Fan-O-Rama (2016) Reviews

• Not worse than the original

  Horst_In_Translation2019-02-22

  "Fan-O-Rama" is a 2016 fan project by director and writer Dan Lanigan that of course is a little parody of the successful long-running animated television show Futurama and with that reference you already have the key challenge for Lanigan here. Turn an animated project into a live action release. Really challenging. But I think they did fine for sure on terms of make-up, costumes and sets I would say. Also the actors, especially with their voices, made a formidable job. The only reason I am probably not giving this an even higher rating is because I am not really too big on Futurama as I am on other long-running animated show, especially South Park. But if you love Futurama, then you will probably enjoy the hell out of this one. The comedy is also very similar and honestly, this could have been plot and idea of an actual Futurama episode. Not a lot was missing. On the contrary, it is too much perhaps even with all the most known characters being included here. Well, except Granny perhaps. But Brannigan, the talking head of Richard Nixon, and many others were really fine. And if you think Leela looked somewhat wrong, I would disagree. I think it is our mind playing with us because honestly how can we see and appreciate the looks of a one-eyed woman. By the way this one here runs for over 20 minutes as well, pretty much the exact running time of a television episode from the show. However, with another reference they included Hypnotoad for roughly 10 minutes at the end. Oh my. I must admit I have never liked the toad or seen anything funny or entertaining in him. Nothing happens. No matter how much you try to explain the comedic approach behind that, still nothing happens. But I know many Futurama fans will disagree. Hypnotoad is some kind of icon for them, so I assume they will appreciate his presence here too. In short: Unless Futurama is not your thing at all, go check out this fan project. I found the outcome pretty impressive at times, especially visually. This really deserves to be included as an add-on on a Futurama DVD/BluRay (collection).

• Great potential, and creepy to see 'real life' characters.

  AndrooUK2019-01-10

  Great fan flick! It's actually pretty creepy to see the Futurama characters as 'real people'. I imagine it would be quite distressing to meet aliens for the first, or 31st time. Zoidberg could have done with more 'whooping' side shuffling, but hey. I think there is definitely potential for an 'official' live action film or series based around Futurama, and this fan film is an example of how that might look. Acting was okay, costumes/prosthetics were okay, sets were okay, special effects were okay. Obviously, you can't expect magic from low budget fan films, but the heart was there, and the sparkle of Futurama was trying so hard to emerge... but something was missing. Maybe some stronger direction, and slightly less theatrical acting (which is a curse of new actors: acting like they're still in a theatre). I'd love to see more. Either from this same production company, or an 'official' representation of Futurama.

• Entertaining Enough

  justinboggan2016-12-24

  It's got some good lines that actually sound like they could have come from the series, and a lot of effort was put into the outfits, especially Bender, but it also has its faults: it's obvious the guy in the Zoidberg suit really can't see where he's going, it looks like the Professor's lines are dubbed over, the person playing Amy not only doesn't sound like the series character but also seems pointless here, there are slow and languishing line deliveries, inferior music, and the short wasn't completed due to lack of funds. Pluses include: an old-school actor portraying Nixon's head (and a good job he does of it), honest to goodness attempts (except Amy) to mimic the voices and deliveries of the series counter parts, computer effects so good they absolutely bury something like "Foodfight!" (2012), and the re-productions of sets from the series to real life. Just look at how well the Professor's head design turned out -- some serious effort was put in. If I had to change anything, I'd get somebody else to do Amy, re-cast Brannigan, and raise funds to hire Christopher Tyng to do the music. All in all it's not a bad way to spend a some time on a weekend if you are a "Futurama" fan.