Jay Baruchel

DVD Review: ‘Fanboys’ For Hardcore ‘Star Wars’ Junkies Only

BrianTT — Tue, 26 May 2009 11:17:11 -0600

CHICAGO – I really want to recommend “Fanboys”. The story behind the film is a David-and-Goliath tale of a young filmmaker bringing his comedic vision to life against all odds and the film is finally being released on DVD after years of delays. Sadly, the drama behind-the-scenes doesn’t change the mediocre quality of the final product.

DVD Rating: 2.0/5.0

Just because the producers behind Kyle Newman’s “Fanboys” meddled with the film and arguably wanted to make it significantly worse, doesn’t mean that what has been released is a good movie to begin with. Everyone involved with “Fanboys” appears to have their hearts in the right place and the film has moments and performances that nearly redeem it, but it ultimately doesn’t click as either a laugh-out-loud comedy or an ode to the Lucas universe. Only hardcore “Star Wars” junkies need rent or buy.

Fanboys was released on DVD on May 19th, 2009.
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

The set-up for “Fanboys” threw me off before I could even get into the rhythm of the piece. The first act is all cliched arguments about “Star Wars” vs. “Star Trek” and generic jokes about the quarter-life crisis. The film starts in 1998 with the two “straight men,” the Han and Luke of the piece, Eric (Sam Huntington) and Linus (Chris Marquette).

Fanboys was released on DVD on May 19th, 2009.
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

Eric and Linus have grown distant as the former has given up on his comic dreams to work at his father’s car dealership. Linus clings to his youth by spending time with Windows (Jay Baruchel), Hutch (Dan Fogler), and Zoe (Kristen Bell). When Eric learns that Linus is dying of cancer and may not make it to see the premiere of “Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace,” the gang head to Skywalker Ranch to break in and see an early cut of the film.

The gang takes off and what ensues is a string of episodic encounters with cameos from a diverse array of people including Seth Rogen, Jaime King, Ethan Suplee, Billy Dee Williams, Carrie Fisher, Kevin Smith, and William Shatner. With the all-for-one fun spirit of the piece, it nearly comes together. There’s enough genuine intention on the part of the filmmaker/cast and some strong comic timing from the great Baruchel and gorgeous Bell that “Fanboys” will work as a rental for some people.

For the rest of you, the sad news is that “Fanboys” just isn’t that funny. There are maybe three real laughs. What’s so ironic about the Weinstein Company’s notorious attempt to remove the cancer plotline from the film is that it works better than the humor. The comic timing just isn’t right.

The one thing I took away from “Fanboys” more than anything else is that what Kevin Smith does is not as easy as it looks. Remember the conversation about Death Star construction in “Clerks”? That exchange is more like the ones that “Star Wars” junkies have on a daily basis than anything in “Fanboys” but it’s clearly the kind of dialogue that Newman was going for in his comedy. What sinks “Fanboys” is that none of it - the emotion, the quarter-life crisis, the sci-fi references - feels genuine. It’s forced comedy.

Fanboys was released on DVD on May 19th, 2009.
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

It’s ironic that years of expectation left many fans disappointed by the “Star Wars” prequels and the same thing is likely to happen to the long-delayed “Fanboys”.

The film may only be slightly disappointing, but the DVD is borderline offensive. Given the long history of “Fanboys,” one would expect a stellar home treatment. Blu-Ray, tons of deleted scenes, featurettes about the troubled road the film took to the big screen, and the story of the fan movement that brought the movie back from development hell, right? Wrong, wrong, wrong, and wrong.

Is The Weinstein Company waiting for a special edition Blu-Ray? Doubt it. This is probably the final word on “Fanboys” and even though I clearly don’t love the film, the people who fought for it deserved better.

First, the actual transfer and presentation of the film is downright awful. The widescreen video is murky and the English Dolby 5.1 track is lackluster.

Even more annoying, especially given the film’s well-known post-production drama, are the depressingly light special features. The deleted scenes and featurettes all run under ten minutes. “The Truth About Fanboys,” “The Star Wars Parallel,” “4 Fanboys & 1 Fangirl,” and “The Choreography” are nothing more than on-the-set, talking-head pieces. The film and fans deserved more.

