My Name Is Bruce (2007) Reviews

• My Name Is Bruce: Entertaining, Funny, A Definite Must For BC Fans!

  alice_wandering2007-04-14

  I was extremely fortunate to obtain a ticket to the very first screening of "My Name Is Bruce" during the Ashland Independent Film Festival in Southern Oregon. Bruce appeared there in person and he was as charming, funny and charismatic as his alter egos on screen. It was a real privilege! Before and after the show, Bruce talked a bit about how making a film in one's hometown, how great it was for him to "be able make a film and sleep in his own bed for the first time in 10 years" and that you don't need a big Hollywood studio and a big blockbuster budget to make a good movie everyone can enjoy. He proved his point completely with the screening of this film. "My Name Is Bruce" was filmed entirely on located in the Rogue Valley, casting locals in many of the major roles, who all did a wonderful job. No big celebrity names, exotic locations or blue screen studios were necessary in making this a real good movie. But enough patting on the back. If you love any of the Evil Dead movies, if you've ever loved him as the dashing king of thieves in Xena: Warrior Princess, or if you've just been charmed by his delightful cameos in the Spiderman films, you will LOVE "My Name Is Bruce"! Even if you don't know that much about Bruce Campell and you just happen to be a fan of B-Movies, I still think you will enjoy this movie. Everything we love about Bruce is played so well over the top you can't help but laugh yourself silly! Bruce takes no mercy in making fun of himself - in this film, he's a washed up, boozing, C-movie actor, who's just finalized his divorce, making horrible alien movie sequels while treating his devoted fans like crap (the scene where he kicks a fan in a wheelchair down a hill - PRICELESS - but just one of many)! This, of course, all done in comedic good taste. None of this could be considered is autobiographical, and it's far from some cheesy Lifetime channel oh-pity-me "the Bruce Campbell story" special. As Bruce beats himself up, we all laugh our bums off. Then, there is of course, the evil monster, Quan-Di, who's chops peoples' heads off in a cool, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon style. I would also like to add by the way that this Chinese God of Bean Curd has his own folksong sung by two humble guitar players, and it's a rather catchy-tune. Quite frankly, if you don't leave the theatre singing: "Quan You, Quan Me, Quan Di...", well then I just don't know what to say to you. ;) The violence in this movie is very much like what you may find in the Evil Dead movies. There's much homage from that. Something else in this movie that's uber-cool and cult fans will enjoy: Ted Raimi... Is... EVERYWHERE in this film. He has (as far as I could count) three different significant roles, which are both delightful and hilarious to watch. The movie also takes some of its strength from the two main supporting roles, the plucky fan boy who practically worships Bruce Campell (whose name I can't remember at the moment) and his mother, played by Grace Thorsen. I should note that what I saw was a rough cut of the film, not entirely finished, so I don't know the names of all the actors because there were no opening and closing credits. So, sorry for now, plucky fan boy who worships Bruce Campell. I thought you were very good, but I can't remember your name. And kudos to the actor who played Quan-Di, who's physical characterizations behind the mask made him more than just another monster. In conclusion, when there is a final cut and it lands in theaters in October, do go see it. It was quite an entertaining film and well worth seeing it on the big screen. I would write more, because this movie ROCKED in practically every detail, but I fear I'd be giving too much away. Just take my word for it: it's groovy, baby. Go see it.

• A Great Bruce Campbell Experience

  ice_blue_eyes132007-04-13

  I just got back from the first screening of "My Name is Bruce," and I am very impressed. To put it simply, the movie is a film made by Bruce Campbell for Bruce Campbell fans. If you're not a Bruce Campbell fan, then you're probably not reading this post, so I'll move on. An ancient Chinese deity is set free a small Southern Oregon town (a town Bruce Campbell calls the sequel to Deliverance at one point), and the townsfolk (and, yes, they are folk) decide to enlist the help of Bruce Campbell to stop the evil force. Bruce, however, believes the whole thing to be an elaborate hoax and plays along. This movie is funny, but it's two kinds of funny here. There are the jokes that anybody can sit down and enjoy, and then there are the "in" references that only Bruce fans can really enjoy. And there are a lot of "ins" (I don't envy the person who has to do the trivia section for this one). Some are from his more famous works (Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, etc.) and will only truly be appreciated by the hardest of the hard core (Mindwarp, McHale's Navy). I can't really discuss much of the technical merits of the film, since my screening was done on an early edit. There were no special effects, the music was of the stand-in variety, and some of the sound effects sounded like they had come from a Warner Bros. cartoon (also stand-in). However, the movie's slant toward the realm of the B-movie makes these quirks seem perfectly in place. I still enjoy myself despite them, and the movie might have taken on a whole new charm because of them. I'll have to check out a clean version to be sure. In conclusion, if you're a Bruce Campbell fan, you're going to see this movie regardless of what you read here; however, I'll save you the anxiety and say you won't be disappointed in the least. If you're not a huge fan, this movie is still worth a viewing, since it's comedy could be seen as ripping on the horror genre in general and in a far superior way than the "Scary Movie" trilogy ever did.

