LINE WARS
Web site

review written 2/23/2003

Like my once-favorite Fan Wars before it, this is a spoof of an upcoming SW trailer focused around fans at a movie theater.

The "mock the trailer" trend didn't seem to be in place for AOTC for some reason. And frankly when this little flick came out of the blue, I was filled with dread because I figured it would be shoddy and poorly made.

I needn't have worried.

Line Wars is an instant classic. Parodying the "Clone Wars" trailer in fine style and high energy. At 0:43 we have the line "What the hell was that?", which doesn't seem funny now, but is in fact one of the funniest lines to come out of a fan film.

Plus, we've got a woman with ridiculously padded breasts stuffed into a Padme suit, a guy in a sweet set of Jango armor selling action figures, Count Dooku wearing a Jedi Outcast shirt (subtle and perfect)

The film is fun and dynamic. It reminds me of a bit of Mallrats. Something is always happening. People are running around and getting into crazy situations at every turn. It's hyperreality. You almost wish you were with these fans at this theater.

There's a dodgy edit preceding the "This is a crisis" line. And as much as I like jokes about chopped-off hands, I wish they hadn't destroyed the rhythm of the piece to make one at the end.

But even those problems fit in with the piece. It all feels spontaneous. "Feels" spontaneous, mind you. Everything had to be planned and choreographed with care, and it shows. The actors are all having fun, handling the material confidently and playing their roles with skill rarely seen in the fan film world.

When I saw this, I wanted to get my friends together and make an Episode II spoof trailer. (I didn't end up doing it.) But that's proof that this thing conveys a real sense of fun. And that happens less often than it should.