Matthew Lillard Books

Take one obese suicidal teenage boy and put him with an anorexic looking superstar of a guitar player, and what do you get? Apparently, a band named Rage Tectonic. Troy is considering the best way to kill himself when he is interrupted by Curt, a guitar player who is famous at Troy's high school. Curt decides he wants Troy to be the drummer for what will be the next breakout punk band, Rage Tectonic. There's only one problem: Troy can't play the drums. Undeterred, Curt pushes, cajoles, and manipulates Troy into thinking maybe he can learn. Are Curt's optimism and spunk enough to turn Troy from a fat loser into a punk rock drummer?

Life has never been easy for Troy. His mom is dead, his dad is a repressed ex-Marine, and his younger brother can't keep the contempt out of his voice when he speaks to Troy. What does Curt see in Troy? It turns out Curt has problems of his own. But Curt doesn't need anyone. He's a free bird. The characters are extremely lovable. The narrator is witty, lonely, and filled with pain. We learn who this fat kid is from the guts out.

Let me tell you, boys will love this book. Parents won't. Be very careful who you recommend this to. There is tons of language and sexual innuendo. Troy is a very sexually repressed teenage guy who has never been noticed by girls. He notices them a lot in this book. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone under the age of 16.

This book, an adventure of sorts, in which an overweight high schooler is befriended by a cool, punk rock homeless kid, is filled with great energetic passages, thumping with strong language and believable emotional moments. It is appropriate for anyone who's ever felt a little different (and who among us hasn't?). I really enjoyed Going's writing, especially the dialog which, unlike so many YA books you read, didn't have that precious, I'm too smart to really be a kid voice. It had a great balance of reality, emotion, and strong storytelling. Fat Kid rules!

Troy knows that everyone is watching him. And laughing at him. Of course they are. At seventeen years old and almost 300 pounds, wearing what appears to be the same pair of tan pants daily, every move he makes is laughable. Will he be able to get out of the car? How many burgers will he eat? Even his effort to breathe is laughable as he huffs and puffs his way along.

He worries that he smells. You don't understand. It's not that he's a pig or anything, he just has a hard time fitting in the shower.

Poised over the subway tracks, Troy contemplates whether he can find a form of suicide that will be so serious, so severe, that no one will laugh. Enter Curt. Semi-homeless teen, school dropout, legend at his high school, and uber amazing guitar player, Curt attaches himself to Troy after saving him from the tracks. He's an itch that can't be scratched, a tick burrowing under the skin. Before Troy realizes it, he's agreed to buy Curt dinner and join his band as a drummer, even though he hasn't played since seventh grade.

Who is he kidding? He can't do this. He sees it in the eyes of his perfect kid brother, Dayle, as well as his military dad, the "disappointed dysfunctional parent."

But with Curt's help, Troy learns to look past himself. He finds support in unexpected places. But it's not until Curt is hospitalized that Troy finally has the guts to really take a risk.

This is a fast-paced book. K. L. Going immerses the reader in the world of punk rock through the eyes of the fat kid who yearns to have people really look at him. She has a great sense of humor that shines with lines of comparison, like when Troy compares himself to Dayle before the big gig. Troy thinks Dayle looks like he's "ready to win the Super Bowl, while I'm ready to heave into one." Ms. Going does an amazing job of getting into the psyche of the fat kid. There is a fair amount of rough language, but even so, this book rocks!

Reviewed by: Cana Rensberger

Going has a talent for stepping into the shoes of her male characters and explaining what's "Going on" in their heads. Her writing is amusing and engaging. However, there's one thing I want to bring up which is really no big deal--okay . . . it's a big deal for me since I have an analytical mind which picks out little things and analyzes them to oblivion: Going could've used a synonym or two for the word "shift". My brain picked up one too many instances of this word within the first half of the book. I know you people must be rolling your eyes right about now but what can I do but report what I see and how it makes me feel. Ultimately, it means nothing, but I want her to be aware that there are some readers who have any eye for this sort of thing. Anyway, great book. I'll recommend it to my friends. This will go on my favorite books list. The one I keep in my head.

