good ideas it's too bad they weren't properly put to good use, which lends the film to run out its welcome rather quickly. Starting off rather slowly Be Kind Rewind has a real independent feel to it, and with a budget of about $20 million it's clear that budget went more to the salaries of the actors than it did into the film itself. But the film slowly begins to pick up speed as the two main characters start remaking classic films and provide the movies main dose of comedy. Following that the story begins to revert back to the "main story" with the return of Danny Glover's character and therefore begins to drag on once again. At only 102 minutes the film genuinely feels like it's pushing two and a half hours, and that's mainly due to the Fat's storyline, the story the film is continually pushing, which is quite uninteresting and boring. They attempt to tie it all together in the end for a descent ending, but as a whole it doesn't work well with the side story of Mike and Jerry. Overall, Be Kind Rewind has it's moments but suffers from a messy plot, poor direction and story that could have been more funny than it actually was. This one was a disappointment for me, because the trailer really looked quite promising.

6/10