“A long time ago we
used to be friends.....” Over the course of three seasons
from 2004-2007, a little TV show called ‘Veronica Mars’ earned both
rave reviews from critics and legions of passionate fans around the world. While this addictive, smartly written teen detective neo-noir
created by Rob Thomas (the writer/producer/director, not the ‘Matchbox Twenty’
front-man) never became a ratings success, it garnered a strong cult
following that made this movie possible. You see, ‘Veronica Mars’ was funded via a
kickstarter campaign by fans who contributed over $5.7 million to its
production. A paltry sum by Hollywood
standards, to be sure, but it nonetheless underscored the passion the show’s
rabid fans reserved for the diminutive, street-smart blond Sherlock with a
razor-sharp tongue played by Kristen Bell that’s second only to Sarah Michelle
Gellar’s Buffy. Indeed, a cuter detective there
never was.
‘Veronica Mars’ picks up nine
years after the TV series ended, and we find our feisty young crime-solver
putting her sleuthing days behind to pursue a normal life as an attorney and a
stable relationship with her fiancé Piz.
She gets interviewed at a prestigious NYC law firm by Jamie Lee Curtis and
wins her over with the same charm, wit, and smile as she did the rest of
us. Alas, her past catches up with her
when she’s called back to Neptune because her ‘bad boy’ ex-boyfriend Logan
Echolls (now a well behaved ‘officer and a gentleman’ a lá Richard Gere, believe
it or not) proved once again that he can draw murder raps like a manure pile draws
flies. Never fear, Logan, Veronica is
here to pull your ass out of the fire again, and she's in fine form even after all these years.
It’s as if she never left.
The movie is a reunion of sorts,
quite literally, and we see many a familiar face, including Veronica’s frequent
partners-in-crime Wallace and Mac, Weevil, Dick Casablancas (the harmless and
unintentionally funny California surfer douche, uh, dude), Gia Goodman, and
sleazy PI Vinnie Van Lowe (Ken Marino) whose moniker, like the movie’s murder victim’s stage name, ‘Bonnie DeVille,’ are almost
porn-worthy. While ‘Veronica Mars’ remained
faithful to its small-screen roots and is a noir mystery through and through,
it is also a satire of our celebrity-obsessed culture and provides social commentary
on the divide between classes and cliques.
If you’ve never seen the TV show,
the movie provides a brief exposition at the beginning to set you up nicely for
what is to follow. You’ll find yourself drawn
irresistably into the sordid, corrupt world of Neptune, California, a fictional
seaside community of the rich (the ‘0-9ers’) and downtrodden, a town where many
dark secrets lay hidden, waiting for the light of justice to be shined upon
them by Veronica and her private investigator dad, former sheriff Keith Mars (Enrico
Colantoni). Then, you’ll no doubt want
to watch the TV series to find out how Veronica, who was once a popular girl at
Neptune High, ditched her ‘0-9er’ circle of friends to defend the weak, solve
the murder of her BFF Lilly Kane (Amanda Seyfried), and unravel the mystery of
who caused a bus full of Neptune High students returning from a field-trip to careen
off a mountainside highway into a canyon.
Grade: A
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