Starwoids (DVD)
Directed by: Dennis Przywara
Starring: Over 3000 Star Wars fans

The world of nerdy, obsessive cult fandom is a vast one indeed, but everyone knows that at the very top of the heap lies the hardcore fans of those two epic sci-fi sagas: Star Trek and Star Wars. While Trek fans have been hassled for the last few decades with the socially unattractive label of being called “Trekkies” (most prefer the term “Trekker” instead), Star Wars geeks have gotten off the hook, if for no other reason than the lack of a good derogatory name to call them. It may also have something to do with the fact that there was a 15 year gap between Star Wars movies, which meant little to no public outings for the Star Wars enthusiasts between 1983 and 1998.

With the release of Episode 1: The Phantom Menace in 1999 however (and the Special Editions just before that), all those Star Wars nuts came out of the woodwork, and in fact, a whole new generation of geeks was born at the same time. Filmmaker Dennis Przywara took the opportunity to finally give the Star Wars fans the (dis)credit they deserve, as he waited in line with his video camera for 42 days along with a number of other diehards determined to see the very first showing of the new Star Wars film. During this time, he captured the media frenzy and hype surrounding Star Wars Episode 1, as well as the unwavering support and psychotic obsession of fans. Thus was born his documentary film, “Starwoids”.

Anyone who has seen the movie Trekkies will have a pretty good idea of what to expect with Starwoids. This movie will make you laugh out loud at many of the ludicrous things that Star Wars fans do and say. It isn’t quite as hilarious as Trekkies but while Trekkies simply spliced together a number of unrelated segments featuring different Trek enthusiasts, Starwoids has a certain narrative to it as it progresses through the 42 day wait prior to the release of The Phantom Menace. It does mix in other footage of Star Wars fans though, such as Kevin and Garrin: the writers of Star Wars The Musical, and Guy Klender: Star Wars collector extraordinaire. There’s also a girl who turned her car into an X-Wing fighter and a guy who played a jawa in the first Star Wars movie, among others.

However, the main chunk of the film follows the exploits of Daniel Alter, a teenager who took his high school equivalency test so that he can skip school and camp out at the head of the Star Wars line for over a month. He is well known in his city for always being first in line to see any movie, and he even has his own special “seat” at the theatre. While Daniel and many of the fans in line are amusing, it’s interesting to see all the chaos and bitterness that erupts when the media tries to hone in on the situation. In this sense there is a bit more to the movie than simply laughing at the stupid people in costumes. In the end, looking back at the Episode 1 craze you see how silly it all was (and how much the wait was not worth it), but you also see how much of a cultural connection Star Wars has, for better or worse.

Special features on the DVD include a text-based filmmaker’s diary (easier to read on the website), director’s audio commentary, and deleted scenes, which include some additional footage of Star Wars: The Musical and a stop-motion film of stormtrooper action figures breakdancing (?!). It also has an interview with Kevin Smith, who provides narration at the beginning of the movie but has no other involvement other than being a self-proclaimed “Starwoid” himself. The Smith interview is an obvious ploy to get the film recognition from all the View Askew fanboys in the world, and guess what? It worked!

Overall Starwoids has probably received more attention than it deserves simply because it’s about Star Wars, and yet, I can’t say it isn’t a lot of fun. The film portrays the fans in an affectionate way, most likely because director Przywara is a fan himself, and it’s definitely good for a laugh on a rainy day. If you’re a Star Wars nut then you probably already know about this movie, but even if you’re not, I think you’ll still have a good time with Starwoids. — Sean