"Would it be funny if the Fat Kid got splattered by a subway train?" Those are the thoughts of Troy Billings, a depressed, suicidal, overweight teen who meets Curt McRae, a homeless teen who lives in the New York subway when he's not performing in underground music concerts. Troy become Curt's drummer, where they go onto change their lives and the music world altogether.

My favorite is when Troy's dad, an ex-marine, smuggles Curt out of the hospital so that he can get to the show he's supposed to be performing in.

The message of this book is that everyone has their own place in the world that will make them feel like they have a purpose in life.

This is a book is a good book. It really showed the influence music can have on people. It's also nice that you don't need any prior understanding to get it. Because of that, this book is good for all audiences.

Yes, I am impressed! I remember playing the video games of the same name back in the day, and this movie stuck to the plot of the games as best it could. Decent sci-fi action, and decent acting make for an enjoyable movie.

I couldn't help, but notice the bad reviews this movie has received. I've seen a lot worse movies that received a lot more hype. I think this movie has a good plot, good actors, and great special effects. It's far from boring. I've seen this movie on t.v. a few times, and decided to buy it for my collection. I am a Scifi fan, and I love action/adventure movies. I'm anxious to see this movie again.

For those of you who are familiar with the Chris Roberts space flight simulator game series, be fairly warned: this movie is not much of an accurate adaptation to the game. Actually it's so different they didn't even need to call it Wing Commander. The setting is there and the character names are there too, but not much else. The ships resemble nothing like those in the game. The characters only show a hint of their game roots. They even mess with the story by adding a different sub-culture of humans. That said Wing Commander does take the whole space fighter genre to a whole new level by incorporating elements of history into the future.

Imagine World War II in space and you will get the look and feel of Wing Commander. The fighters resemble prop fighters without the propellers and the capitol ships resemble a cross between a submarine and an aircraft carrier. You can even hear what sounds like piston engines! I find it an interesting blend, not to mention intriguing. The fighter scenes are really nice. You action nuts should enjoy them. So why do I only give it a four stars? I'll let you in on that....

Some of the sub-plots are annoyingly predictable. One involves a love interest and you just know tragedy will strike just because EVERY other movie does that. And true to form they do it too. Also some of the actions that carry out the sub-plots just don't make sense. For instance a downed fighter is on the landing runway and they are forced to push it off with the pilot still in it because the ships outside are running out of fuel. But later on you find out they have tractor beams. Why not use them?!?! Why not just float in space until they rescue the pilot?!?!? It just doesn't make sense. Fortunately the boneheaded plot twists and ironies are few.

All in all it's a pretty good movie. WW2 aficionados might get a kick out of Wing Commander as well as those of you into fighter pilot movies. Steampunk fans might enjoy it too. Suspend your disbelief for a little while and forgive the teeth grinding predictability in some scenes and you too will enjoy a truly unique space fighter/high adventure film.

What a pleasant surprise! One shouldn't expect much from a movie based on a video game space war. Nonetheless, Wing Commander is a very decent movie. The plot is rather generic, but the actors work with it very well. The special effects are very good overall - the ugly costume design is easily forgiven. The combat is never thrilling, but is never boring. Much closer to Starship Troopers than Star Wars, Wing Commander is sure to satisfy fans of sci-fi movies. Those without such a fancy for the genre may wish to pass.

SPACE PIRATES! THE SCOURGE OF THE UNIVERSE!!! Ok, maybe not. As some people say, close but no cigar. Actually, "Wing Commander" is based on a plot that has existed since man has been remembering stories. We have the advancing enemy, we have warriors who have information about where the enemy will attack that can save the homeland if the information gets through. We have the self-sacrifice of the warriors who stall the enemy long enough for the valuable information to get back to the good guys, who will use the information to advantage to defeat the enemy. Does this sound a lot like the plot of "300," and dozens of war, science fiction and fantasy stories? Of course it does, because the story is far from being original. However, even a story that is a plot retread can still be a lot of fun.

