Review - Fanboys

Five fanboy friends reuinte at a Halloween party and rekindle their friendship and love of all things Star Wars. The friends quickly learn that Linus has terminal cancer and will not live long enough to see the long awaited newest Star Wars film, The Phantom Menace. This revelation brings about an old idea that the group has had since the 5th grade, breaking into "Skywalker Ranch" to steal a rough cut of 'Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace' before it releases several months later. The group sets out on hiliarious journey across the country for the daunting task of breaking into George Lucas Skywalker Ranch.


Fanboys is a great film! Kyle Newman did a phenominal job of bringing the Star War universe to life in the romping comedy with alot of heart. I actually really loved the "cancer" angle to the film. It doesn't damper the feel of the film in anyway and gives the story a lot more sustenence, instead of just a typical "road trip" film. The bond that is developed amoung the friends through the hardship of knowing they will lose their friend, gives a very compelling angle to the film. In no means is the film a drama or does Linus's death hamper the film in anyway, instead the laughs come by the boat load.

Fanboys has tons of laughs and enough Star Wars references for any fanboy's approval! All of the sound effects, cameos, and references were perfect and got alot of laughs. The stuff at Skywalker was awesome and had most of the best George Lucas references. Danny McBride (Foot Fist Way) was also a nice surprise as the Head of Security at Skywalker Ranch. Carrie Fisher's cameo was perfect as the nurse who helps Linus. This movie has a real strong appeal for Star Wars buffs and should get the appeal of general moviegoer's also. Some of the Star Wars references might go over their heads (the 90's references will work well though), but overall the performances and story is strong enough that it will hold the general viewers attention.

Sam Huntington (Superman Returns) as Eric and Chris Marquette (Alpha Dog) as Linus are the heart of the film. They play best-friends who have drifted apart after high school. Linus has felt neglected since Eric and he did not create their own comic book together, like they had dreamed of in high school, meanwhile Eric has "grown-up" and now works for his father at the family car dealership. The are some really funny "dark side" references between Eric and his father. Eric and Linus's reconnection is very endearing and makes for some very good scenes in the film. Simply unexpected heart, in a more slapstick comedy. The two are also very funny and the come off perfectly as uber Star Wars fans.

Dan Folger (Balls of Fury) plays Hutch and is hilarious as the scruffy and over-weight loser, who is living in his mothers garage, and has a huge facination with Han Solo. Hutch's side-kick, Windows played by Jay Baruchel (Knocked Up), is the super-nerd of the group, who owns his own comic book store, has a unique talent at Star Wars sound effects, and loves his tough book. Kristen Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) plays Zoe, who works with Hutch in Windows comic book store and really feels just like one of the guys. All of the different friendship angles are well developed in the performances and are equally funny. The cast feels like true friends and true Star Wars fans, which really adds to the overall likability of the characters and the film altogether.

Fanboys is an awesome ride that has alot of laughs and alot of fun references! The story is well developed for a road trip film and the character development really ties the film together. This is a great teen comedy. The downside to Fanboys is it feels a little sluggish towards the end and feels a couple years too late. Fanboys was filmed over two years ago and would have felt perfectly timed right after the release of Episode III, like originally intended. Alot of the jokes about Episode I feel a tad dated (except Seth Rogen's character with the full back tattoo of Jar Jar Binks stating, "Jar Jar is gonna kick-ass!") now that Star Wars fans have moved on from the disapointment, that was Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Still, that said, Fanboys really didn't disappoint!

Overall Fanboys is definately a film I will add to my collection and watch again and again. Finally, Fanboys has the potential of creating it's own "references" which it rely's so heavily on in the Star Wars Universe. For the avid Star Wars fan fanboys is a no brainer as a must see, but even for the general movie goer, if you can find Fanboys playing somewhere near by, check it out.