Looking back over The Science Of Sleep and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, we’ve always suspected that beneath the eccentricity and the venom reserved for former collaborator Thom Yorke, there a big old sap just waiting to get out. Be Kind Rewind, a delightfully Capraesque whimsy, confirms as much. M. Gondry’s most successful venture since the delirious romance of Sunshine stars Jack Black (here being None More Jack Black) as Jerry, a ne-er-do-well who, through a mishap in an electrical plant, is left with a magnetised brain. This is extremely bad news for his best friend Mike (the incomparably hip Mos Def). As deputised guardian to the tatty old-school video store of the title, Mike has to take responsibility when the powerful electrical field in Jerry’s head wipes every tape on the shelves.
Determined not to displease storeowner Danny Glover, who is busy spying on soulless DVD emporia, or Ms. Kimberly (Mia Farrow) the batty customer who is desperately seeking Ghostbusters, our hapless heroes get to work on their own version. Within days, they’re churning out no-budget versions of Robocop, The Lion King and Driving Miss Daisy and there’s a queue of eager customers around the block.
It’s impossible not to develop a terrible crush on this movie. M. Gondry, who also wrote the screenplay, has fashioned a sweet, funny all-ages showcase for lo-fi invention, cartoon logic and all that’s best about his work. Unlike the willful wackiness of Human Nature or his coolly cerebral collusions with Bjork, Be Kind Rewind is clever but never too-clever-by-half.