Review of My Name Is Bruce (2007) by Dean S — 20 Feb 2009

[font=Verdana]My Name is Bruce a comedy horror flick staring Bruce Campbell as himself. The story is about a phony goth kid who awakens Guan-di, the ancient Chinese guardian of the dead, when he steals a talisman from a graveyard. The kid kidnaps his hero Bruce Campbell to stop Guan-di from killing everyone in his hillbilly town. The story is standard B-movie fare but it fails at giving the fans what they want.[/font].

[font=Verdana]Bruce is still enjoying his cult following, which began with the ?Evil Dead? movies, and he wouldn?t have a penny to his name if he had not played the chainsaw-fisted hero Ash in those movies. Let?s face it, this movie says Bruce in the title, but we all came to see to Ash. It?s too bad that the movie fails to bring the boom stick.[/font].

[font=Verdana]Right from the start, fans are insulted by being portrayed as an obsessive, awkward high school goth kid. The kid?s friend calls Bruce Campbell?s movies crap, and proceeds to say that no one that likes his movies will ever get laid. OK, whatever. I?ll ignore this as long as Ash, err I mean Bruce, shows up soon.[/font].

[font=Verdana]By now you?ve probably guessed that he never does show up in classic form. The only thing that the Bruce in this movie has in common with Ash is the way he talks to women. He?s a pathetic, alcoholic B-movie star that lives in a trailer. He gets no respect at work or from his ex-wife. Even his dog hates him. You wait the entire movie for this sad, somewhat humorous take on the real Bruce Campbell to become Ash and kick Guan-di?s ass, but he never does.[/font].

[font=Verdana]All we want from a Bruce Campbell movie is fan service. The movie attempts to appease us with a cast of ?Evil Dead? co-stars, a few direct quotes from the movies and one-liners that would have fit in ?Army of Darkness,? but it?s not enough. Where?s the blood splatter? Why doesn?t Bruce ever grab the chainsaw that the stupid goth kid shows him earlier in the movie? Couldn?t Bruce have at least been beaten up or had his shirt torn? No, we get a lame ending where Bruce distracts Guan-di with bean curd as the kid saves the day. I?m not even going mention the horrendous Chinese and Italian stereotypes or the gay jokes. Woops, I just did.[/font].

[font=Verdana]There are a few funny moments?like when Bruce carjacks an old lady?and it is somewhat enjoyable seeing Bruce make fun of his career. I guess I was just disappointed that a role that would finally allow Bruce to bring back the humorous and kick-ass character of Ash failed to do so. [/font].