I just spent a day with Kevin Smith.
Well, not Kevin himself. However — after listening to the multiple commentary tracks as well as watching the making-of documentary & all the extra features found on the 3-disc 10th annniversary of “Clerks” AND then listening the two commentary tracks as well as watching the “Kevin Smith & Ben Affleck Talk Shop” documentary & all the extra features found on the single disc edition of “Jersey Girl” — I certainly feel like I spent the past 24 hours in Mr. Smith’s presence. Listening as the supposedly “Silent Bob” spun out story after story about how he made these two Miramax movies.
Which might sounds like torture to some of your folks out there. But not me. You see, I’m one of these guys who actually enjoys spending time in the View Askew Universe. Where Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson) and Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran) can endlessly debate the fate of all of those independent contractors who were killed when the still-under-construction Death Star was blown up in “Return of the Jedi.” A place where a song from Stephen Sondheim’s murderous musical, “Sweeney Todd,” is still considered suitable fare for a Catholic grade school pageant.
Okay, I know. There are people out there who are undoubtedly put off by Kevin’s use of profanity in his pictures. Plus his love of *** & fart jokes. I say … You gotta look past that stuff, people. For underneath that slightly sleazy surface, Smith’s screenplays are loaded with this incredibly witty dialogue. His scripts feature these complex characters with smarts & heart.
Alright. So Jay — of Jay & Silent Bob fame — may not be the sort of character that one automatically associates with being smart. But Kevin … Only he could see the humor, humanity and innate intelligence in a guy like Jason Mewes. The now-recovering stoner who’s been playing Laurel to Smith’s Hardy for over 10 years now.
Of course, the very idea that someone like Mewes could ever become a pseudo-celebrity seems unlikely. But no more so than the notion that a smart-ass kid from Atlantic Highlands, NJ could — by maxing out his credit cards and then cajoling a bunch of his buddies to appear in his no-budget motion picture (which would be shot after hours inside of a convenience store) — could create something that would take Sundance by storm.
But that’s what actually happened here, folks. And you can get the full skinny on Tubby’s tale by watching the special 10th anniversary documentary on Disc 3, “Snowball Effect: The Story of ‘Clerks.’ ” In which Kevin tells the whole convoluted story of how this unlikely project came together.
I really recommend that you check out this documentary on the 10th anniversay edition of “Clerks.” Plus the commentary tracks on this DVD set as well as “Jersey Girl.” Because these “Extra Features” are what will allow you to get a real sense of who Kevin Smith is. That he’s not just this somewhat profane but profound storyteller. But that he’s also this seemingly decent guy who’s incredibly loyal to his friends & his roots.
That (to me, anyway) is one of the real charms of “Jersey Girl.” A film that’s a virtual Valentine to growing up in the Garden State. Don’t let that post- “Gigli” / Bennifer backlash put you off from seeing this picture, people. This is a sweet, smart story about the sacrifices that one has to make sometimes when you’re a parent. And “Jersey Girl” ‘s cast — Ben Affleck, George Carlin, Liv Tyler and newcomer Raquel Castro — is stellar. All the actors are working in this handsome looking movie are working at the very top of their game.
But it’s Kevin Smith who’s the real revelation in “Jersey Girl.” I mean, it’s hard to believe that the guy who made “Clerks” — that great garage band of a movie — could (in just 10 short years) turn out something as polished and professional as “Jersey Girl” is.
Sure, it helps when your director of photography is Academy Award winner Vilmos Zsigmond. But “Jersey Girl” doesn’t just look good. It’s a more ambitious, much more assured motion picture. When you watch this movie, you really get the sense that Smith is just now hitting his stride. That this guy — over the next 10 years — is going to do some pretty amazing stuff. Like (maybe) Miramax’s long-in-the-planning “Green Hornet” movie.
But that film is now supposedly going to have to wait. At least for a year or two. Why for? Because — based on what I’ve been hearing lately — Kevin’s headed back to his roots.
As the story goes: Smith — while he was working on all the “Extra Features” for the 10th anniversary edition DVD of “Clerks” — fell in love with Randal, Dante and all those characters at the Quick Stop again. Which is why he decided to write a sequel to his debut film. Which allegedly features a title that’s sure to tick off all of those religious types who just hated Kevin’s 1999 film, “Dogma.”
“What’s the proposed title?,” you ask. Would you believe “Clerks 2: The Passion of the Clerks”?
Okay, admittedly, that’s a funny title. Right up there with his 2001 opus, “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.” But me? Initially, I wondered if it might be a mistake for Smith to make another “Clerks” movie. Whether it would be really be possible from him to catch lightning in a bottle again.
But then I saw “The Flying Car,” the new Randal-and-Dante short that Kevin created for NBC’s “Tonight Show” back in 2002. And this film (which is one of the great “Extra Features” found on Disc 1 of this 3-DVD set) showed that Anderson & O’Halloran (And — more importantly — Smith) still have what it takes. The ability to spin out these totally absurd conversations (In this case, Randal tried to determine if Dante would be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice — I.E. Get his left foot cut off and then allow himself to be violated by German scientists — if it would then allow humanity to finally get access to the flying car) and turn them into comedy gold.
After seeing that short — as well as enjoying “The Lost Scene” from “Clerks” (During which we finally get to see how Randal tipped over Julie Dwyer’s casket at the funeral home. In the form of an animated cartoon, no less!) — I too am anxious to see Smith head back home to Highlands. To see what sort of movie he can pull off by making another stop at the Quick Stop.
But “Clerks 2: The Passion of the Clerks” isn’t due to hit theaters ’til the Fall of 2005. Til then … I guess those of us who are in need a Kevin Smith fix will just have to make do with the 10th anniversary edition of “Clerks” as well as the “Jersey Girl” DVD. Which should provide plenty of entertainment for all you cynical yet sentimental smart-asses out there.
You know? All you tubby bearded types … like me.