Veronica Mars Review

Rated PG-13 (Sexuality including References, Drug Content, Violence and Some Strong Language)

Running Time: 1 Hour & 47 Minutes

Cast-

Kristen Bell-Veronica Mars

Jason Dohring-Logan Echolls

Chris Lowell-Stosh 'Piz' Piznarski

Enrico Colantoni-Keith Mars

Percy Daggs III-Wallace Fennel

Tina Majorino-Cindy 'Mac' Mackenzie

Ryan Hansen-Dick Casablancas

Krysten Ritter-Gia Goodman

Martin Starr-Lou 'Cobb' Cobbler

Francis Capra-Eli 'Weevil' Navarro

Ken Marino-Vinnie Van Lowe

Amanda Noret-Madison Sinclair

Sam Huntington-Luke Haldeman

Daran Norris-Cliff McCormack

Max Greenfield-Leo D'Amato

Andrea Estella-Carrie Bishop/Bonnie DeVille

Duane Daniels-Van Clemmons

Jerry O'Connell-Sheriff Daniel 'Dan' Lamb

Brandon Hillock-Deputy Sacks

Lisa Thornhill-Celeste Kane

Jamie Lee Curtis-Gayle Buckley

James Franco-As Himself

Directed by Rob Thomas

Kristen Bell reprises her role as Veronica Mars in Rob Thomas' film of the same name, which continues from the third season finale before it was cancelled in 2007.

Note: Screened on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 at AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13.

'That might play with the masses, but underneath that angry young woman shell, there's a slightly less angry young woman who's just dying to bake me something. You're a marshmallow, Veronica Mars…a twinkie!' Created by writer/producer Rob Thomas, "Veronica Mars" premiered on September 22, 2004 on UPN (two years prior to the television network's closure) but despite its critical acclaim and fervent fan-base, the series was abruptly cancelled after three seasons due to low ratings—with the final twenty episodes airing on the newly-formed CW. It's always hard to see your favorite television shows cut down in their prime and although writers are often given advance notice so that they can craft a fitting series finale (i.e. the sudden six-year time-jump in the final episode of "Star Trek: Enterprise"), Thomas decided that he didn't want to do that and deliberately wrote a downbeat, unsatisfactory ending that once again found its plucky protagonist as a social pariah. In an interview, the showrunner remarked that he did what he did because he 'wanted to go down swinging. I did not want to make it easy for them to cancel it. I wanted to make it hard.'

Thomas hoped to continue the series in one form or another and even shot a twelve-minute trailer of sorts for a potential fourth season that removed Mars from her high school/college setting and positioned her as a rookie FBI agent but the CW's higher-ups didn't bite. However, that's not the end of the story. In a miraculous turn of events, Neptune, California's own Nancy Drew has survived…on the big screen! With Warner Brothers unwilling to put up the cash, Thomas and Kristen Bell turned to the fans themselves and launched a Kickstarter campaign last March to raise the necessary $2 million in production costs. Not only did it achieve that goal in less than ten hours, it received a record-breaking $5.7 million when the campaign finally ended a month later. Of course, that's when Warner Brothers decided to swoop in and 'save the day' by picking up the tab for marketing, promotion, and distribution. The only question that remains is whether the "Veronica Mars" film is any good...for both fans and non-fans. Fortunately, the answer is a resounding 'YES!' Diehard fans will be delighted to see the amateur sleuth 'falling right back into [her] old rhythms' but "Veronica Mars" also provides a well-written mystery that'll not only engage new viewers, it might also turn them into Marshmallows.

'A teenaged private eye. Trust me; I know how dumb that sounds. But it's not like I found a decoder ring at the bottom of a cereal box and thought, "That sounds like fun." I wish. That would have been adorable. Nope. My best friend was murdered when I was fifteen. Trying to figure out who did it was how I coped. My dad was sheriff at the time, and when he went after the most powerful man in town, he turned us both into pariahs. Dad lost his job, and I lost my friends. Kids can be cruel, after all. The cruelest was Logan Echolls, my dead friend's boyfriend. Like me, Logan was fueled by rage and distrust. He wanted to make someone pay. It's likely those qualities are what drew us together. They're absolutely what tore us apart. After my dad was run out of office, he got his PI license and opened an agency. I hung out there to learn the tricks of the trade. There was plenty of work for both of us in the seedy beach town of Neptune, California. People might think of Neptune as glamorous, home to movie stars and captains of industry. But when the class war comes, Neptune will be ground zero. It's a Springsteen song, "Get out while you're young." I got out when I was nineteen, leaving a trail of destruction in my wake. I've grown up, though. That was the old me. Angry me. Vengeful me. New me? People say I'm a marshmallow.' It's been nine years since Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) had anything to do with her hometown, with the former teenage sleuth transferring from Hearst College to Stanford University and then moving to New York to pursue a law degree at Columbia. Now in a stable relationship with Stosh 'Piz' Piznarski (Chris Lowell), Veronica's life has never been better, with the law school graduate due to take the bar exam in six weeks. While waiting to be interviewed at the prestigious law firm Truman-Mann and Associates, her old boyfriend Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring) calls her out of the blue asking for help. Logan, now a Lieutenant in the United States Navy, has been accused of murdering Carrie Bishop (Andrea Estella), a fellow Neptune High student who became a successful but self-destructive pop star under the stage name 'Bonnie DeVille.' Although reluctant, Veronica decides to return to the seedy beach town of Neptune, California and help out her former flame by providing legal counsel. However, she can't help but fall back into her old sleuthing ways as she works to prove Logan's innocence. Along the way, Veronica reunites with her father Keith (Enrico Colantoni), and her two best friends, Wallace Fennel (Percy Daggs III) and Cindy 'Mac' Mackenzie (Tina Majorino).

