Comic Book: The Movie

I was fortunate enough to see an advance screening of Mark Hamill's 'Comic Book: The Movie.' The low budget mockumentary is good natured and features some nice performances (highlighted by Hamill's portrayal of the comic-fan made documentarian that the story revolves around.)

There are many cameos by comic celebs like Stan Lee, Bruce Campbell and Kevin Smith. It also provides a window into the strange annual event known as Comiccon where thousands gather to celebrate fandom. The core story invokes the frustration of fans who suffer when classic properties are bastardized by Hollywood and in this story the fans strike back.

The movie is a bit long and loses its way for a while about an hour in but overall it entertaining and charming. The film is a celebration of comic books and the people who love them. It lacks the razor wit that Christopher Guest's films possess (A Mighty Wind, Best in Show) but this one is more authentic and seems to be a labor of love.

This is a nice little film and I recommend it.

I was about 20 minutes into this thing when I realized there was no going up for this movie, that the poor production and shotty acting wasn't just something they were trying, that this mockumentary was really just this bad. I actually felt dumber watching it. You literally have Mark Hammil running around the comic con as Mark Hammil, but calling himself Don, what, like he's acting?? Then, whenever they'd improv something in to move the, I can't believe I'm calling it this but, "plot" along, it was so forced and awkward, I mean the acting, anything else was drivel. I'm not even sure what he was trying to say. what, Hollywood doesn't have the passion for films that we had as kids?? Uh, yah, what planet have you been on?? I mean, if they did something more with it, I dunno, made it meaningful or something, but no. He was just concerned with giving us detail after detail of this fictional comic character, who we don't even care for cuz he's made up by Mark Hammil!!

Mark, stick to the voice work and leave the "movie making" to your fighter jet co-star, he's making 20 mil a flick, you're just making an ass atta yourself....

I give the movie itself 6 stars and the DVD extras 8 stars. This movie has its heart in the right place and does assemble some of the best voice talent around. It's great to see these people in front of the camera. I only wish that they had added some writers into the mix. This movie is mostly ad-libbed in the style of "Spinal Tap" and other Christopher Guest movies so some of the jokes work, and others don't. Since everyone is trying to be "realistic" almost all of the jokes are subtle so the inattentive viewer is likely to miss them.

I found that the DVD extras are the best part of this DVD. There are two disks, so there are a lot of extras. There are lots of helpful bios in case you missed some of the many cameos of industry insiders and other "masked" performers. The deleted scenes are actually pretty good (for deleted scenes). The best part is the real convention panel with all of the talent on stage telling stories and doing voices.

Bottom line, if you love comics and animation, and even video games, then see this movie just to learn about the talent. Use IMDb to see what some of these people have done and you will be amazed. If you aren't into comics then this movie might be interesting to you just to learn about a different culture.

The movie was rather odd, but it did have its moments. It works better if one really knows comics, vintage collectibles, the movie industry, and the actors involved (especially the ones known for voiceovers for popular shows). For those heavily into science fiction and comics, it was fun to pick out the people making cameos, including the "Men Behind the Mask." Mark Hamill's approach showed respect and reverence for the fan base, as well as poking a healthy dose of fun at the movie industry. The DVD has a lot of extra information including some of the panels these talented actors chaired. The movie was made for the fans, but unlike some movies of this ilk, they showed respect instead of making it a geeks on parade feature.

I don't understand -- I like comic books, but I don't love them. I know some of the players in the industry (Stan Lee, Paul Dini, etc.), but not personally and not all of them. But this movie just SUCKED. The female and male studio execs were annoying, the cameraman was lame and even Billy West pulls out some stupid, creepy performance. Mark Hamill is best when he's excited about comics and the rest of it plays out terribly. I paid for this and will be going to the store to return it. Jeers, Hamill, jeers.