Fanboys Asks What's Funnier: Phantom Menace or Cancer?
As far as ideas for comedies are concerned, the plot to Fanboys is near and dear to the pasty sci-fi geek's heart. Starring petite Veronica Mars va-va-voom girl Kristen Bell, the film involves five friends in 1997 breaking into George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch to steal a pre-release print of The Phantom Menace for a friend dying on cancer.
Sounds pretty funny to me, but apparently I'm an evil sociopath with an ichorous heart, because according to research, audiences don't laugh for a full five to ten minutes after the word "cancer" is mentioned.
In fact, the studios are so worried about the cancer killing their comedy that they are cutting out the entire subplot entirely. I'm a bit confused by the hub-bub, frankly. Is dying of cancer funny? Certainly not. But being forced to watch The Phantom Menace isn't all that hilarious either and I have first hand experience of the latter.
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It didn't hurt THE BUCKET LIST any at the box office. If they release FANBOYS without the cancer plot, I won't be seeing it. Isn't that the whole thrust of why this group of friends decide to go break into Skywalker Ranch - for their dying friend? The film has no heart without it and will just make the characters come off as stereotypical crazy geeks. Come on, why can't we have a twentysomething comedy with some intelligence?