Super Troopers 2 Review

If this past weekend was any indication, it was that a lot of people doubted that Super Troopers 2 would even make much considering it's competitors. Still, making it into the top 5 for its first weekend is a resounding success, especially for its three long years of crowdfunding and getting the thing filmed. I had a chance to watch this in the theater and here is where I stand on it.

Overall, it's a very funny film that holds it's own. At the very least, it's about on par with the original, but in its own way. So what happened? All five troopers had an incident involving Fred Savage and got kicked off the force. They lead normal lives with regular jobs. That is until the Vermont governor, once again a cameo from Lynda Carter, gives them a chance at redemption. Due to immigration issues, there is question on the border between Canada and the United States. One of those towns is on American soil, and she gives the group another shot. Along with Captain O'Hagan, the troopers set up shop despite hatred from the town.

With most comedy sequels, a reason they are criticized is for re-hashing the story and using mostly the same gags and jokes. Super Troopers 2 manages to avoid that, though some of the timeless bits from the original come into form here. There is a lot more freedom for the characters since they are not worried about a station shutdown. They let them loose and it provides for a number of very humorous moments and get a chance to see Canadian culture. Speaking of which, it doesn't get overwhelmed with the hatred between Canada and the United States.

There isn't too many complaints I have with the film. It has a decent run time. There is enough screen time for the major characters involved. It is a little slow in the middle, but not for long. Other than that, it's a wild ride that will have you laughing out loud a lot. If you can find a theater that is showing this, get your chance to see it.

Score: 8 out of 10

Super Troopers 2's Ultimate Test

We are not too far from the crowdfunded Super Troopers 2 hitting theaters as it releases Friday, April 20th. As their promotional tour wraps up, Broken Lizard hopes it achieves any sort of big success from this. That, however, is their biggest test. Will it do anything in its first weekend? If so, it better make the best of it before yet another brain dead Marvel popcorn flick comes out on the 27th.

When the original came out in February 2002, it was not a huge hit. Still, it made some money considering the starting dominance of DVD. Broken Lizard has had more of a cult fanbase and Super Troopers remains one of the bigger comedies of the 2000s due to its approach to humor, characters, and quotable lines. With that fanbase in mind, it's time to put up or shut up. Just the idea of doing another one was deemed impossible at one point. Three plus years of trying to get it done and they have succeeded.

With crowdfunding, there hasn't been too many movies through this kind of system. Most notables for theatrical releases are Veronica Mars and Wish I Was Here. Super Troopers 2 should be able to get past the hurdles those two had for a few reasons. One is that it's something people have been begging for in the last decade. Two is that Broken Lizard has made a name for themselves and have appeared all over the United States through stand up along with a few other films. They are a draw compared to the other two examples of crowdfunding and the notoriety helps their case a lot more.

The kid gloves are off for this one. It's just of matter of who will actually see it in theaters.

Patience Needed on Super Troopers 2

I'll try to keep this short if I can. I listened to a podcast from Broken Lizard guys Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme a week or so ago. They had one of their Lizard members Jay Chandrasekhar, who was promoting his new book Mustache Shenanigans, on it. A quick update was given on Super Troopers 2 and that they hope 20th Century Fox tells them when the movie will hit theaters. They mention that some fans are frustrated about the fact that it hasn't been out and are demanding a refund. Here are my thoughts on it.

Right now, this is out of Broken Lizard's hands. They can't make the choice on when it goes into theaters or even trailers if a decision has been made. It kind of is a studio movie. The thing is, the group has had issues with Fox over the years about making another Super Troopers, something they have said before a number of times on other podcasts and videos. When you think of some of the company's biggest to modestly successful movies to get sequels, you think of stuff from the last 50 years. Stuff like Planet of the Apes, Revenge of the Nerds, Die Hard, Home Alone, Independence Day, Ice Age. The list goes on. You can't blame them on not being confident in a sequel to a huge cult hit that caught on to DVD.

Then again, it's not a huge risk considering Fox didn't even give Broken Lizard any money. A little more than four million from the crowdfunding in 2015 is not something to sneeze at, but it's better than the 1.2 million for the original. Not to mention it's under the Fox Searchlight label. I don't see any reason to be afraid of a comedy troupe film. Sure, their audience is mostly young adults and college kids, but it can't be a bad thing, can it? There's a hunger for another Super Troopers. Fox has to realize that and look beyond the box office numbers.

