In an email from several nights ago, "Watching Fanboys right now! I have been waiting over two years to see it...will give a review on my blog. That is certain!"I can't give much of a review. I was so let down by this movie. Only a couple of items to note...
1. The cast diverts from their trip to steal a copy of Episode One to go thru Riverside, IA to bust some Trekkie balls.
2. The best catchphrase of the movie is used when they do attempt to kick Trekkies balls due to their calling Han Solo a homo. It is..."Get the hell out of here you Kirk-lovin' Spock suckers!" Beautiful dialogue.
3. Skywalker ranch is guarded by the dudes from THX-1138.
4. I was able to gorge myself on hotdogs and ramen. Not just any ol' hotdogs and ramen. This was hotdogs with Heinz 57 and ramen made with paprika, basil, and dehydrated onion!
5. That is all.
You will all have to watch it for yourselves, but I felt really let down. Kinda like watching a Brett Ratner film.
May the Force be with you.
After waiting two years, I’m not sure what your expectations were? I admit that I didn’t know much about the movie (cast/crew/plot etc..) and so I was in the dark and didn’t have many expectations and upon initial viewing of the trailer (the one or two that I remember seeing when they planned to release it) seemed all to painfully clear that this could go down the usual road of the poorly written comedies spewed out by the likes of the “Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen” team, that for whatever reason, strikes a chord with so many fans these days. Wow that was a long sentence!
ReplyDeleteAnyway I sat down with Cal last night to watch the movie and yes, expectations were low, based on Darin’s review. My wife was on the couch next to me but had no intention of watching this drivel, much less giving it any sort of chance so she sat nicely, reading her book while Cal and I started our “giggle fest”. I was pleasantly surprised at the writing because most of it actually made sense and moved along at a nice pace. I think the biggest draw for me were the many references that you had to spot (blatantly or hidden). I believe that subsequent viewings are needed to catch everything and spot things in the background. However the ones that hit you in the face are no less funny. There are so many to mention but little things like hitting the top of the van roof to get it started is funny for me. The Emperor calling time out…, come on, that is funny shite there! Dan Fogler played “Hutch” and I’ve never seen this guy before but he was a fresh comedic face with good timing. Overall the cast gelled well.
A quick side note. Sam Huntington played the main character, if there is one, and I enjoyed seeing him in this type of “trek” film again, for lack of a better word. He was in “Detroit Rock City” where once again, he and 3 of his buddies start out on a trek to see KISS in concert in the mid 70’s and the movie is a wonderful little gem. Check it out if you get a chance.
But I digress, back to the movie review. Being a big fan of the saga is the best part of this and makes this film bearable and dang it, downright pleasurable. Yes it alienates others that aren’t big fans and may even offend the “trekkies” out there or “trekkers” being the politically correct term (learning from the movie). Of course it’s meant to cater to us but when you think about it, we’re a pretty big demographic and I ate it up.
Adding the emotional plot to suck you in and make you care about the characters and their plight could be construed as corny, I’ll give you that. But they had the guts to pull it off and make it work. They didn’t shy away from it and in the end, it worked for me. The cameos were nice and didn’t come across as sad or in the way. And being a big fan of Kevin Smith, it was nice seeing Jay and Silent Bob strike back again (although the content of their cameo could’ve been a bit cleaner) but we’re talking about Kevin Smith here. Of course the cameo that could’ve pushed this over the top would’ve been Harrison Ford. Had he stepped in for a scene, this movie would’ve been gold Jerry! Gold! And you know, I believe I did hear George’s beard as well,… if you listen hard. At least I’ve been informed I did.
I could go on and describe all the things I liked about this but you get the idea. This comedy was good and I give it two Heinz 57 hotdogs (stadium beef style) and with a big ass bowl of ramen! In fact, when I watch this again, which will be soon, I intend to have that very meal and enjoy it all the more.
P.S. – On my way to work this morning, Jody and I spotted a black van much like the one in the movie (see below poster), selling for $500.00. I discussed this with my wife and told her how cool it would be to buy it, fix it up all Star Wars style and give it to Cal to drive when he’s in high school. Seriously. Also, she may not admit it but toward the end, Jody couldn’t resist anymore (or she ran out of reading material) and started watching the movie and caught herself laughing along.