The best special feature, by far, is the commentary with cast & crew. If some more of the breezy, enjoyable cameraderie on display in that track had made it into the film, perhaps The Weinstein Company would have treated it better in its theatrical and home release.

‘Fanboys’ was released by The Weinstein Company and stars Jay Baruchel, Dan Fogler, Sam Huntington, Christopher Marquette, and Kristen Bell. It was written by Ernest Cline and Adam F. Goldberg and directed by Kyle Newman. The film was released on May 19th, 2009. It is rated PG-13.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Interview: Cancer, Cameos, Cuts With ‘Fanboys’ Director Kyle Newman

BrianTT — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:55:15 -0700

CHICAGO – Kyle Newman’s “Fanboys” has had one of the most legendary post-productions in the history of film. The director opened up to HollywoodChicago.com about the six-year journey of his labor of love on the eve of his world premiere: a day that Newman admits he once thought he would never see.

Jay Baruchel (Windows), Dan Fogler (Hutch), Chris Marquette (Linus), Sam Huntington (Eric) and Kristen Bell (Zoe) star in Kyle Newman’s Fanboys.
Photo credit: John Estes

The definition of a “fanboy,” courtesy of “Fanboys” director Kyle Newman - “It’s a term for a group of people, no matter what age, who are really into sci-fi, fandom, comic books, a certain genre of film. And they are unafraid to wear that on their sleeves. I don’t think fanboys are closet nerds. They are people who embrace it, sometimes flaunt it, and are proud of who they are.

They are heavily represented in the online community. They’re tech-savvy. They’re cutting edge for what they’re into. They’re people unafraid to talk about what they’re into. Even at a nice dinner, they’ll talk about Star Wars, Go-Bots, whatever.”

Kyle Newman
Photo credit: Linda L.Crispien

Newman was going to make it to Chicago for an in-person interview but rumors of snow the following day forced him to stay in L.A. and do a phone interview. As he said, “Tomorrow is the premiere and I’ve been working on it for six years. If there was anything that delayed my trip, I’d regret it forever.”

And what a long, strange trip it’s been.

When “Fanboys” wrapped in the spring of 2006, it was a tender comedy about a quartet of friends who travelled cross-country to break into Skywalker Ranch and see an early cut of “Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace”. They weren’t merely criminals. One of them, Linus (Chris Marquette), was dying of cancer and he had been waiting his entire life to see George Lucas’ prequel. His friends were committed to making that dying wish come true.

The film co-starred Jay Baruchel, Dan Fogler, Sam Huntington, and Kristin Bell, and featured cameos by Seth Rogen, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Ray Park, Kevin Smith, and William Shatner.

Test audiences adored the movie. The Weinstein Company did not. As Newman says, “Here, I’ve made a movie that I’m really proud of. I screened it in London to 1400 fans at Star Wars Celebration to three standing ovations and I videotaped it and I showed everybody, but I guess nobody ever showed Harvey [Weinstein].”

“Fanboys” was originally scheduled to be released in the fall of 2006. The first delay was to February of ‘07, then August of that year. Then the floor fell out as rumors of reshoots and massive changes surfaced online, pushing the film back until at least 2008.

Newman himself was baffled. “I’m getting all this support online and they’re talking about changing it and it just didn’t all add up. I was afraid. I knew I had made a great movie. The actors, producers, writers - we were all happy with what we had pulled off. We were smart about how we cast the movie. We had tremendous foresight considering the people we cast who took off. We were on the right track.”

Jay Baruchel, Kristen Bell, Dan Fogler and Chris Marquette star in Kyle Newman’s Fanboys.
Photo credit: John Estes

It turned out that a year-and-a-half after the first shoot, director Stephen Brill came in to do massive reshoots. The cancer plotline was eliminated entirely and the film was turned into a generic road movie. And it was not pretty.

Newman pulls no punches, saying that “There was a lot of negative stuff and the people they brought in to work on the film were, in a very low class way, criticizing the actors and the casting and the directing and kind of demeaning Star Wars fandom. Here we’d done all this grassroots awareness and built support and, suddenly, there are polls on StarWars.com debating “How worried are you about the fate of Fanboys?””

