Fanboys
Third Rail Releasing | Release Date: February 6, 2009 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
45
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
14
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
50
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
It comes as no surprise that the film is less about fandom as it is about the community fans create with one another – who else to turn to when the object of your affection, your enduring obsession, blows big chunks? – and Fanboys, a likable, shaggy picture, pays nice tribute to that community. Read full review
63
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
The most appealing aspect of the movie is that the guys and gal at the center of it don't just love the Star Wars saga for its own sake. They love the way they feel about each other when they're escaping into its universe and sharing all the wonder and the trivia. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeTy Burr
At times, Fanboys is every rowdy low-budget '80s road movie you've ever seen on Cinemax at 2 in the morning. What keeps the movie near, if not actually in, hyperdrive is its love of deep-dish geek culture and a gaggle of cameo appearances. Read full review
38
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Its primary flaw is that it's not critical. It is a celebration of an idiotic lifestyle, and I don't think it knows it. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
A genial, sloppy, minor affair, offering a smidgen of inside baseball, which includes a gag at the expense of the forgotten, late '80s Lucas-produced epic "Willow." Read full review
42
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
Fanboys, directed by Kyle Newman, doesn't delve into the mania of fandom, it exploits it. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Mildly cute, mildly drooly, majorly too late spoof/homage. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesSam Adams
Fanboys doesn't have a fan's obsessive attention to detail, or the giddy geekiness that can make Tarantino's movies both thrilling and trying. It's not nearly nerdy enough. Read full review
50
New York PostLou Lumenick
A lame comic tribute to the dwindling band of "Star Wars" aficionados, is one of those be nighted projects whose back story turns out to be significantly more compelling than the movie itself. Read full review
70
NPRBob Mondello
You'd think the weakest link in Fanboys would be that it's all in-jokes, but they're actually not so "in" that a casual fan won't get them. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
For its amusing premise, Fanboys is scarily flat. Read full review
50
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
I love that fanboys fought for Fanboys. Unfortunately, their passion was misplaced. Read full review
25
PremierePatrick Parker
It's tough to get through because it's so slow; the beautiful Kristen Bell, who we love in almost everything, doesn't fit in with a bunch of nerds. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Unfortunately, while Fanboys has moments of success, it is mostly a middling road picture that doesn't do a lot more than any average, forgettable entry into the tired genre. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleReyhan Harmanci
Uninspired and only faintly funny. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerBill White
A hilariously spry effort from an equally unpromising premise. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Fanboys has a lot of talent in its margins, including Jay Baruchel, Kristen Bell, Seth Rogen, and other usual suspects. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Turns out a movie about an infatuated bunch of Star Wars nerds can really set your teeth on edge. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
Given how insultingly fanboys are portrayed, even the fan base could be put off. Read full review
50
The New York TimesNeil Genzlinger
There are enough good jokes in Fanboys, a road comedy about geeks on a "Star Wars"-related quest, to satisfy hard-core fans of that George Lucas franchise. But the film doesn't have the boosters, or thrusters, or whatever, to elevate it to more ambitious heights; it's weighed down by tired conventions and a general sense of having missed its moment. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
Delayed a couple of years, shown to fans at conventions and retooled, Fanboys is an uneven and largely predictable adventure, but it has its moments. Read full review
50
VarietyPeter Debruge
End result feels like an uneven cross between an amateur "Project Greenlight" pic and such recent comedies as "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express," in which indie directors brought a certain edge to material that might once have felt more at home under the National Lampoon label. Read full review
20
Village VoiceRobert Wilonsky
The one genuine bright spot among the performers is Kristen Bell as Windows's would-be girlfriend, his dream combination of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Janeane Garofalo. Read full review
40
Washington PostMike Mayo
The result has a cobbled-together feeling. The Force is not strong with this one. Read full review
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