Review of Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie (2014) by Brandon S — 09 Oct 2014

This movie is MOST DEFINITEY for fans! If you don't know who the Angry Video Game Nerd is you probably shouldn't bother with this movie. I have been a fan of the Nerd character's web episodes for a long time, and was very curious about this movie. I did not, however, enjoy the film. Its boring, its rarely funny, and it was a chore to sit through.

If I had written the script I would have shown more of the love/hate relationship between web celebrity and the web community. Even if I had to make it up, I would've had people hating on the Nerd more than adoring him. When a celebrity writes a script wherein fans are depicted showering the celebrity with praise, it makes the celebrity seem egotistical. There are a number of such scenes, and none where people are berating the Nerd. In one scene a woman askes him to sign her breasts. That one made me groan. What makes it worse is that James Rolfe, the writer and the actor who plays the Nerd, barely counts as a celebrity. He must be, like, an E List celebrity, if there is such a thing.

Its a B movie that was made on money donated by fans, and as such there are the typical B movie things I probably shouldn't complain about. However, I think some are worth mentioning because they seem gratuitous to me. A number of plastic automobiles are burned to represent auto explosions. A number of plaster, model buildings are smashed. One scene has androids represented by guys wearing cardboard boxes, and that wasn't even a dream sequence. If you are on a shoestring budget why try to go Michael Bay with big explosions when they are not necessary to the story? I guess it was suppose to be a tongue in cheek type thing, a B movie send up of B movies, but it just left me scratching my head. Even though I was drinking I couldn't enjoy this movie.

Oh, and its a little bit political. Im dead f@$%ing serious. The movie makes Homeland Security its antagonist and punching bag. Though I will say, to the film's credit, it mostly makes one lone-wolf general the bad guy. Its like the movie is trying to be "Dr Strangelove" which is a good film btw, but coming from a movie of this caliber I just wanted to say "Shut the f@#& up." Here Im tempted to go into a Nerd style, profanity laced, scatalogical rant, but I won't go there. In all seriousness, I thought the movie was a little disappointing.

The story is pretty good. I liked the premise of investigating the E.T. game burial story, and the idea of an E.T. 2. I think the humor would have worked in an episode of the AVGN, but in a one hour and fifty minute movie with plot development it didn't work for me. However, I was glad to give Rolfe the $5 because of all the free entertainment he has provided me over the years. I have had hours of laughs watching his videos. I'm glad his dream came true of making a professional, full length movie. The movie is available to rent on Vimeo, and I think its worth noting that the large majority of the comments there are positive.