Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope
Wrekin Hill Entertainment | Release Date: April 6, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
7
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanApr 4, 2012
He (Spurlock) takes Comic-Con seriously. He talks to Kevin Smith, Harry Knowles, and other famous grown-up geeks, but mostly he follows a handful of people whose dream it is to pass through the fan/professional looking glass and carve out a place for themselves in the industry of fantasy. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianShawn LevyApr 5, 2012
There's much to enjoy in the lively, fun and fresh documentary Comic-con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope, but chief among them may be that its director, Morgan Spurlock, is nowhere to be seen. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranApr 5, 2012
A look at the annual San Diego convention that is sweetly empathetic where previous Spurlock works have been brash and confrontational. Plus, it's a lot of fun. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen ColeApr 19, 2012
A surprisingly tender look at San Diego Comic-Con. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyApr 12, 2012
"I've seen the look on people's faces when I've brought them there," Whedon says of the convention. "It's the look I had on my face. 'My tribe, my tribe, I've found my tribe.' " Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnApr 2, 2012
One development gets short-shifted: the onslaught of studios drowning out what made the Con so attractive in the first place. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen HoldenApr 12, 2012
The film is well organized and visually snazzy and keeps enough distance from its subject that you don't feel swamped in a tide of hysterical fandom. Read full review
70
Village VoiceMark HolcombApr 10, 2012
A tender, thoughtful paean to geek community. Read full review
70
MovielineAlison WillmoreApr 5, 2012
Morgan Spurlock's latest documentary Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope plants a sloppy, moist kiss on the sweaty brow of geek culture's premiere event. Read full review
70
VarietyPeter DebrugeApr 1, 2012
Spurlock brings his usual good-humored approach to the subject, nicely balancing absurdity with genuine human interest. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterKirk HoneycuttApr 1, 2012
You could point a camera just about anywhere at Comic-Con and record something weird, amazing, funny, stupid or all of the above. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubNathan RabinApr 4, 2012
For a documentary supposedly focused on fans-it's right there in the title-Comic-Con Episode IV gets awfully distracted by the star power of professional smartasses like Smith and industry titans like Lee. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia PuigApr 12, 2012
What's missing in Morgan Spurlock's latest documentary is a key ingredient: Morgan Spurlock. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierApr 12, 2012
Affectionate but also winking (the "Star Wars"-riff title gives away its lack of objectivity), with a good history of how far fandom has come, "A Fan's Hope" is really for those who've turned to the far side, but is ready to turn on a tractor beam for everyone else. Read full review
60
Time OutDavid FearApr 3, 2012
Nothing but 88 minutes of a gushy lovefest would have been grating, yet these episodic stories make the film feel like just another going-for-the-gold doc drumming up investment in a cultural curio. The Con's still the thing; a game-changer like this deserves deeper anthropology instead of being reduced to a gladiatorial arena for aspiring fringe dwellers. Read full review
55
NPRScott TobiasApr 6, 2012
But a few mild misgivings aside, Spurlock has made, in essence, a 90-minute promo reel for the convention, a paean to fanboy (and fangirl) enthusiasm that could double as an orientation video, if such a thing were necessary. It's a brisk and cheery overview, sweet but superfluous. Read full review
50
The New YorkerAnthony LaneApr 16, 2012
Spurlock's documentary will tell you how, and whether, you should join the pilgrimage. Because I have never watched "Battlestar Galactica," and because of my absurd reluctance to dress up as Wonder Woman, I wouldn't last five minutes. [23 April 2012, p. 82]
50
New York PostLou LumenickApr 13, 2012
There isn't a surprising moment, and it's an affirmation for hard-core fans and pretty much everyone else of William Shatner's immortal exhortation to Trekkies: "Get a life!" Read full review
50
Boxoffice MagazineSara Maria VizcarrondoApr 8, 2012
Still, the fans are lovable no matter how mixed the Comic-Con bag is, and Morgan Spurlock is precisely the doc maker to tell us about it. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleApr 5, 2012
To my eyes, the whole thing looks sad, like something people might cling to in the absence of religion - or a kind of religion in itself, minus dogma or salvation, but with lots of people standing around dressed like total goofballs. Read full review
38
Slant MagazineNick SchagerMar 29, 2012
Morgan Spurlock has little to say about Comic-Con other than that its attendees value it on a par with Christmas. Read full review
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