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TacoDave (3841 KP) rated Gentlemen Broncos (2009) in Movies

Oct 30, 2019 (Updated Oct 30, 2019)

Gentlemen Broncos (2009)

2009 | Adventure, Comedy

7.6

(5 Ratings)

Movie Rating

dry humor (2 more)

great actors

unique feel

weird, and not for everyone (0 more)

I love this weird movie.

I love Gentelmen Broncos. Full stop.

I saw it for the first time in a theater where I was the only customer, and I was a bit wary of watching a comedy by myself, but it ended up being a great experience. This film is written and directed by the same people who made Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre, which should let you know out of the gate that it is a bit abnormal.

The plot centers around a teenage boy named Benjamin who writes science fiction novels. Benjamin is headed off to a writing camp for home-schooled kids. In the bus on the way to camp he meets some other interesting teens and becomes fast friends with a few of them.

Once at the writing camp, he discovers that his favorite author - Ronald Chevalier (played by the hilarious Jemaine Clement) - will be judging everyone's writing. Overjoyed by this news, Benjamin submits his "best" book "Yeast Lords" into the competition. But it seems that things are not what they seem, because Chevalier has a bad case of writer's block, so he steals the plot of "Yeast Lords" and turns it into a new novel that keeps some elements, but destroys others.

Will Benjamin be able to prove a famous author stole his story? Can Benjamin and his friends film their own version of "Yeast Lords" and make a successful movie out of it? Can Benjamin kiss a girl without puking?

Interspersed with the regular scenes of the movie are scenes from the story "Yeast Lords" where Sam Rockwell (amazing, as always) plays the hero Bronco. These scenes morph and shift over the course of the movie as Bronco turns from a manly, tough hero into an effeminate oddball once Chevalier rewrites the story. Watching this transition is fascinating and hilarious.

And interspersed between everything else are oddball character moments that don't add to the plot, but are quirky and funny.

I'll admit that this movie isn't for everyone. It is weird. Some of the humor is so dry you need a drink afterwards. But for my sense of humor, it was dead-on. I have watched it many times, I own it on Blu-ray, and I show it to friends.

Give the trailer a try and see if it is your cup of tea. You'll either hate it (and curse me), or you'll love it and become a fan.