There's an early scene in "Veronica Mars" where the eponymous character, having just arrived in her old hometown, makes a surprise visit to her dad at his PI agency, Mars Investigations. He's in a meeting with a client but when the phone at the reception desk rings, Veronica goes to take a message and that's when dear old dad exits his office to walk his client out the door. Upon hearing his daughter's voice, Keith turns around sporting this humongous smile. It's a look of pure, unadulterated joy that just can't be faked and it perfectly encapsulates the feelings of every Marshmallow when they heard that a "Veronica Mars" film, which had long since been a pipe dream, was now finally a reality.

However, I must admit that I'm a semi-newcomer to the television show. I caught bits and pieces back when it was on the air seven years ago but never watched an episode in its entirety. It's hard to follow a television series week after week when you have a truckload of homework to do. Now, I don't like going in half-cocked so a few days before the advance screening, I made sure to at least familiarize myself with the show's characters and three seasons by reading up on it online. Most newcomers are probably too lazy to do this but the opening two-and-a-half minute voiceover does a pretty good job in bringing these viewers up to speed and explains the motivation behind Veronica becoming a teenage amateur PI as well as her subsequent reasons for abandoning it. During a job interview with Truman-Mann's Gayle Buckley (Jamie Lee Curtis), she explains that 'the price was too high' and that 'it ruined friendships and relationships.' Of course, twenty minutes later, Veronica's digging through her old box of 'accessories' and doing what she always does best: exposing the seedy underbelly of Neptune while cracking a well-timed quip. In fact, I was surprised at how funny the film is and right from the first scene, I can see why the show developed such a devoted cult following. Veronica Mars is an instantly likable character, not because she's played by the always-adorable Kristen Bell, but because she defies convention and is brutally honest with her faults. She's both a rebel and a woman-of-the-people.

While the central mystery yarn spun by writers Rob Thomas and Diane Ruggiero doesn't exactly reinvent the wheel nor does it quite escape its television trappings," it's fortunately engaging and fits in with the show's hard-boiled, neo-noir tone where almost everyone in Neptune seems to be hiding skeletons in their closet, sometimes literally! At its core, the film is pure fan-service as it throws out Easter Eggs—i.e. the aborted season four concept where Mars is a newly minted FBI agent—and cameos at regular intervals (the return of Celeste Kane!) yet it never feels like straight-up pandering, with Thomas keeping a tight leash on the proceedings and making sure that the story he's telling is an organic continuation of the television series. The wanton excess of Neptune's filthy rich elite versus the downtrodden who are forced to turn to crime to survive, the blatant corruption of the local authorities, the epic 'LoVe' story between Logan and Veronica, it's all here in movie-form but most importantly, it's about Veronica coming to terms with who she is and finally embracing it. She could've had a comfortable life as a lawyer. However, she'd be living a boring lie. Veronica is destined to get her hands dirty, to roll around in the mud as she says, and her fellow Marshmallows wouldn't have it any other way.

Almost the entire cast from the show (minus Leighton Meester, who was unable to reprise her role as Carrie Bishop due to a scheduling conflict) has returned for the film. Kristen Bell hasn't physically changed much in the past seven years and she returns to her breakout role like she never even left it in the first place. Still, it's immediately clear that Veronica Mars is now older and wiser yet the character still retains her clever wit for one-liners from her teenage years. The chemistry the actress shares with Enrico Colantoni and Jason Dohring lends the film heart while her back-and-forth banter with Percy Daggs III and Tina Majorino crackle with energy and bring about so many laughs that I actually lost count. Although they're not delivering revelatory performances, the cast's love and passion for the television show is plain as day and they understand how important the fans are as the film's existence is owed entirely to them. For a profit-driven business like Hollywood, that's a breath of fresh air.

Premiering at South by Southwest (SXSW) on March 8, 2014, "Veronica Mars" was given a limited theatrical release on the 14th as well as being made available to rent and buy through video on demand and various online platforms. Reviews have been largely positive with a 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics hailing Rob Thomas' picture for offering 'enough sharp writing and solid performances to entertain viewers in the mood for a character-driven thriller' while also admitting 'it might be a more entertaining watch for diehard fans of the show.' Although the advance screening was a sparsely-attended, fans-only affair, their visible enjoyment of the film added to my enjoyment as I fully understand what it means to be a fan. Box office-wise, "Veronica Mars" managed to gross $1.99 million during its weekend debut, an impressive number considering it's already available on VOD. "Veronica Mars" delivers on everything the fans wanted while also remaining accessible enough for newcomers. It's a fitting send-off to the show that leaves the door open just enough for a future sequel. In fact, I'm hoping the whole Neptune gang returns!

Final Rating: 4 out of 5

"Dad always said this town could wreck a person. It's what happens when you're playing a rigged game. I convinced myself winning meant getting out. But in what world do you get to leave the ring and declare victory? This is where I belong…in the fight. It's who I am. I've rolled around in the mud for so long. Wash me clean and I don't recognize myself. So how about I just accept the mud and the tendency I have to find myself rolling in it. My name is Veronica…and I'm an addict." 

Make sure to stick around during the end credits for a funny scene as well as listen to one of Logan's famous inspirational voice messages!