My Name is Bruce – Blu Ray Review

The Film:

Donny: I love Bruce Campbell.  I’m a huge fan of the Evil Dead movies, and even dig a lot of the cheap b-movies that have become his stomping ground.  He’s a charming guy that is easy to relate to.  Plus the fact that he played Ash in one of the most loved horror films of all time doesn’t hurt either.  Hell Burn Notice is one of my favorite shows on the boob tube, but I just don’t care for the films he directs himself.

Jon: I agree, Bruce is the man, maybe one of Hollywood’s greatest mistakes by not pushing him in mainstream stuff. He has the chops to be good (See Bubba Ho-Tep) but he does like to ham it up. I would love to see him as Mysterio in a future Spider-Man film. His Ash character from the Evil Dead series is iconic, especially from Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn. Everything from his films to his books, it’s Bruce’s world and we just live in it.

Donny: In his latest directorial effort b-movie bad-ass Bruce Campbell is playing himself.  That’s right, he’s making himself the butt of his own jokes.  The flick centers on Bruce as a washed up, drunk, womanizing, prick-of-an-actor scraping by on cheap genre garbage.  He lives in a small trailer that is barely big enough for his dog, and spends his time bitching about the cards life has dealt him.  Then one day his biggest fan unleashes Guan-Di, an evil demon and the protector of bean curd.  And in a last minute attempt to save his town from total annihilation he turns to his hero Bruce Campbell for help.  Bruce, however, thinks he’s being hired for another trashy movie, that is until he has to confront the bean curd bad guy one on one.

The story sounds kind of fun, and probably would have work if it had been made in 1985.  But it doesn’t work all that well in the age of iPods and text messaging.   I laughed a few times, but mostly I felt cheated.  I know Bruce has the acting chops, and I love him in the bulk of the films he does, but for some reason when he acts in his own flicks they don’t hold my interest as much as I’d like them to.  My Name is Bruce wasn’t terrible, it just wasn’t awesome either.  I wanted to see the Chin rock the hell out of this movie, but in reality, he just sort of rocked it.

Jon: I totally disagree with you, Donny. I really liked this film. I found this to be a compete blast, although it’ll serve you better if you’re a fan of Bruce. Tons of clever in-jokes about his various movies, cameos, and Ted Riami, hamming it up, what’s not to love? The Guan-Di monster at first is cheesy looking, but I think that was the point. Campbell is a star of these low budgeted monster flicks, like he satirizes here to great affect, so I think this adds to the factor of his spoof.

I laughed a lot, and enjoyed the majority of everything here. I think maybe some elements are a bit weak, like how fast Bruce turns from prick to hero, but in the scheme of things, it doesn’t really matter. I think this is all about fun, and My Name is Bruce delivers. Even the final moment of the film, which I won’t spoil, was a fun, clever send-off to one of Bruce’s better films, acting or directing.

Donny: The flick is competently shot, and for the most part acted as well, and it’s definitely worth checking out if your a fan of Bruce’s work.  But for anyone outside of dedicated fans I’m not sure it’ll hold up.  If you get a chance to check it out on cable I would recommend doing so.  I’d even recommend putting it into your Netflix queue, but if by chance it makes it into a theatre near you I’d check the local listings to see what else is playing.  My Name is Bruce should have been a killer film, but didn’t quite make the mark.

Jon: No, My Name is Bruce rocked in that fun, B-movie way. It’s satirical, but only for Campbell die-hards. I don’t see much appeal for the non-fans. Here’s hoping for a sequel!

The Blu Ray:

Audio/Video: The audio was weak. While it was clear, it also shows off the film’s low budget. Not very bass heavy and harsh sounding effects, but it gets the job done, especially if you don’t listen out for it. Video wise, it looks good in high def. Maybe it’s overkill, but it does a serviceable job. The night scenes are grainy, but day scene looks great.

Commentary: Ever hear Bruce on an audio commentary? He rules; he is funny, informative, and full of quips. A must listen.

Heart of Darkness-Making of My Name is Bruce: This one hour long feature is surprising a lot of fun. Of course, Bruce is a constant entertainer, but seeing everyone having fun, and how they put together this film, little is repeated from the commentary and that’s always a good thing.

Bruce On…: These are really brief, but capture Bruce on set spouting his views on various subjects.

Cave Alien 2 trailer: Here’s the trailer for the movie Bruce was making in the film. Intentionally hilarious and fun.

Beyond Inside the Cave: A phony documentary on the making of that movie, Cave Alien 2. Even funnier than the fake trailer!

There’s some extra stuff here, mostly filler, worth watching once, but the bulk of the extras you want to see, I covered here. This is a nice set, good extras.

Conclusion: Donny was lukewarm, I dug it. Donny recommends it as a rent, with some hesitation, and I fully recommend it as a purchase for all Campbell fans. The Blu Ray is decent, and packed with quality extras.

Donny: Rating:

Jon: Rating: