Search - Gentlemen Broncos [Blu-ray] on Blu-ray

Why such brutal reviews?

M. Decker | Louisville, KY USA | 03/03/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I had seen reviews for this movie on Rotten Tomatoes and rated on IMDB and can't understand why it got such horrible reviews. I just watched this movie tonight and found it absolutely hilarious from start to finish. Clement and Rockwell are great, and Mike White makes me bust out laughing in every scene he is in. This is an exceedingly original film, I can't think of anything to compare it to off the top of my head, and the fact that Cher and the Scorpions are both in the soundtrack makes all the more loopy. PLEASE GIVE THIS MOVIE A CHANCE!"

Broncos - Thoroughly enjoyable!

Ladfam | MS - USA | 03/03/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As soon as I heard about Jared Hess' latest project, I was excited to see it - even before the Dr. Chevalier viral videos were released.

So I was a tad let down to hear the negative buzz surrounding the film, and to discover it wouldn't be playing in any nearby theaters.

Even still, I decided to take a chance and purchase it on BluRay instead of renting. I'm one of the minority who really liked not only Napoleon Dynamite, but ALSO enjoyed Nacho Libre (typical response to Nacho Libre was poor). So I figured Gentlemen Broncos was a safe bet. ...and it turns out that it was!

Admittedly, there are a couple of "what the heck" scenes (particularly those involving Halley Feiffer) which I think some will find a bit off-putting if not totally repulsive, but overall the film is chock full of hilarious gems. (The PG-13 rating was due primarily to crude humor. There was one instance where "ape sh**" was used, but no swearing beyond that.)

I thought all of the characters were very well-played by their respective actors. Jemaine Clement's Ronald Chevalier is often cited as the show-stealer, and for good reason, but I found myself wanting to see more of Sam Rockwell's Bronco character. His near-hillbilly (fantastic southern accent) action hero portrayal was delightful to watch. I laughed hysterically at his "What the crap?!" reaction upon waking up in Daysius' lab.

It did seem like there could've been more extra features, but maybe that was because I'd seen many of them (the "Webspots") online prior to the release. The behind-the-scenes was a treat, which I would also liked to have seen more of, but the outtakes made up for it.


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An obscure film given a good BD

Steve Kuehl | Ben Lomond, CA | 02/28/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The followers of this crew who have enjoyed their creations (Nacho Libre, Napolean Dynamite) will absolutely love this piece, but I think once again Sam Rockwell steals another film and I think he should be the one on the cover art.

The story follows the universe of a teen writer living in a desolate place (similar to Dynamite - except bleaker), and the fictional universe of his creation led by the hero called Bronco/Brutus - the ever changing Sam Rockwell. Along the way we are spattered with the absolute epitome of nerds and a population living an uneventful Utah existence. But with this journey we see some improv performances that fit right in with how these guys make their stories so unique. The Blu is packed with a volume of material including:

* Deleted scenes, 5:53 minutes. Glad they were cut but it will be more for the fans.
* Outtakes, 8:48 minutes. Hilarious and worthy of every Sam Rockwell laugh.
* Behind the scenes, 15:29 minutes. A valid look into production and special effects, with the usual camp feel of a Hess film. The amount of improv is verified in all of the acting, but it still shows how some of the thinking materializes in the Hess' noggins.
* Mini docs, 17 clips totaling 25 minutes. I wish these would have been placed as part of the behind the scenes, as it gets tedious to scroll through all of them, even with the play all option. Being an obvious fan of Rockwell, I recommend watching the 2nd, 7th, 8th, 14th and 15th minis (or the ones that have Sam in the title selection) - as he manages to show the sides of him (humorous and serious even in the most lamest of sequences) that makes him the owner of this film.

The Blu clarity is decent but deliberately flawed in some of the sci-fi sequences, otherwise a good transfer. The DTS gets a resounding usage in all of the battle scenes and is the best mix to date for their type of film making. Region coded A, English, Spanish and French language with English and Spanish subs only. A thorough product for the people that love this group, and maybe a renter if you sit on the fence of how you like their previous work."

Very similar to Napoleon Dynamite in mostly good ways; the G

K. Swanson | Austin, TX United States | 04/21/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Dude. Circle of life."

Broncos is far too similar to Hess' classic Napoleon Dynamite in various ways to be at all unique, and often reminded me of a junior Wes Anderson movie in some ways (not bad ones). Yet it's also very much its own film in certain aspects, and has so much gentle heart it's almost impossible not to like Gentleman Broncos to some degree.

The acting helps a lot, though Hess obviously demands constant deadpan from all of his actors (much like Wes), which really does get old after a while. This seems to be his main conceit, and while funny at first here it becomes stale after seeing the concept in full flight, as in ND. Fortunately he picked the right actors again for it again. Angarano is almost Micheal Cera part two, but holds up well enough, and Coolidge is perfect as his mom (the popcorn balls must be some sort of inside joke, I guess). Rockwell is quite amusing, as is Yeast Lords in general, but Clement steals the film with his wonderfully wry portrayal of the sci-fi writer, with his perfect voice as the key. He made me laugh a lot, and lifts this movie into a much funnier dimension. Lonnie is pretty much Pedro redux; Hess must have had a friend just like those two as a kid....one imagines that this and ND are tributes to his childhood, due to the loving care he heaps upon these misfits.

Broncos is after all, like ND, a celebration of geekdom, and it's a pleasure to be made to identify with such a pleasant, well-meaning hero. Even the villain here is a pretty nice fellow; there are no bad guys, actually. Just a bunch of very bored semi-rural small-town folks clutching at whatever straws come their way. Hess keeps it nice and brief, and while I found it nowhere near as funny as Dynamite, it was amusing enough to be worth watching, especially for Clement. If you've ever read much sci-fi or seen any enjoyably bad sci-fi flicks, you'll love him and this movie, and if you enjoy rooting for underdogs, Gentleman Bronco has your name on it.

And watch out for one of the funniest lines I've heard in a long time: "Dude. Circle of life."

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