“It was very disheartening to watch everything that you’ve done positive be undermined in a week by a bunch of idiots, this team that was brought in to do this. Mainly just the director who they brought in to re-shape it who was opening his mouth online and really offending our core audience. So, I was shocked. I was like, “Oh my God.” It was just getting out of control and here we are on the sidelines and I’m watching the movie fall apart. I’m watching our fanbase dissipate.”

Chris Marquette, Dan Fogler and Sam Huntington star in Kyle Newman’s Fanboys.
Photo credit: John Estes

The internet community that adores “Star Wars” and supported “Fanboys” went to work. An online campaign called “Stop Dark Weinstein (From Ruining Fanboys)” popped up and thousands of fans e-mailed the Weinstein Company.

It led to more delays but also started to build buzz around the movie. The Weinstein Company brought Newman back on board and let him and the original creative team back in the editing room. The cancer subplot came back.

The idea that one of these young men was dying was always essential to Newman. “It was a rallying call for these guys. While the trip, in conceit, was very zany, it had this emotional core to it because it was coming from a grounded place. I thought the movie was unhinged without it.

You couldn’t get behind these guys. To me, it became soulless. There was no heart and little purpose. And there was no ticking clock. Ultimately, where did it end up? It ended with them watching the movie on a laptop and then throwing it out the window and saying “That sucked” and driving off. It didn’t culminate in anything. There was no substance. It was hard to watch.”

Kyle Newman has been a Star Wars fan his entire life. In fact, he claims that his first memory is of Star Wars when he was under two years old. It wasn’t the movie itself, but the energy that the film created. “I remember my brothers and sisters, my cousins, everyone had gone to see it. There was this electric energy.”

Newman felt that energy again when “Phantom Menace” was coming out and that inspired “Fanboys”.

Of course, a lot of the anticipation leading up to “Phantom Menace” disappeared when fans saw the movie. But Newman is still a fan. “When you’re a kid or a teen and you’re seeing these movies and you’re hearing the idea of prequels, you’re imagining what they’re going to be in your head. I think, invariably, it will never live up to the expectations of your own imagination tailored to what you want it to be. I probably like them more than most people it wasn’t really the medium in which it was presented. I was more interested in what the story was. Star Wars could be oral tradition, they’re such good stories.

So, I went and found out all the spoilers. I eased into it. It wasn’t like a big culture shock. “Whoa, that wasn’t what I imagined.” So, I think that was a factor. I think people who did that - eased in after 20 years of anticipation…if you don’t do that, you’re bound to be let down.”

Fanboys Poster
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

“Star Wars” isn’t Newman’s only love. He also admits excitement for the upcoming “Star Trek” movie, saying, “The cast is incredibly exciting. I like that new trailer. A good buddy of ours, Zachary Quinto, is playing Spock. I’m incredibly excited for him. I think it’s a perfect role for him. I think the cast is great. There’s a lot of life left in Star Trek. I think they’re gonna kick off something good.”

And Newman loves “Close Encounters, Blade Runner, 2001, Alien, Aliens, and all those type of films, Goonies, Gremlins - but Star Wars holds a unique place. It exists in different mediums. I think the reason that Star Wars has such longevity is the fan community. The people have responded to it and taken it on themselves to keep it alive.

George Lucas was smart in recognizing that there are a lot of people who want to play in the world he created. So, let them write books and comic books and design toys and video games and expand the series into television. I think he knows the universe has gotten bigger than anything he can control.”

It seems like everything about “Fanboys” has been about anticipation, that of the characters for “Phantom Menace” and now for the film itself. The anticipation will finally pay off when “Fanboys” is released on Friday, February 6th, 2009. But that may not be the last version you see. Newman admits that there are some changes in the current version that he’s not thrilled with and there may be a director’s cut on DVD some day.

“It was give-and-takes. I got to put the story in but I had to give up on little nuance beats which I think make the story richer. If I was ever to do a master cut, it’s all waiting there.”

“Fanboys” may finally be coming out, but the end of this story may yet be unwritten.

