A film by Marc Joly-Corcoran | Produced by Christine Falco and Marc Joly-Corcoran
This documentary follows Malgus, a Gen X Star Wars fan, collector and cosplayer in the 501st Legion. Around him gravitate other fans, such as the couple Jef and Kim, well known in the Star Wars fandom in Quebec, as well as Steeve, Huron-Wendat businessman, owner of the Sagamité restaurants and a toy store devoted to Star Wars. Malgus is elected Commanding Officer of the Quebec garrison of the 501st, but he will begin to doubt the group, and will seek more and more to live his passion alone.
We witness the evolution of their passion and how it transforms them. Thus, we follow them in their daily life in order to understand why Star Wars gives them so much gratification. This documentary is the first of its kind on the phenomenon: it distinguishes itself first of all by its cinema-vérité style, and takes a look at the generation X present during the first theatrical releases of the trilogy.
There have been many fan made documentaries and films created over the years, from The People vs George Lucas to Troops, Jedi Junkies to Pink 5, and while all of them have their merits (indeed, some of them like Fanboys and Troops have become as much a part of the Star Wars lexicon as any official release), there are few that can match the unfiltetred heart and reality of May The Fan Be With You.
Directed by Marc Joly-Corcoran, this 85 minute long, French-language documentary follows a group of friends (garrison commander Malgus, streamer Jef, his wife Kim and serious collector Steeve), bonded by their love for the GFFA as they troop for the 501st in Canada, attending shows, buying collectibles, making costumes and podcasts, giving their time to the organisation while holding down real jobs, juggling family and commitments and – as any CO of any base or squad knows – giving more time than they ever thought possible.
That’s where much of the documentary lies, in giving to the saga as much as the doubtless joy it gives back in return. Watching May The Fan Be With You it’s clear how much it takes out of all of them, moving from the enthusiasm of the early portions of the documentary (meeting GFFA legends like the late Jeremy Bulloch and Gerald Home) into the latter section of the documentary as the grind of trooping and the drain on resources of collecting (and these guys are serious, dedicated collectors) takes its toll.
However, this is far from a grim reflection of the fandom or any kind of mirror on the state of Star Wars. There’s insight into collecting, looks at trooping and costume making, the indescribable joy of a Star Wars moment hitting you in the feels and all through the constant reminder of how much good the 501st does in raising money – serious money – for charities worldwide. It’s beautifully shot and edited, taking its time, letting the moments breathe rather than editing those moments away, and while we are watching what appears to be the end of the line of their deep investment in the saga (something many who have delved so deep will find familiar) you can’t help but come away reinvigorated, looking at your own relationship with fandom and Star Wars. They may have taken a step back, but there’s little doubt their love for the saga is undiminished, simply channeled into different outlets going forward.
In what was a very satisfying moment during the Celebration Chicago portion of the film we even get to see one of Fantha Tracks founding fathers Dave Tree give his Palitoy talk on the Collecting Track, a reminder of just how global this thing that binds us together really is, and as Malgus and Steeve head to Tunisia to visit the Lars Homestead, the importance of that visit is hard to describe but impossible to misunderstand. It means so much to them, the time-travelling magic of Star Wars taking us to our childhoods while the weight and reality of the real world is temporarily parked to one side.
It’s beautifully filmed, highlighting the amazing work the location scouts did on the 1977 original, making the city-locked Hotel Sidi Driss look like it really was in the vast swathes of the Tatooine desert. As they don their Stormtrooper armour and troop the homestead in the final moments of the film, we learn what happened next; Jef and Kim step away from costuming to focus on their podcast, Steeve to work on the family business after his family restaurant tragically burned down, and Malgus selling all of his costumes (other than the Stormtrooper outfit he trooped the homestead in), stepping down as CO and leaving social media.
This really is a must-watch documentary, locked in a time leading towards the end of the sequel trilogy when not only were many of our much-loved cast like Jeremy and Gerald still very much with us, but the future of the saga was uncertain after The Rise of Skywalker. Crafted with care, filmed sympathetically at distance but also close-up, this captures the giddy joy of being a fan and unabashedly broadcasting your fandom to the world. Highly recommended viewing.
