Rating: 
Summary: Two Thumbs Down...
Review: I'm glad this was only a rental. Comic Book Villains bit. And in a major way. I couldn't even muster enough interest to finish it. What's exciting about watching two desperate geeks try to wheedle an old woman out of an expensive comic book collection? (The only thing worse, was WATCHING this happen), (sigh). While I was prepared to find a few laughs and inside jokes in "Comic Book Villains" (I AM a nerd after all), instead, the movie didn't even produce a chuckle. I'd save this film for only hard core geeks, who want to see their fellows in all their laughable humiliation-filled glory on DVD. Otherwise, give this one a pass.
Rating:
Summary: Two Thumbs Down...
Review: I'm glad this was only a rental. Comic Book Villains bit. And in a major way. I couldn't even muster enough interest to finish it. What's exciting about watching two desperate geeks try to wheedle an old woman out of an expensive comic book collection? (The only thing worse, was WATCHING this happen), (sigh). While I was prepared to find a few laughs and inside jokes in "Comic Book Villains" (I AM a nerd after all), instead, the movie didn't even produce a chuckle. I'd save this film for only hard core geeks, who want to see their fellows in all their laughable humiliation-filled glory on DVD. Otherwise, give this one a pass.
Rating: 
Summary: The Pulp Fiction of comic book movies
Review: In a small town, a comic book collector passes away, leaving a phenomenal collection in the hands of his elderly mother. The owners of the town's two rival comic book stores hear about it, and become obsessed with acquiring the collection. For Raymond (Donal Logue), whose entire life revolves around comics, the collection represents a dream, a chance to be taken seriously and remembered by his peers. For Norman (Michael Rappaport) and Judy (Natasha Lyonne), it's all about the money. Teenage fanboy Archie (DJ Qualls) just wants to see his friend Raymond happy. And the shady, mysterious Carter (Cary Elwes)? Who knows his true motivation? What starts out as a whimsical tale of oddball obsession takes a very dark turn about 2/3 of the way through, when everything goes horribly wrong. It is to writer/director James Robinson's credit that he keeps the viewer onboard, despite this tremendous shift in tone. We can see him bring the characters to the brink of madness, so the transition feels more natural, and not completely forced. I should point out that I am a huge comics fan, and have known people just like the ones in the movie. (Though I'd like to think I'm more Archie than Raymond.) I have been a fan of James Robinson's work for years, and eagerly awaited this, his first feature film as writer and director. This film provides an interesting counterpoint to the tales of collecting and nostalgia presented in his Starman series. Overall, his message is a little heavy-handed (Interest Good, Obsession Bad), but he manages to create mostly fleshed-out characters through his customary clever dialogue. There are lots of insider references to comics, but viewers unfamiliar with comics shouldn't be put off any more than non-doctor viewers are put off by the medical terminology in a typical episode of ER. The detail just helps illustrate how much the comics mean to the characters, which in turn helps explain why this particular collection is so important. The actors bring the characters to life in a believable fashion. The real surprise for me was Cary Elwes, who I generally think of in stick-up-his-wazoo, pretty-boy roles like in Twister or his recent turn on X-Files. Here, he manages to play a nasty two-bit, low-life punk with some edge, and I almost didn't recognize him. It's a low-budget, independent film, but a cast of names we recognize from other films give it some prestige. This won't be the last movie we'll see written by James Robinson; his screenplay based on Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is already being filmed. Hopefully, this won't be the last we'll see of his direction, either. It's too dark and nasty a film to be called charming, and the message is a little too obvious and not particularly clever, but it's very watchable, and I enjoyed it.
Rating:
Summary: Passifist Reviews Comic Book Villains
Review: Is dark comedy dead? That's the question I kept asking myself as the film COMIC BOOK VILLIANS played in my DVD player. Did the age of dark comedy begin when Christian Slater killed his first Heather and end when Christian Slater was buried in the desert by John Favreau and a three legged dog? Picture if you were small town USA, somewhere in the Midwest. Picture a town so small that everybody knows your name, and yet can sustain two comic book stores. The first one owned by career nerd and comic book expert Raymond (Donal Logue), the other by non-confrontational Norman and his sexually frustrated wife Judy (Natasha Lyonne). Of course this town's got a strip club and former High School bully Carter (Cary Elwes) spends most of his time there watching his girlfriend Kiki (Monet Mazur) dance. There is also a sweet old lady (Eileen Brennan) whose son has just died, leaving the mother-load of comic books just lying there. Of course she won't sell. The story is narrated by Archie (DJ Quails), an avid comic book fan who wants more from his life. The story unfolds fine, there are even some pretty nice moments early on. Then comes the third act, character motivations get blurred, and this interesting dark comedy turns into a violent disjointed psycho-fest. For instance, Carey Elwes character seems to be a charmer early on. He's in love with his girlfriend; he renovating a house and he'd like to move in there with her. Then after no startling character revelations he's brandishing a weapon and stealing comic books. Why this drastic character arc? I'm not quite sure. The one bright spot is Natasha Lyonne, as Judy, a character I wanted so much more from. Even when the film goes from adequate to goofy she brings a light to her performance. There's this moment near the end where she says she's sorry to Raymond, and for a little while in the chaos of the third act you smile. DJ Qualls narrates this film but seems so far removed from the story, that near the end you wonder why he still has respect for Raymond. He's not a talented actor, he's not terribly funny, and lacks any real charisma. Hopefully they won't let this guy carry any more films, he can't do it. First time director James Robinson (screenwriter of Blade and the upcoming League of Extraordinary Gentlemen), needed a re-write before this was filmable. Either that or some needed plot help was left on the cutting room floor. Too, bad it's a shame. I'd skip COMIC BOOK VILLIANS.