‘Fanboys’ stars Jay Baruchel, Dan Fogler, Chris Marquette, Sam Huntington, Kristin Bell, and Seth Rogen. ‘Fanboys,’ which was written by Ernest Cline and Adam F. Goldberg and directed by Kyle Newman, opens on February 6th, 2009.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 10 Autographed ‘Fanboys’ Posters From Dan Fogler

HollywoodChicago.com — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 21:14:56 -0700

CHICAGO – In our latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have a special giveaway with 10 autographed “Fanboys” posters from actors Dan Fogler, Sam Huntington and Chris Marquette. “Fanboys” also stars Seth Rogen, Kristen Bell and Jay Baruchel from director Kyle Newman. The film opens in limited U.S. theaters on Feb. 6, 2009.

To win your autographed “Fanboys” poster courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, all you need to do is be one of the first 10 people to submit your geek story in our confidential, Web-based submission form. That’s it! Directions to enter this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup and immediately win can be found beneath the graphic below.

The poster for “Fanboys”.
Image credit: The Weinstein Company

Here is the synopsis for “Fanboys”:

It’s the Halloween party they’ve all been waiting for: to have fun with friends and hang out with fellow “Star Wars” fans and partners in crime. However, events take a turn when one of their bunch who long ago outgrew his old gang and took on adult responsibilities is suddenly in their midst again.

Reconnecting is not easy, but soon Eric, Windows, Hutch and Zoe realize that Linus will not live long enough to experience what has been on their minds for ages: the long-awaited theatrical release of “Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace,” which is still several months away.

To secure your free poster, you must be logged into your HollywoodChicago.com account. If you don’t yet have one, you can quickly register here. Having an account with a valid e-mail address is required to win this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup.

Next, simply submit your geek story. You must submit your geek story using this confidential, Web-based submission form. Please do not comment in this Hookup. Your entry will be invalid if you do so. Please only submit your geek story using this submission form.

You must include your e-mail address, name and physical mailing address in your submission. Your personal information will be kept strictly confidential and is only for us to mail winning posters. Your personal information will not be sold or shared elsewhere.

Submit your geek story now!

Like all Hookups here, this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film is simple: The first 10 people to submit a geek story win! The 10 autographed posters will be mailed to the winners at our expense.

11:35 a.m. update on Feb. 3, 2009: We were initially informed by the studio that these “Fanboys” posters were signed by director Kyle Newman. Due to his Chicago flight cancellation, they will now by signed by actors Dan Fogler, Sam Huntington and Chris Marquette.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

Interview: Brandon T. Jackson of ‘Tropic Thunder’ Breaks Out With ‘Booty Sweat’ Calling Card

HollywoodChicago.com — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 22:30:45 -0600

CHICAGO – For “Tropic Thunder” star and Chris Tucker protégé Brandon T. Jackson, the fictional Booty Sweat literally is his Hollywood calling card.

The Red Bull-like energy drink is a scripted creation of writer, director, producer and star actor Ben Stiller in the new comedy. The film’s talent list, which includes both “A”-list actors and up-and-coming actors, is longer than two or three typical films today combined.

Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller, left) and Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr., right) are shooting an epic war movie and wind up in a real battle in the action-comedy “Tropic Thunder”.
Photo credit: Merie Weismiller Wallace

Rapper Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) tackles his first serious acting role in “Tropic Thunder”.
Photo credit: Merie Weismiller Wallace

Along with recognized actors Robert Downey Jr. (who plays the memorable role of an actor who surgically blackens his skin), Ben Stiller, Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey, Jack Black, Nick Nolte and rising actors Danny McBride, Bill Hader and Steve Coogan, director Stiller takes a chance on newcomers Brandon T. Jackson and Jay Baruchel.

“Tropic Thunder” serves as the first major roles for both Jackson and Baruchel. The film also features cameos from Jason Bateman, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Alicia Silverstone, Jon Voight and Tyra Banks.

While the film is an offensively complicated picture that certainly has figured out how to whirl about a laugh around every corner, so does its complication sometimes force the story to tug about in many different directions.

