Fanboys

Starring: Jay Baruchel, Dan Fogler, Sam Huntington, Chris Marquette, and Kristen Bell

Story by: Ernest Cline and Dan Pulick
Screenplay by: Ernest Cline and Adam F. Goldberg

Directed by: Kyle Newman

Fanboys is a movie that simply tries too hard and is only moderately successful. First off, it should be stated that if you aren’t a Star Wars fanatic or at least a geek in general (and the two usually go hand in hand), you probably won’t get this movie and it’s the only place it really shines.

If you take out the fanatic Star Wars fanboys appeal you are left with a tired road trip comedy that is chuckleworthy in spots but not much more.

What’s worse is I felt it could be much more. If you told me that we’d see: Dan Fogler being Dan Fogler, Kirsten Bell in the Leia gold bikini, cameos from Seth Rogen (twice over), Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, William Shatner, Ethan Suplee, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher amongst others…I would have said this movie should be pure comic gold.

So I WANTED to love it. And I only liked it.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I watched it and will probably throw it on the player again at some point, but alas it could and should have been better.

The plot is simple. A few estranged friends whose common bond for Star Wars reaches through strife, are faced with losing one of their own to cancer in four months when Star Wars Episode I is due to come out in six.

So, what are good buddies to do? Decide to go cross country to break into Lucas’ ranch to steal an advance copy of the film.

The rest is Force jokes, sight gags, and obnoxiousness that is funny, but not riotous.

Although that being said, I enjoyed Seth Rogen as a Trekker that calls Han Solo a bitch, and thus has to be taken down.

Overall, it was a worthy effort and I feel bad about giving it a poor grade due to the fact that it was obviously crafted with the love, respect, and worship only a true fanboy could muster but in the end, sometimes a film can try too hard and be too close to the heart to reach it’s greatest potential.

C+