I have already given you the fundamental plot, so here are a few details. We have the evil Kilrathi out to destroy the universe, or at least the part with people in it. The Kilrathi have cleverly stolen a NAVCOM A.I. unit that contains earth's jump coordinates. The Kilrathi cleverly stole this unit by destroying the base that was around the NAVCOM unit. The crew of the Tiger Claw discovers that the Kilrathi have earth's jump coordinates and must get the information back to the main Confederation fleet so that they can defend earth from the evil Kilrathi horde.

Mixed into this stuff are subplots involving several of the Confederation Rapier pilots. Rapiers are the space fighters carried by the Tiger Claw. First lieutenant Christopher Blair is the primary hero of our story as he saves lives, ships and the Confederation with his skills. More subplots spice things up, including a little romance and prejudice against the Pilgrims, from whom Blair is descended. However, all of the subplots are mostly distractions from the special effects liberally sprinkled throughout the movie.

I can use a lot of words to describe this movie that are far from kind. This movie is formulaic, derivative, and shallow. Some of the movie borders on the absurd. Here are two examples.

The Tiger Claw broadsides a Kilrathi ship at close range with missiles. Remember my earlier space pirate comment? Ships have not broadsided each other for a long time. One would have destroyed the other long before the broadside. I must admit the broadside was fun, but hardly plausible.

Another example is the antics of Maniac Marshall (Matthew Lillard) and Rosie Forbes (Ginny Holder). Since the Tiger Claw is similar to an aircraft carrier, I have to assume that similar rules would apply. Fighter pilots would not deliberately endanger their ship with the kind of acrobatics that Marshall and Forbes performed during one of their landings. The risks are too high on a crowded flight deck and such maneuvers would be unthinkable.

As implausible as this movie as, as unoriginal as it is, I still liked it. As long as I did not think too deeply about the details, this movie was a great one for a bowl of popcorn. I have to admit that I have watched this movie more than once. Eek. I should be embarrassed, but I like the movie. Fans of movies like "Starship Troopers" "Top Gun" (which was just about as implausible as this movie), "Soldier" and the 1998 version of "Lost in Space" will probably like this movie as well. You might want to note that all these movies have ratings that are similar to the rating of this movie, except "Top Gun," which made it all the way to four stars. Okay, so this movie is not Shakespeare (though the plot borrows a lot from Shakespeare), but as a fun adventure story, it worked for me.

Good luck!

Yes, I am impressed! I remember playing the video games of the same name back in the day, and this movie stuck to the plot of the games as best it could. Decent sci-fi action, and decent acting make for an enjoyable movie.

I couldn't help, but notice the bad reviews this movie has received. I've seen a lot worse movies that received a lot more hype. I think this movie has a good plot, good actors, and great special effects. It's far from boring. I've seen this movie on t.v. a few times, and decided to buy it for my collection. I am a Scifi fan, and I love action/adventure movies. I'm anxious to see this movie again.

For those of you who are familiar with the Chris Roberts space flight simulator game series, be fairly warned: this movie is not much of an accurate adaptation to the game. Actually it's so different they didn't even need to call it Wing Commander. The setting is there and the character names are there too, but not much else. The ships resemble nothing like those in the game. The characters only show a hint of their game roots. They even mess with the story by adding a different sub-culture of humans. That said Wing Commander does take the whole space fighter genre to a whole new level by incorporating elements of history into the future.

Imagine World War II in space and you will get the look and feel of Wing Commander. The fighters resemble prop fighters without the propellers and the capitol ships resemble a cross between a submarine and an aircraft carrier. You can even hear what sounds like piston engines! I find it an interesting blend, not to mention intriguing. The fighter scenes are really nice. You action nuts should enjoy them. So why do I only give it a four stars? I'll let you in on that....

Some of the sub-plots are annoyingly predictable. One involves a love interest and you just know tragedy will strike just because EVERY other movie does that. And true to form they do it too. Also some of the actions that carry out the sub-plots just don't make sense. For instance a downed fighter is on the landing runway and they are forced to push it off with the pilot still in it because the ships outside are running out of fuel. But later on you find out they have tractor beams. Why not use them?!?! Why not just float in space until they rescue the pilot?!?!? It just doesn't make sense. Fortunately the boneheaded plot twists and ironies are few.

