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Fanboys (2008) More at IMDbPro »

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39 comments in total

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30 out of 44 people found the following review useful:
Yes, it's full of clichés, so what?, 3 May 2009

Author: Thomas Elfgren from Sweden

Although this product is far from inventive, or full of carefully orchestrated comedy. It is by no matter of means, slow and boring. If anything, it makes the time fly.

The humour is rather stupid and vulgar, but if you're even close to being a sci-fi geek yourself, or able to appreciate how hilarious this kind of archetype can be. You won't be disappointed.

However, there is a failed attempt at adding heartfelt drama to this movie, no doubt trying to inspire people to follow their dreams and remind them that the time for doing so, is limited. Which isn't a bad thing to do, obviously. It just seemed a little bit out of place. On that note; I have no clue as to why drama and crime are added to this film's genre, you might as well add romance and sci-fi.

Disconnect your brain and laugh your aches away!

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77 out of 139 people found the following review useful:
Great Flick, 8 February 2009

Author: aek6000 from United States

I'm not a movie critic so I'm not going to act like one like many people do on here.

Plain and simple Fanboys was great. The movie had a strong story and was very funny. If your into star wars, comics, movies, pop culture, you will throughly enjoy this movie. Go see it.

Myself, and 4 of my friends took a road trip to Chicago to see it. I think the road trip really made the movie even better.

Its in limited release, but its worth the road trip. It was a lot of fun.

Love this flick.

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84 out of 162 people found the following review useful:
I Saw This Today (12.7.08), 7 December 2008
Author: k8k from United States

This was shown today at the Santa Fe Film Festival.

I truly loved it, totally unexpected, as I knew very little about the film. Someone today mentioned a February release, but they also said that was not confirmed, so take that date only as a possible.

I can say that I think you wont be disappointed, it hits a lot of notes, none of them bad. Lots of actors I've never seen before, their interaction was natural, it felt like their relationships were real.

There was a good sized crowd, so it seems there was a lot of interest here at the film festival, and everyone applauded at the end.

Kate

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8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Fun for Star Wars Fans, 8 June 2009

Author: atlanticcanuck from Saint John, Canada

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I always laugh at those that review these types of movies expecting to see a work of creative genius; especially when it seemed like the movie was delayed or shelved for a long period of time before it was actually released.

You know what, it is what it is. And I enjoyed it. While it may not have been any where near as sharp as Clerks, did you really think it would be? I loved the cameos and getting caught up in the Star Wars nostalgia again.

I would have liked to have seen a cameo by Lucas himself though. I was waiting for him to come out at the ranch.

If for no other reason, the scene with Chief was worth watching the whole movie.

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6 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Not Sure How Non-"Star Wars" Fans Will Like It, But I Had a Blast, 24 July 2009

Author: brocksilvey from United States

A surprisingly funny movie about a group of geeks who set off on a mission to break into Skywalker Ranch and view a print of the as-yet-unreleased latest installment in the "Star Wars" saga, "The Phantom Menace."

This is a road trip comedy of the fairly standard variety, with trips to jail and Vegas, some drug use, some Internet hookups and some prostitutes thrown in for good measure. The film looks like it was made for about $20 and certainly doesn't break any new ground. But the cast of actors is game and look like they're having a ball -- there's an especially hilarious sequence that features Seth Rogen in disguise as leader of an army of rival Trekkies. I can't really imagine anyone who doesn't have a pretty thorough knowledge of "Star Wars" trivia enjoying this film, because virtually every shot and line includes some sort of reference to the George Lucas series. But since I'm a "Star Wars" fan, I thought it was a hoot.

Grade: A

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5 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
"It was never about the movie, it was about us", 29 June 2009

Author: sasha-181 from Canada

Indeed it was. It was about the fans of Star Wars, this film was practically made for Star Wars fans. It's such a shame that this movie didn't get a wider release across North America..a 6 million dollar budget and only got 760k in gross revenue.