• For the Die Hard Campbell Fans, But Not Many Others

  gavin69422008-12-09

  Bruce Campbell is called to Gold Lick to fight the evil Chinese war god Guan-di after one of his biggest fans, Jeff, awakens the demon and mistakenly believes that Bruce would know how to fight such creatures. Campbell accepts, but only because he believes the entire thing to be a movie shoot. Not surprisingly, there is going to be two groups of people for this film: the die-hard Campbell fans who love it, and the others. The others might like it, they might hate it, but they'll be left cold if they realize the jokes aren't meant for them. The film really has no solid plot (it's been done before...) and the acting isn't great... and the jokes are, at best, average. Campbell's actor friends show up: Timothy Patrick Quill, Ted Raimi, Dan Hicks and even Ellen Sandweiss. Some of the in-jokes are slightly clever (having Sandweiss play "Cheryl", the same character's name she had in "Evil Dead") while others are just too blunt and insult the audience's intelligence. Other references such as "I worked with Sam Raimi" just seem thrown in for good measure. I understand the point was to reference Campbell's past films, but it wasn't subtle at all and seemed poorly thought out. Bruce Campbell is Bruce Campbell, so if you like him, you will like this film. That's pretty much all there is to say about that. He directed it, he stars in it and he had a strong guiding hand in the writing process. You get the best of Campbell and the worst in this film... and don't forget for every good Campbell film ("Army of Darkness") there are at least two bad films. I had the privilege of catching a screening in Madison with Campbell himself on hand for questions and answers. This really made the experience special, but did not make me feel any better about the film. The audience generally seemed to laugh more than I did, so maybe I'm in the minority. But when Bruce answered questions, he didn't offer any reassurance that he cared much about the film... if anything, his appearance seemed to suggest he felt he couldn't sell tickets without a gimmick. I received a DVD copy in the mail as part of my reviewing duties, and gave it a second viewing. In all fairness, I en joyed the film much more the second time, having a better sense of what sort of humor and style the film would be going for. My suggestion is this: if you're a Campbell fan, pick up a copy. If not, you'll want to see other Campbell films first to really appreciate this one. Luckily for the people who made this film, there are plenty of Bruce Campbell fans to see this one with a smile on their face.

• Fun for the Fans..

  teenitini2007-04-14

  I too obtained a coveted pair of tickets to MNIB.... The plot is basically what it says---a town of goobers kidnaps Bruce Campbell & pins their hopes of defeating the monster thats killing off the town members using all his B-Movie beast killing knowledge etc....Bruce thinks it's a big joke...till the Bean Curd hits the fan!! very slapstick, cornball, digs all over him self as an actor uses his old lines in new and inventive ways "...and maybe later honey, if your lucky I'll let you look at my BoomStick!" Anyone on the inside of these jokes will get it, love it and want more.... And those hard core haters who tear films to shreds will find plenty to hack on...But they wont get any fodder from me....just trust that if your a Bruce Campbell fan....your gonna buy it, and force your unwilling friends to watch it.

• If Bruce Could Kill

  se7en1872008-03-14

  When a small town in Oregon is attacked by a evil monster, who do you call? Bruce Campbell of course. My Name is Bruce is a hilarious comedy directed by and starring the great Bruce Campbell. It's a creative low budget film that does so much with so little. The whole cast is enjoyable, it looks like they all had a fun time filming it, like a bunch of friends getting together and shooting a film. And Ted Raimi is awesome as always, playing several roles, it looks like they just put the camera on Ted and told him to do his thing, and man the Rhyme Throwah sure delivers. There are a lot of laughs throughout, I was smiling the whole way through. It's filled with a bunch of inside jokes that all Bruce Campbell fans will appreciate it. But this isn't just for people that love Bruce. This is a movie for everyone that appreciates film-making, and most importantly films that aren't trying to make millions of dollars. My Name is Bruce knows what kind of movie it is and doesn't try to be anything else. It makes fun of itself a lot of times (and Bruce rips on himself so much throughout). I saw this at the East Lansing Film Festival and the audience could not sit still. There were so many cheers and constant laughter throughout the film. It's an entertaining and funny film. Seek it out, watch it, then spread the word.