All in all it's a pretty good movie. WW2 aficionados might get a kick out of Wing Commander as well as those of you into fighter pilot movies. Steampunk fans might enjoy it too. Suspend your disbelief for a little while and forgive the teeth grinding predictability in some scenes and you too will enjoy a truly unique space fighter/high adventure film.

What a pleasant surprise! One shouldn't expect much from a movie based on a video game space war. Nonetheless, Wing Commander is a very decent movie. The plot is rather generic, but the actors work with it very well. The special effects are very good overall - the ugly costume design is easily forgiven. The combat is never thrilling, but is never boring. Much closer to Starship Troopers than Star Wars, Wing Commander is sure to satisfy fans of sci-fi movies. Those without such a fancy for the genre may wish to pass.

SPACE PIRATES! THE SCOURGE OF THE UNIVERSE!!! Ok, maybe not. As some people say, close but no cigar. Actually, "Wing Commander" is based on a plot that has existed since man has been remembering stories. We have the advancing enemy, we have warriors who have information about where the enemy will attack that can save the homeland if the information gets through. We have the self-sacrifice of the warriors who stall the enemy long enough for the valuable information to get back to the good guys, who will use the information to advantage to defeat the enemy. Does this sound a lot like the plot of "300," and dozens of war, science fiction and fantasy stories? Of course it does, because the story is far from being original. However, even a story that is a plot retread can still be a lot of fun.

I have already given you the fundamental plot, so here are a few details. We have the evil Kilrathi out to destroy the universe, or at least the part with people in it. The Kilrathi have cleverly stolen a NAVCOM A.I. unit that contains earth's jump coordinates. The Kilrathi cleverly stole this unit by destroying the base that was around the NAVCOM unit. The crew of the Tiger Claw discovers that the Kilrathi have earth's jump coordinates and must get the information back to the main Confederation fleet so that they can defend earth from the evil Kilrathi horde.

Mixed into this stuff are subplots involving several of the Confederation Rapier pilots. Rapiers are the space fighters carried by the Tiger Claw. First lieutenant Christopher Blair is the primary hero of our story as he saves lives, ships and the Confederation with his skills. More subplots spice things up, including a little romance and prejudice against the Pilgrims, from whom Blair is descended. However, all of the subplots are mostly distractions from the special effects liberally sprinkled throughout the movie.

I can use a lot of words to describe this movie that are far from kind. This movie is formulaic, derivative, and shallow. Some of the movie borders on the absurd. Here are two examples.

The Tiger Claw broadsides a Kilrathi ship at close range with missiles. Remember my earlier space pirate comment? Ships have not broadsided each other for a long time. One would have destroyed the other long before the broadside. I must admit the broadside was fun, but hardly plausible.

Another example is the antics of Maniac Marshall (Matthew Lillard) and Rosie Forbes (Ginny Holder). Since the Tiger Claw is similar to an aircraft carrier, I have to assume that similar rules would apply. Fighter pilots would not deliberately endanger their ship with the kind of acrobatics that Marshall and Forbes performed during one of their landings. The risks are too high on a crowded flight deck and such maneuvers would be unthinkable.

As implausible as this movie as, as unoriginal as it is, I still liked it. As long as I did not think too deeply about the details, this movie was a great one for a bowl of popcorn. I have to admit that I have watched this movie more than once. Eek. I should be embarrassed, but I like the movie. Fans of movies like "Starship Troopers" "Top Gun" (which was just about as implausible as this movie), "Soldier" and the 1998 version of "Lost in Space" will probably like this movie as well. You might want to note that all these movies have ratings that are similar to the rating of this movie, except "Top Gun," which made it all the way to four stars. Okay, so this movie is not Shakespeare (though the plot borrows a lot from Shakespeare), but as a fun adventure story, it worked for me.

Good luck!