The director, Kyle Newman is clearly a Star Wars fan and he knew what he was making. Ever since I saw the trailer for this movie on the Clerks 2 DVD, I knew I was dead set on seeing this since day one. So I waited, and I waited, and I waited and, well, you get the point. The day finally came for me to see the movie. But not in theaters, I waited for it to come to blue-ray.

I felt really good after watching it. I was in such a great mood because of this film. I expected it to be funnier because it's a 2006 film that had so many re-adjustments to the script, but I can understand where the director was going with this film.

I had a good laugh at all the Star Wars one-liner references to the original trilogy, and I never knew about Harry Knowles, but it is true, he really is a major fan. Apparently, this plot of stealing the rough cut of The Phantom Menace is referenced to Harry Knowles at Aintitcoolnews.com for stealing the actual rough cut of Star Wars and posting it on his website. If he did that, then shame on you Harry, you're a thief, I hope your website gets shutdown for good one day.

Fanboys had one little flaw, Seth Rogen playing the southern accent p/imp who also happens to be a Star Wars fan. His character was really annoying in the hotel scene. But Kirsten Bell, that hot beauty makes up for his parts, we get to see her behind. He did play the "Trekkie" part very well though. It was spot-on. I'm sure Trekkies all over are pretty angry, but we all know STAR WARS IS BETTER THAN STAR TREK. Clearly. There was a scene of sadness in the movie, near the end, kinda tore me up inside. I couldn't relate to it, but I do miss my old friends, my first few friends that I used to spend weekends playing Nintendo 64 with and watching the latest Leslie Neilson movie. That's why this movie brings nostalgia into play. You can clearly see it in some of the set designs. The car, that guys garage, oops..sorry, I meant carriage.

The last line of the movie was pretty funny, kinda bad to be put there, and kinda good. It was bad because of all the events that lead up to the ending and it was good because it made fun of everyone who hated Episode 1. But it's kinda funny if you hated the first film, which I didn't by the way. In the end result, this movie gets a 10/10 for originality, and for appealing to not only Star Wars fans, but anyone who still has love for the era they grew up in. This movie was for you and me. I'm proud to say that I can watch this movie again and again and still want to continue watching it again the next day. Go buy this movie if you don't have it, it's worth the money and wait. Don't listen to the reviews, especially the Ebert tools. I recommend this for everyone. It manages to have an original plot, with some light humor, but all that makes sense for the situation, and a little sense of nostalgia in it.

Kyle Newman, if you're reading this, you made a very good movie, I hope you can make more films like this. This is one of those movies you should watch before you die, clearly.

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15 out of 27 people found the following review useful:
Its been so long since I've seen a comedy with a story, 2 May 2009

Author: glitch-10 from United States

Don't get me wrong, I love Old School, 40 Year Old Virgin, Pineapple Express and Knocked Up just as much as the next guy, but this movie is something different. Whereas the previously listed titles give you great laughs, they leave you with a storyline that is easily dismissed and forgotten rather quickly.

I watched this movie with the same impression, and boy was I surprised. Although this movie is hilarious, it seemed to really relate to me (as I am sure it will to most guys my age) about friendship, ambition, and mortality.

I don't want to give anything away, but just expect to laugh as hard as you have at a movie in a long time.

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4 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Embrace your inner geek, 14 September 2009

Author: hall895 from New Jersey

If you're a geek this movie is for you. If you're a Star Wars geek this movie totally is for you. Basically it's a movie about Star Wars geeks made by Star Wars geeks for a target audience of Star Wars geeks. If you are not into all things Star Wars this movie may well miss the mark with you. And even the most rabid of Star Wars fans would have to concede that the movie is certainly not anything spectacular. It's fairly charming and reasonably amusing but never really riotously funny. But it works. More or less.