“Tropic Thunder” sometimes feels like it clearly knows where it’s going and at other times is completely lost in the black hole of Stiller’s uniquely melodramatic brain.

Along with Justin Theroux and Stiller, the film also lists Etan Cohen as a co-writer of the film’s screenplay. This Cohen is not to be confused with Oscar-winning phenomenon Ethan Coen (the brother of Joel Coen) of “No Country for Old Men,” “The Big Lebowski” and “Fargo” fame.

Left to right: Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson), Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) and Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.) are actors shooting a war movie who get caught up in a real battle in the action-comedy “Tropic Thunder”.
Photo credit: Merie Weismiller Wallace

Rating: 4.0/5.0

While the drink Booty Sweat is a smash hit in the film and merely serves as one of its comedic asides, in real life the liquid isn’t nearly as renowned. It’s currently selling at novelty stores such as Spencer’s Gifts (as well as Amazon.com) and is one of many ways the movie is drumming up buzz.

Still, it’s trying to explode virally for the film at BootySweat.com and Alpa-Chino.com. Clearly borrowed from actor Al Pacino, Alpa Chino is Jackson’s character name in the film. In addition to Chris Tucker, Jackson names Jim Carrey as another comic inspiration.

HollywoodChicago.com recently interviewed the 24-year-old Jackson about his breakout role, today’s struggle to best the masses competing for Hollywood work and why he’s trying to build his own “star brand” that’s nothing like Kanye West.

“I know how to be funny to black audiences,” Jackson told HollywoodChicago.com, “but the challenge in ‘Tropic Thunder’ was having universal appeal.” He added: “It’s very difficult getting work in Hollywood right now especially for a young black comic. I’m trying to build a brand. I’m not just doing one-off projects. I’m always doing comedy and will never hit up a 9-to-5 desk job.”

Cody (Danny McBride) is a trigger-happy explosions expert on an epic war film that goes awry in the action-comedy “Tropic Thunder”.
Photo credit: Merie Weismiller Wallace

The Detroit born and bred Jackson makes the clear differentiation between how he’s crafting his nascent “star brand” as a “young black comic” in stark contrast to “all that hip-hop stuff” in which people like Kanye West are rolling in fat rolls of dough.

Jackson also says he’s continuing to use the concept of a “class clown” in his branding that he just hasn’t been able to shake since high school.

In 2005, Jackson was also seen in the lesser-known, coming-of-age comedy “Roll Bounce” about rollerskating, which was filmed in Chicago and also starred Mike Epps, Bow Wow and Meagan Good.

The young comic describes his first role of prime Hollywood prominence in “Tropic Thunder” as his “most proud and challenging role” thus far. As for working for director Stiller (who also directed 2001’s “Zoolander,” “Reality Bites” and a few others), Jackson said: “Ben knows what he wants. You’d better be funny or go home.”

RELATED IMAGE GALLERY
View our full, high-resolution “Tropic Thunder” image gallery.

RELATED READING
More film reviews from critic Adam Fendelman.

We spoke with Jackson at a time in his career where he describes being in “mystery mode”. He’s attempting to delicately navigate a balance between “taking any work I can just to get paid” and “being selective” with the roles like in “Tropic Thunder” that’d get him the biggest bang for Hollywood’s buck.

While 2008 still has many more performances left to see, in Jackson’s view the two he’d pick for an Oscar would be Robert Downey Jr.’s role in “Tropic Thunder” (yes, he’s biased) and Heath Ledger’s role as the Joker in the epic film “The Dark Knight”.

While Jackson was mostly business in our Chicago interview, he also enjoyed lounging about in the hotel room’s plush couches. He left us with the following line in describing his favorite aspect of being in film as compared to stand-up comedy: “The best thing about doing film is the food. It’s just magical.”

“Tropic Thunder,” which is directed by Ben Stiller, stars Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey, Jack Black, Nick Nolte, Danny McBride, Bill Hader, Steve Coogan, Brandon T. Jackson and Jay Baruchel with cameos from Jason Bateman, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Alicia Silverstone, Jon Voight and Tyra Banks. The film opened everywhere on Aug. 13, 2008.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com