Veronica Mars (2014)

Was it just me that didn't like the Veronica Mars Movie? It felt like a shadow of the show I fell in love with. From the beginning the humor wasn't there for me, Veronica was pleasant at most and the only character that felt real was Keith Mars, with his fatherly charm still intact. The fact that Veronica Mars had decided to be a lawyer, was just too out of character, they made like she became the vanilla version of herself for nine years, just to build her back up by the end of the movie.

Perhaps what bothered me the most, was that it was just too boring, it didn't feel like a movie, but one long-drawn-out episode. It could have been a new beginning instead of a two hour nod to the past, and there were a lot of nods.

The "mystery" was laughable and highly predictable, there was no sense of danger or urgency through out the movie, even close to the end when some kind of dangerous things happen. As for the romance, well, it was equally laughable and sad, not in good way.

Maybe I'm a marshmallow that just passed its point in the fire, but this movie was not for me, which is a shame, because Veronica Mars is one of my favorite characters of all time and will continue to be, just not in this movie.

Fmovies: Veronica Mars is back! She thought she had escaped Neptune, California for the calmer, grown-up world of New York City; she thought she had escaped her bad boy past for the calmer, drama-less college boyfriend, Piz; but then they pulled her right back in. Even after nine years, one phone call from Logan Echolls is all it took; after all, their love is epic. It can span years and continents, lives ruined and bloodshed.

It's probably not a good idea to answer a phone call from the son of a Hollywood actor who had murdered his girlfriend, the son of a Hollywood wife who jumped off a bridge, and has a penchant for getting himself accused of murder. But Jason Dohring plays Logan Echolls. One of the most promising actors to come out of TV who has still not "made it", he has a way with words and a charisma which evokes a passion that makes otherwise good girls fall for bad boys.

Luckily for us, unfortunately for Veronica, Logan's most recent murder charge coincides with her high school reunion, and it reunites us with all the Neptune High characters we loved to hate (Madison Sinclair, Gia Goodman), everybody we loved to love (Weevil, Wallace) and everybody we forgot how much we loved (Mr. Clemmons, Corny). It's been eight years since we've last seen most of these people. Some actors didn't change (Jason Dohring), some characters didn't change (Dick Casablancas), and some scenes didn't change. And those were the great parts. Veronica tricking the Sheriff again, Veronica flirting with a certain Deputy with a pizza in hand again, and Keith scolding his number one daughter again were hilarious.

It can be a bit weird going from the small screen to the big screen. A different actor playing the same character doesn't help and old characters that we never actually met doesn't help either. Logan wearing the Navy dress whites seemed a joke at first, and then when it turned out to not be a joke, I was still waiting for the joke to play out. The jokes came when Veronica finally made it to the reunion and when Dick was helping Veronica help Logan. But then it got dark, and they pulled me right back in.

The comedy is primarily inside jokes, and yes it is very funny, but probably not hilarious to non-fans. The plot can be easily followed by anyone, and we and Veronica set out to solve who really murdered Logan's pop-star girlfriend. Well, actually, Veronica sets out to solve the crime. One of the biggest differences between the TV version and the movie is that we don't get 20 episodes worth of clues to solve it ourselves. We just get to sit back and watch Veronica get pulled back to the Hellmouth that is Neptune, California.

When I say this is for fans only, I don't mean that if you are unfamiliar with the TV series you will be lost watching this. I wasn't a fan of the series and I was able to follow the movie fine. There are plenty of characters and moments that seem to serve no purpose other than (I assume) to please the show's fans, but none of these really get in the way of the plot. I came into this film with no expectations or baggage. I like Kristen Bell and I was willing to give the movie a shot, despite my never being able to get into the show when it was on the air. What I will say about the movie is that if you liked the series, I see no reason why you won't like this. If you didn't like the series (I didn't), then this will probably be a very unpleasant movie viewing experience for you because it really is like a big-screen version of the show. If you have never seen the show, then read on.

