Sons of Provo (2004)

Good movie but grossly overrated

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This movie was very disappointing, and except for a few moments, wasn't fly at all. More than anything, it was just flippin' stupid. The music was frickin' bad and the plot played out like a BYU bowl game – very predictable (avoiding embarrassment by scoring, a late game flurry of touchdowns, a rally that falls short and leads to a loss). In essence, the half-childish / half-naive Will (the movie's fetcher) and his religiously confused brother Danny (we'll just call him a democrat), treat Kirby (the movie's "Sweet Spirit"), the 3rd member of their hapless Mormon "boy band," like crap until the man and father figure of the film (the stage manager, Jill) has a talk with Will and straightens him out. Believably, Will's personality changes 180 degrees and he's instantly the mature and self-aware leader of the band. This would be a cute, perhaps funny, 10 minute roadshow gig, but the fact that the movie is 93 minutes long really sucks the life out of you if you watch it to the end. My advise – take the money you'd normally spend to rent this show and either burn it in your fireplace or flush it down the toilet – more entertainment with much less time commitment. If you want to watch a better movie of the same genre, get Saints and Soldiers – not a comedy but an infinitely better show (actually, Kirby has more funny stuff in Saints than he does in SOP).

The movie itself is absolutely hilarious as you follow the escapades of these clueless boys who dream of stardom. Two brothers hold auditions for a third boy to join their band, and from the word go, you forget about how these guys can take themselves so seriously and get a laugh-a-minute! The songs have some good morals to them, when you just listen to the lyrics - but these morals get a healthy mix of laughter, especially when it clashes with Proud Pharisaical Mormon values. I'd recommend this to anybody - whatever their faith! Just don't judge all LDS by what you see in these witty satires! Good use has been made of the DVD format - I could sit and watch the menu options for a half hour at a time, as Will vainly prattles on. There's a good selection of deleted scenes - mostly tirades of ab-libbing. Again, these are worth a barrel of laughs as you see how serious Everclean is about themselves. The LDS movie scene just gets better! Don't miss out just cos you're not LDS.

"Sons of Provo" is a mockumentary done in the vein of Christopher Guest films and Rob Reiner's "This is Spinal Tap" and it comes off as clever and fresh, where other LDS comedies fall short and go stale.Our story begins with a three member Mormon boy band that loses one of its members and is on the search for a replacement. The production quality on this film was excellent. The sound was clear in every scene, the lighting and cinematography overall were excellent. The songs the cast sings really help move the story along. The LDS culture in Utah is presented satirically with all its quirks and foibles and comes through subtly in everything from the way the characters speak, interact and dress.My only criticism is that though the film is done with that low-tech feel with a crew following the cast and capturing their every move on video, there are a few scenes where it loses that feel and the camera seems to be resting on a tripod instead. I remember this being the case with a bleacher/park scene in the film. This causes the shots to be framed too perfectly and thus lose that documentary/mockumentary feel.Overall though, if you are LDS, you will enjoy this film. If you are a fan of the mockumentary genre, you're going to love this. I didn't waste time getting the DVD to other LDS comedies, but I'm getting the DVD to this one.

In L.A., I went to a screening of this film (the first projection screening). I arrived just after it started and was surprised at the roars of laughter as I tried to find a seat. After I was seated and watched for a minute, I understood. The characters in this mockumentary were perfect in their innocence; you had to laugh at them. The humor in the dialog (much of it ad libbed) was honest and dry. It moves right along from one situation or gig (some of them real performances) to another, interspersed with interviews with peripheral characters. As a bonus, these guys can really sing. They even scored an interview with a member of the first boy band (at least in the opinion of Everclean).This film was made in Utah by people raised in Mormon families. Luckily, as the director said, Mormons do know how to laugh at themselves. I could not help laughing from the moment I sat down until the last credit rolled.First it was heavy metal, then folk, and now Mormon boy band. This is the next great music mockumentary.If you get a chance to see it, do. Don't miss it.