Rating: 
Summary: It was horrible JUST horrible!!
Review: OK, lets get it out in the open first! I'm 45 years old and I still collect comics, there I said it! Heck, I sold some and it was the down payment of my first home, and I'm talking a $235,000 house, not too shabby! Anyway back to this DVD AAAARRRGGGGGG!!!! That's how I feel about it. The movie was ok with that skinny guy my daughters like for some reason, yeah he's been in some funny movies I have seen but this was not one of them. There were few good parts and even fewer laughs, but that was not the worst! THE WORST was watching comics burning and water dripping on them and floating around in a lake or pond of something!!
OH THE HORROR!!! My wife did get a big kick out of me gasping every time a comic was damaged though.
I was waiting at the end of the movie for the disclaimer that stated that no comics were harmed during the filming of this movie. I had nightmares about my collection being destroyed all night long. Bad movie! Bad bad movie! But, it did remind me of some great times hanging around with Steve Geppi.
If you like, read, or collect comics do not see this movie!
Rating:
Summary: It was horrible JUST horrible!!
Review: OK, lets get it out in the open first! I'm 45 years old and I still collect comics, there I said it! Heck, I sold some and it was the down payment of my first home, and I'm talking a $235,000 house, not too shabby! Anyway back to this DVD AAAARRRGGGGGG!!!! That's how I feel about it. The movie was ok with that skinny guy my daughters like for some reason, yeah he's been in some funny movies I have seen but this was not one of them. There were few good parts and even fewer laughs, but that was not the worst! THE WORST was watching comics burning and water dripping on them and floating around in a lake or pond of something!!
OH THE HORROR!!! My wife did get a big kick out of me gasping every time a comic was damaged though.
I was waiting at the end of the movie for the disclaimer that stated that no comics were harmed during the filming of this movie. I had nightmares about my collection being destroyed all night long. Bad movie! Bad bad movie! But, it did remind me of some great times hanging around with Steve Geppi.
If you like, read, or collect comics do not see this movie!
Rating:
Summary: Comic Book Fan Boys Run Amouk
Review: There is an underlining message to COMIC BOOK VILLIANS. All involved in this film must either hate comic books and its industry or know a lot about it... or care about comic books to put out this "message" film. It can go either way. In the mid-to-late 90's, the comic book industry and its subculture went on a collecting and memorabilia craze. People thought they were going to buy comic books as investments and be millionaires. That plan bottomed out and the industry nose-dived. COMIC BOOK VILLIANS indirectly is an outgrowth of what happened to the industry in the late 90's. The film is a cross between PULP FICTION, A SIMPLE PLAN, and VERY BAD THINGS with a touch of 'Kevin Smith' thrown into the mix. Two rival comic book storeowners Ray and Norman (Donal Logue / Michael Rapaport respectively) in a small town find out a local avid collector has died. Then they figure that they can get his comic book collection and sell it for a windfall. Unfortunately, the guy lived at his Mom's house (Eileen Brennan) where he kept his collection and she refuses to sell. So, the two rivals devise plans to woo her to get the collection. However, she stands her ground not to sell. They end up resorting to drastic measures to get the collection and it gets real ugly, and very, very, violent. The plot starts out innocently enough with the script and dialogue having "comic book-knowledge" banter and even mentions the SDComic Con Int. (The San Diego Comic Con International)etc. However, it suddenly takes a sharp left turn and it is jarring and unwatchable. None of the characters are likeable. The only positive aspect of the film is that one of the characters; a comic book aficionado (D.J. Qualls as Archie) realizes the futility of comic book collecting and comes out on top. Therefore, as stated, there is an underlining message of the film; and that it is telling comic book 'fan-boys' to "GET-A-LIFE!" and that there is a whole world out there to explore besides the world of comic books and its obsession with memorabilia and collections. The film is blatant in this message and if that is its main intent, it is a scathing dig on the whole culture of the comic book industry.
Rating: 
Summary: What a Funny and Good hearted movie
Review: This is a movie for the fans of comic books, eccentric actors, and/or just for people who are generally odd-ball types. If you fit into any of the above categories, you must buy this movie! Or watch it on STARZ!
Rating:
Summary: What a Funny and Good hearted movie
Review: This is a movie for the fans of comic books, eccentric actors, and/or just for people who are generally odd-ball types. If you fit into any of the above categories, you must buy this movie! Or watch it on STARZ!
Rating: 
Summary: It had its moments....
Review: Well I just rented Comic Book Villians. When I was looking at the cover it looked promising. I like Donal Logue in Grounded For Life, n he was funny in Blade. But I was hoping this would be kind of like Mallrats. Mallrats is probably my favorite comedy, well most all of Kevin Smiths comedies(Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back) are my favorites, except Dogma, im not really into the religious thing. But anyway back to CBV. The movie is actually pretty good, with a few funny parts. And i do mean a few, prolly the only part i really laughed at was when Donal Logue(Raymond Mcgillicuddy) is talking about his money problems and sum1 says but you have loyal customers, n Raymond replies, well ya so does Mcdonalds, but they just brought in a few billion more than i did ok. Anyways Raymond and Normal are rival comic book store owners, and are trying to get there hands on the collection of a recently dead old man. Who had been collecting for 45 years. The mans mother refuses to sell them, and that leads the to men to try and steal the comics. It turns from slightly funny to a very weird everyone goes nuts n gets guns tone, witch has a man killed because he didn't know what comic Wonder Woman was first introduced in. Over all its a good comic book-fan movie, but I am a comic book collector, and i was hopeing for more inside comic book humour, that only really happens at the beginning of this film...
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