The pace is excruciatingly slow and I lost interest more than once. I was quickly reminded of why the show never clicked for me. It's like Buffy without the action, romance, or humor (to say nothing of monsters). Veronica Mars does try to have some of those things, particularly what is supposed to pass for humor. But it's very weak. The kind of stuff you would need a laugh track for. The only time I laughed was with the James Franco cameo. I couldn't for the life of me see what everyone else in the film was talking about regarding this Logan character, played by Jason Dohring. This lanky, rubber-faced individual seems better-suited to playing the nerdy best friend than the handsome "bad boy." There is also no chemistry between Dohring and Kristen Bell. There we have one of many divides that I, as someone not an avid devotee of Veronica Mars, will never be able to cross. The biggest divide is that I found the main character unlikable and obnoxious. Her sneering and condescending tone towards everybody but a select few of her closest friends makes me wonder what anyone ever saw appealing in this character. Thankfully, in her post-Mars career, Kristen Bell has been allowed to do roles that showcased her charm and personality better than this.

As someone who is a fan of actual old-school detective and film noir stories, of which Veronica Mars is supposedly a modernization of, I find nothing of interest here on that front. There is no atmosphere, no snappy dialogue, no unique or memorable characters. Veronica Mars just plods along at a steady pace, never rising or falling significantly, never building momentum to anything. When the moment comes for the mystery to be solved and the killer(s) apprehended, it comes with a whimper not a bang. There is a distinct lack of style or substance to this world of Veronica Mars that makes it very clear why the TV series was not more successful and why it needed fans to pay for this movie to be made.

Veronica Mars fmovies. Rob (and Diane) would seem to have had a difficult task in writing this. How to tie two threads together, over such a huge jump in time, how to craft a plot that accounted for things like the season four trailer, and how to make it all feel seamless. I recently re-watched all three seasons on Amazon, and I can only say that when I watched the movie, I felt like I was "home", and that all that lost time just didn't exist.

I can't imagine anyone who enjoyed the series, not fully enjoying this effort (and wishing that it would somehow "go on"). I would hope that it would have the potential of pulling in a larger audience, but that is more difficult to judge, having been a fan to begin with. I thought the series was super well written, many notches above a lot of other TV dribble, and had a killer cast to boot, so I was always amazed that it didn't get the numbers that one would have expected.

As with the series, the script is dripping with wit, both from Veronica, and also (as others have already mentioned) in references to events from the series. Newcomers might not pick up on some of it, but they would also not be distracted by any if it either. Those referential bits simply provide a few more "smile moments" for the rest of us, but are not required to follow or enjoy the story.

If you get off on action movies, with dialog written for 10-year olds, then you probably need to skip this film. If you enjoy well crafted scripts, with intelligent dialog, and with a love triangle and murder mystery thrown in to drive the plot, then even if you never watched the series, I would expect that you would still enjoy this film. You might even get hooked enough to find yourself streaming the series (all in HD, by the way), to find out what you missed, the first time around.

For the everyone else, who's simply been in "can't wait" mode for the last year, wondering if this great, ensemble cast could actually pull this off, and "be" those characters that you have missed. The answer is a resounding "yes".

I was quite upset and disappointed when the series was canceled back in 2004. It was one of my favorite shows, and I fervently believed (and still fervently believe) that it was canceled well before it should have been. When I heard that a movie was being made, I immediately became one of its many Kickstarter backers. Now, the movie is a reality, and I am happy to say that Rob and his cast and crew did not disappoint. The movie embodies everything that made the series as great as it was. Wit, sarcasm and noir story-lines abound, giving this the feel of a Veronica Mars season finale episode (without a cliffhanger). The reason I say that it is bittersweet, is because the movie is a reminder of what should have been, and, while watching the movie, I could not help but feel those pangs of sadness that I felt when the series was canceled. This was ameliorated, however, by the satisfaction I felt with the final product. It is my sincere hope that this could be the genesis of a new age for Veronica Mars resulting in more movies, or even another run of the series.

... but 9 / 10 for the fans that love the series.

I grew up with all 3 seasons. However, while seasons 1 & 2 were brilliant, season 3 sucked to high heaven. The movie is definitely just for those that really missed the characters and just needed a fresh 107 minutes of Veronica.

The story offered isn't exactly water tight, but if you're a true Veronica Mars fan you will overlook the odd logical glitch in the story.

One thing that gave me a pleasant surprise was that it's still jaw-dropping amazing to look at Kristen Bell. Her cute and sexy voice/smile/attitude just makes you forget about some of the truly crappy storytelling in the movie.

That the movie has a rating of 7,8 (03/20/2014) doesn't surprise me. This is just purely a hardcore fan rating.

Bottom line: Veronica Mars fans will get what they deserve.