The movie is set in the autumn of 1998, a time before Jar Jar Binks had been foisted upon the world. Four friends, major Star Wars geeks all, decide to drive across the country, break into Skywalker Ranch and steal a rough cut of The Phantom Menace. The major motivation for this journey is that one of the friends has cancer and will not live to see the movie released. But once that is established the cancer storyline is basically put on the back burner and this turns into a mostly predictable wacky road-trip comedy. Some of the wackiness works, some of it falls flat. There are a bunch of celebrity cameos thrown in, some of which are inspired and some of which are rather random and pointless. So it's a movie which has its ups and downs. But it's enjoyable more often than not and the movie breezes by in a nice, tight, well-paced 90 minutes.

None of the actors playing our gang of four really stand out in any memorable way. Dan Fogler's character is a little more outrageous than the others but that's about it. But the group works together well and they are ably supported by the varied cast of characters who pop up throughout. Seth Rogen's portrayal of a pimp is one of the standouts. Of course this ode to Star Wars fans wouldn't be complete without taking some shots at Trekkies. So there's room for another funny turn by an actor portraying Admiral Seasholtz, an uber-Trekkie. Who is the unrecognizable actor memorably bringing this character to life? You may have to wait until the closing credits roll to figure it out. And in this Star Wars geek universe there's room for one girl and Kristen Bell is both charming and funny in the role as her character gets swept along for the ride. Could the movie be a little more consistently funny? Most definitely. But the movie about Star Wars geeks will probably leave you with a smile on your face. Especially if you're a Star Wars geek yourself.

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5 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Old-fashioned Movie Piracy, 5 July 2009

Author: thesar-2 from United States

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

(Spoilers Ahead) 'Fanboys' was really a harmless picture, not great, certainly not original, enormously predictable, yet, it still had some heart and fond memories of the late 1990s. As with any road picture, you can expect some or all members to get arrested, "accidentally" wander into a gay bar – wow, that was foreshadowed long before they entered the establishment, do drugs, attempt to give up along the way, have a blow out, meet countless cameos and almost always take a detour through Las Vegas. Come to think of it, barely an original idea happened once they got out on the road. Nevertheless, the overall concept – nerds bent on seeing the forthcoming Star Wars prequel, Episode I (this is set in late 1998) early by breaking into George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch, was well executed by the four guys, at least they did the best they could with the material, and made believable geeks, er "fanboys." I disagree with some of the critics that said this movie was released far too late; I think this was a nice remembrance of that time frame. I didn't wait in line for 'Star Wars: Episode I' (thank God, I didn't – what a disappointment) in fact, I waited until the middle of the next day when the theatre was nearly empty of the true "fanboys." But, I do remember the hype, anticipation and passion these 'Star Wars' fans had. It was nice to recapture that. Since 1999, I barely remember a movie even with such a following. Sure, kids and adults always are hyped for the next 'Harry Potter' and a lot were excited about 'Transformers 2.' But nothing compares to the hype these young adults in 'Fanboys' exhibited. Recommended, but just for fun. Side note: Loved Seth Rogan's large tattoo.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
For all the real fans!, 8 December 2009

Author: Enchorde from Sweden

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Recap: A few years after high school most of the gang still holds true to the ideal, Star Wars. But one of them has gone over to the dark side, i.e. grown up and got a good job. But when one of them suffers an incurable disease the gang gets back together for one final road trip. And it's the ultimate road trip, the one to Skywalker Ranch to steal a copy of the upcoming Episode 1.

Comments: As a fanboy myself, well not nearly as committed as them but still, I can really sympathize with them. In that regard I did really enjoy this. Not the best of movies, but actually surprisingly well made with some really nice touches.

However, the movie does has it limited target audience. You must be a fan of science fiction in general, and maybe Star Wars in particular to really get this one. If you have something like above normal interest in that franchise, you should really watch this one though. It's full of references and cameos. Some are really impressively worked into the story so they're almost hard to discover, but they're all over the place.

The references, even if sometimes quite sneakily placed, are the main reason to look at Fanboys, and what I enjoyed most. But the story in itself isn't bad at all. And it has attracted a surprisingly good and famous cast. So even if you don't get all the inside jokes, you still might enjoy it. It's the best kind of spoof/homage.

7/10

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