I've had to wait for a while before I could watch this one. But it was well worth it. The movie in question is Icelandic comedy called Astropia (I refuse to call it Dorks and Damsels, which sounds way too silly). With its references to comic books, sci-fi classics and RPG gaming sessions, this book is a geek's dream come true.
The story revolves around a somewhat ditzy model called Hildur. Maybe calling her ditzy is a bit harsh but ... she has made some bad decisions regarding her life. For one thing she is dating this sleazy car salesman who is in trouble with authorities for money issues. Well, once he ends up in jail, she has to bunk in with friends and figure out what to do with her life. Now, she needs a job. As luck would have it, her friend's young son is into comic books and the shop they drop by, Astropia, is looking for a shop assistant. For the RPG section! You know nothing's going to be the same after this. Hildur becomes absorbed into the RPG gaming aspects as she tries to learn more about the genre. She starts becoming more assertive, she knows herself better. It can only go uphill from here. Until her weird boyfriend makes a jail break …. with 10 other people!
What's not to like about this movie? It references a number of geek culture bit and these bits will have its niche audience chuckling. That's what makes the movie so likable. The movie makers are not making a half-hearted, brush-the-surface type of nod to geek culture (new Trek movie, anyone). Rather, the guys behind it know their stuff and they bring up bits that folks in the niche will know and love. Think about the bit about Leroy Jenkins. And I am sure someone called himself Rincewind during one of the RPG sessions. Who else would ever refer to that in a modern English language movie?
I also loved the character development in the movie. Everyone had their own little quirks which made them stand out and be recognizable as real people. Hildur may not have been a hardcore geek at the beginning but she had her own ideas about how girls should be viewed. She had quite an imagination and this came up whenever she read her romance novels. The guys in the video section of the store could be so focused on proper cinematic effects that he has no inkling how to handle certain social situations.
The way they told bits of the story also made the movie interesting. Thus, whenever they played their D&D gane, the background changes from their dingy room to the scenario described by the dungeon master. Hildur's personality changes as she becomes more involved in the game and this in itself is fun to see; she starts out as indecisive, in a 'Alright, let's do what you think is right' sort of manner. Later on, she starts handling entire hordes of enemies on her own, leaving the other rather impressed with her spirit and enthusiasm. My personal favorite was towards the end when they had a big confrontation with the jailbirds. It turned into the RPG format, with Hildur's friends garbed in their usual gaming attire. The background transformed into a dark cave (LoTR style) and the big boss fight happened right in the middle of that cave. While we were quite taken in with that bit, a part of us was wondering how these were actually fending off the bad guys. Definitely a must watch!