I hope they announce something very soon. Development hell is not something Broken Lizard doesn't want to see again after a very long length of time. If it comes around August or September, then it shouldn't frustrate too many. If Fox doesn't, who knows when it will come out or if refunds become more demanding than seeing the film.

Check out the previous blog I have done regarding Super Troopers 2.

http://sullivanentertainment.blogspot.com/2017/03/why-super-troopers-2-is-important-for.html

Why Super Troopers 2 is Important for Film

While some people will think of other big name people for alumni that went Colgate University, there are five that you will see pop up every once in a while. They are the group known as Broken Lizard, who have been around since 1990, and have been doing full length films since 1996. Consisting of Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske, their beginning days were pretty rough with their first film Puddle Cruiser, which went to film festivals. They achieved a big following with their next film. Despite a meager 1.2 million dollars after many rejections from a lot of people, they shot Super Troopers, and brought it to Sundance. It would be bought by 20th Century Fox and found a little success in theaters and much bigger success on DVD.

Even with doing other films either together or on their own, there has always been the idea of doing a new Super Troopers film. It was a development hell one, unfortunately. While there is a loyal fanbase, none of their films have been well received or made mad amounts of money. (Dukes of Hazzard doesn't really count, but it was instrumental in green lighting Beerfest) Film companies are always out to make revenue, and possibly see the group as one that can not make it in Hollywood's eyes. Individually, they have carved out their own stuff. Stand up is something they have all done. Chandrasekhar has directed a number of TV shows (Arrested Development, Psych, Community) Heffernan has been on several shows in a guest starring spot (Workaholics, Agent Carter) along with doing a podcast with Lemme. Soter has made a few films of his own. Stolhanske is part of his home state's film board in Minnesota. I'm not going to claim myself to be a super fan of Broken Lizard, but they are people who may not be A-listers but the ones who slip through the cracks and find their audience.

That being said, in an era of Netflix and streaming, DVD has become somewhat of an afterthought. It is stuff that is addressed by some of the group. As talking about the performance of their films, that is what the studios will look at. It seemed like they had a hard time convincing Fox (where Super Troopers was bought under their Searchlight Pictures division) to have a new Super Troopers film. With that in mind and after struggles, the company got the film, but wouldn't give them money. That's where they did Indiegogo in 2015. They managed to get 4.5 million dollars and as of now, they have the film completed with a few small things to adjust and to hear about the release date. That money was not only for the filming. It is also for the advertising.

While it is a little down from the crowdfunding of the Veronica Mars film, Super Troopers 2 has a lot bigger crowd anticipating their release than a generic crime show that couldn't make it's budget back in movie form. That's why this is really important for film. If it were to do well, it could potentially change how films are made. It would also show people still have a hunger for seeing low budget films that may not get the recognition or success compared to a vanilla Marvel film until the Oscars and Academy Awards if it's nominated. (I'm talking films in general, not Super Troopers) There's that horror film, Get Out, which has made back it's 4.5 million budget 15 plus times already in two weeks. Even something in the 20 to 30 million range could be considered cheap, but not overly expensive by today's standards. At least it's not a huge risk compared to the ones that have 100-200 million dollar budgets. Unless you know it's guaranteed to make money, it's hard to know if audiences will go for it. It is a little ridiculous seeing certain comedies have these very bloated budgets, though I think some of them are being brought back down to earth a little bit in recent years.

This article from Chandrasekhar himself pretty much describes his feelings regarding today's film industry and crowdfunding. (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/03/27/why-we-re-making-super-troopers-2.html) One of Super Troopers 2's perks is getting a ticket to see the film whenever it does hit theaters. Broken Lizard is putting a lot on the line to give people something they've wanted for a very long time. They are not like Matt Damon or Jennifer Lawrence where they demand 20 plus million paychecks. There is such a high bar for it because the original had so many memorable scenes and lines that it stands along other films like Anchorman and Dumb and Dumber for being very quotable. The characters are so ingrained into your head, you're hoping for more evil shenanigans out of Farva, Foster and Mac trying new games on drivers, and Ramathorn and Rabbit working on a new prank. 

Broken Lizard may not be a big deal to Hollywood, but they are one of the backbones like many others trying to show they can stand out in the midst of comic book popcorn flicks, and many other bloated films. Personally, I think this will do better than all the other films they have done. If successful, there could be films that could do the same thing Super Troopers 2 has going. I'm expecting 30 million dollars at the box office. Let's hope that the film gets a release date soon.