Movie Review - 'Fanboys'

Fanboys Starring Sam Huntington, Chris Marquette, Jay Baruchel, and Dan Fogler Directed by Kyle Newman Rated PG-13

Proof that even great inside jokes stop getting laughs sooner or later, Fanboys is a real love song to not just Star Wars but also its ardent fans. The fans of the Lucasverse comprise a massive worldwide community, but and they should really find plenty to enjoy here. It's an inside joke if you're not a fanboy, someone whose life revolves around the Death Star. If you're somewhat well-versed in all of this, you should be fine. But the joke gets stale about an hour in, after some very funny or at least amusing situations and characters present themselves. Two best friends have grown apart in the three years since high school. Eric (Sam Huntington) has abandoned his boyhood dream of being a comic book animator, and works as second in command at his father's car dealership. Linus (Chris Marquette) still revels in all things Jedi, and still hangs out playing video games with the most socially inept of their friends, Windows (Jay Baruchel) and Hutch (Dan Fogler). In the months leading up to the release of Star Wars Episode One, Linus revisits a plan he and Eric hatched in grade school: Break into George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch. In 1998, the scheme has been updated. Now the plan is to break in and steal a print of Episode One months before its release. Everybody loves the idea except Eric, who has grown up and moved on to his boring adult life. What Eric doesn't know is that Linus has cancer, and the prognosis isn't good. It's a cheap way to get these four guys on the road and at one point, it was even cut out of the film, causing quite a bit of controversy. It turns out, though, that the cancer angle doesn't work. We don't need it, the characters don't need it, and it gives the film added baggage. But naturally when he learns of Linus' condition, Eric is gung ho, and the cross-country road trip begins. From there, it's just a road trip movie with Star Wars-inspired cameos. Some of them, particularly the ongoing battle between Lucas fans and Trekkies, are among the strongest things in the entire film. Movies like this are hard to evaluate, because while it's very entertaining in spots, even those spots might be missed by a lot of audience members. But you can't really review Fanboys for those people. The clue is in the title - if you're not a fanboy, maybe this isn't for you. But for those of you who would drive out of your way to drop off your mail in a special Yoda mailbox or who have a collection of handmade maps of Tatoine, this is good natured fun that loves its subject matter, although maybe a little more than its characters.
Watch the Fanboys trailer