Thursday, August 17, 2017

BRONIES: THE EXTREMELY UNEXPECTED ADULT FANS OF MY LITTLE PONY (2012)

As somebody who knows very little about Brony culture or "My Little Pony", I was happy when I saw a documentary called BRONIES on the shelf at the video store.  I love learning about new stuff and I was hoping for a solid introduction into Bronydom.  Unfortunately, not only does BRONIES: THE EXTREMELY UNEXPECTED ADULT FANS OF MY LITTLE PONY have a horrible name, it's also so one-sided that it comes across more like a recruitment film than a honest documentary.  I like feel-good stories, but I also like documentaries that show all sides of a subject, both good and bad.  And one simple Google Search of "brony clop" will show you that not everything is 20% cooler in the Brony universe.

As a mega-upbeat propaganda piece, B:TEUAFOMLP is a fun watch.  It quickly introduces a few My Little Pony fans from different walks of life and different countries.  One guy talks about how he was attacked at a gas station (in his small town) due to the MLP stickers on his car.  Others talk about some of the MLP-based things they create (merch, a laser show, music).  Another is younger and his father doesn't seem to approve of his son being a Brony.  Another guy has Asperger's and MLP brings him out of his shell.  They all travel to different Bronycons and the rest of the film is just them being happy.  I enjoyed watching these people (and the other con attendees) having a good time, but by the end, the constant positivity started to get old.  Then again, I'm a grumpy fuck.

B:TEUAFOMLP might be the happy happy joy joy version of reality, but it's still an entertaining watch.  On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give it a 5 then bump it up by 20% to a 6. Brohoof, motherfuckers!