Computer Boy & Abe Forsythe
December 21, 2012 12:59 AM   Subscribe

Computer Boy! (also available here): Abe Forsythe made the movie Computer Boy when he was just 18. It's a 50 min. spoof of The Matrix that was filmed in less than two weeks at actual Matrix shooting locations in Australia and cost just over $2000 to make.* It became a cult hit when it was released online in 2000 & was one of the first internet films to hit 500,000 views.* (wikipedia, imdb)

Forsythe (wikipedia, imdb) went on to make another movie, Ned [1], in 2003 - "... [a] satire of Australian outlaw Ned Kelly, and his iconographical status as a 'hero.'"[2] Full of lowbrow humour, it was released the same year as the movie Ned Kelly, starring Heath Ledger. [3] ("Let's talk instead about the other war... the one between Ned Kelly, the big-budget drama starring Heath Ledger and directed by Gregor Jordan that has made millions, and Ned, Forsythe's iconoclastic low-budget comedy." [4])

The trailer for Ned is available on YouTube, as well as a few short clips from the movie (one - two - three).

Forsythe has also made a number of (often darkly-comedic) film shorts, available on YouTube:
*Being Carl Williams (2009), which won 2nd prize and Best Comedy at Tropfest that year (references Australian criminal Carl Williams)
*The Talk (2010)
*Tomorrow (GPS) (2010), Grand Prize Winner for the Pepsi Refresh MOFILM Awards (short film competition) in Barcelona 2010
*Shock (2010), Tropfest 2010 winner (Forsythe's acceptance speech) - a comedic tribute to Australian radio/TV personality Kyle Sandilands
*The Hostage (2010)
*Prick (2012) (NSFWish)

As an actor, Forsythe has starred in the Australian TV series Always Greener (2001-2003, imdb); Fireflies (2004, imdb); Tripping Over (2006); Laid (2011, imdb); and most recently in one of Australia's most popular TV mini-series ever, as John Cornell, in the Australian drama Howzat! Kerry Packer's War which was based on Packer's takeover of cricket in 1977, and the establishment of World Series Cricket.
posted by flex (11 comments total) 29 users marked this as a favorite
 
Surprisingly (at least to me), Computer Boy was never linked on MeFi back in the day (that I could find, when I searched). I remember finding it through Fark way way back when Fark was quite new, and it was one of those internet finds that we watched over and over - marvelling that this kid could make something funny on the cheap like that, and distribute it online.

So this is a bit of Intarweb nostalgia for me that I wanted to share (I'm sure there are MeFites who remember this spoof too!) and the rabbit hole I went down finding out what the guy behind it has been up to since.
posted by flex at 1:14 AM on December 21, 2012


Having never heard of it, and without having watched it, I don't mind.
Of course, I have never heard of Forsythe (although I do recognise Howzat! Kerry Packer's War - and didn't watch it.

Seems to me this is a well constructed post, and if anyone doesn't like it I'll rip their bloody arms off, as the local saying goes.
posted by Mezentian at 2:07 AM on December 21, 2012


I remember when this came out. There are some memorable bits of humor in there, particularly Forsythe himself as the McDonald's-obsessed Agent Smith. My only gripe is that it is too long and could really be trimmed down to just the good stuff. But the good parts really are funny and well done.
posted by Potsy at 2:10 AM on December 21, 2012


Computer Boy... Came out while I was in High School on the dinky island I come from. The four or five of us adolescent boys in the High School were blown away by it's humor, innuendo and many extremely infectiously quotable lines. Watching this is a huge nostalgia trip.

To this day I still occasionally answer the phone "Mom?!?"

One classmate probably stopped being homophobic specifically because of this movie and the conversations we had about it afterwards.
posted by tychotesla at 2:13 AM on December 21, 2012 [4 favorites]


thanks for this flex.
posted by wilful at 2:45 AM on December 21, 2012


The whole thing is just weirdly impressive for such low humor and such quick production. I'm watching Neo open and close the Oracle's door after "You have to open it first" (24:40), and his expression and door slamming are just hilarious.
posted by tychotesla at 3:48 AM on December 21, 2012


Wow, I just dug this up on youtube a few weeks ago to show the interrogation scene to a friend who hadn't seen it when it originally came out. Weird coincidence.
posted by Joe Chip at 5:28 AM on December 21, 2012


This was a favorite of a couple of us back in college, though I mainly remember skipping to all of the Agent bits, especially the little swaying dance he does at one point.

Also it made us hungry for Egg McMuffins.

Thanks for bringing it back!
posted by rewil at 6:04 AM on December 21, 2012


Is there any way I can pay Abe Forsythe for a higher-rez version?
posted by Joe Chip at 6:31 AM on December 21, 2012


Wow. Now I kinda want to dig out the spoof I'd made with a couple of friends at around the same time, just to see how it measures up.
posted by mikurski at 1:14 PM on December 22, 2012


Abe Forsyth is now on my list of talents to watch. I expect big things.
posted by wilful at 10:05 PM on December 23, 2012


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