Fanboys
(PG-13)Okay. This movie was made in like 2007 or something, and its release kept getting pushed back. Finally it got a very limited release in February 2009, and of course it didn't play anywhere near me. So I had to wait for the DVD release, in May 2009. It's mostly a comedy, but the underlying premise is rather tragic, so I guess I'll put it under serio-comedy.
Um... I don't suppose I can say a lot about the plot. But I think if you're a fan of Star Wars, you should totally love it. Otherwise, probably not. My one problem with it is a recurring theme of rivalry between Star Wars fans and Star Trek fans, which... is something that has always bothered me in real life, because I'm a fan of both and I think it's ludicrous that anyone should feel compelled to choose one over the other. Even so... I shouldn't call it a problem, per se, because actually, in this movie I thought it was pretty funny. (Edit: after re-watching the movie in 2019, I'd also say I had a problem with some jokes that were homophobic.)
Anyway, it's set in 1998, 6 months before Star Wars episode I would be released. There is a group of friends... well, there are these guys named Linus (Chris Marquette), Hutch (Dan Fogler), and Windows (Jay Baruchel). There's another guy named Eric (Sam Huntington), who used to be Linus's best friend, and the two of them planned to make comic books together. But after high school, Eric abandoned that dream. Instead, he started working for his father, who owns a car dealership. So it's been a few years since Eric has seen the old gang, and there's some bad blood, sort of. And the guys have a friend named Zoe (Kristen Bell), who likes Windows, though he's completely clueless.
Anyway, on Halloween, Eric shows up at a party and reunites with the guys, and later Hutch and Windows tell him that Linus has cancer, and just has a few months to live. And there's this plan they have had since like 5th grade, to break into Skywalker Ranch... and now, they decide to actually drive cross country, and do it, so they can see the rough cut of Star Wars episode I. Which, of course, Linus will probably be dead before it gets officially released. (I gotta say, I feel kind of bad for all of them. I mean, I don't dislike the movie the way many Star Wars fans do, but even so, we all know it's not as good as the original trilogy.)
So, anyway, the four guys set out on their trip, in Hutch's van (which is pretty cool, IMO). They start out in Ohio, where they all live, and their ultimate destination is California, but they must travel through Iowa and Texas and Las Vegas... They have a number of crazy adventures along the way, and eventually Zoe joins them. And, like I said... their adventures are crazy. And really funny. If you're a Star Wars fan. In fact I have to believe it's possible for people who are only casual fans, or even outright non-fans, to enjoy the movie, but I could be wrong. Either way, it's definitely best enjoyed if you're a die-hard Star Wars fan. But, I'm not going to actually say anything about what happens along the way, nor once they reach their destination. Because seeing it all unfold is the fun of the movie. Though I will add that there are a number of cool cameos (I mean, cool if you happen to be a geek, which of course I am). Wish I could think of more to say (without spoiling anything), but I guess that's enough. It was definitely a fun movie, IMO.
Also, when I re-watched the DVD in 2019, I also watched some bonus features, which were kind of fun. Including something called "Disturbances in the Force," which are referred to as a series of webisodes. But upon searching the web, I'm afraid I can't tell whether or not the little behind the scenes things on the DVD were ever really webisodes or not. I suppose it doesn't matter, but either way, they were fun. (And you can watch a compilation on YouTube.)