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I had to rewrite my review of Clerks for one reason; I have way more to say than last time. I really don’t rewrite too many reviews because (a) I think it is better to review a movie, with it fresh in your mind and fairly recently after you saw it and (b) If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If people aren’t complaining that it is poorly written or makes no sense, then I don’t rewrite it. My review of Clerks, written two years ago, needs to be deleted and started from scratch.

As I’ve stated before, Clerks is my favorite movie above all. It is a peculiar choice for a favorite and leaves people in disbelief and me an easy target. People always say to me “How could you like that?,” “That movie is so boring” or mimic me in front of my face that I like it. Whatever. If I like something, I want the world to know.

Simple scenario when talking to somebody about Clerks:

“What’s your favorite movie?”
“Clerks.”
“What’s that?”
“A movie about two deadbeats working at a convenient store in New Jersey, talking about their daily lives, and eating junk food. Maybe learning a thing or two in a, sort of honest, day’s work.”
“Sounds boring.”

The people that truly appreciate Clerks in its entirety are people with an open mind, a sense of realism, and an appetite for a different side of cinema. Not people who expect constant humor, nudity, or any form of the comedy films that come out in present day. Clerks will not bring a regular person the type of satisfaction and laughter they would get if they turned on The Hangover this very second. It isn’t that type of film.

The dialog is what truly makes this movie an absolute shocker and an absolute winner. The simple, yet cherished, character to character dialog as if they are real people and not actors. There doesn’t even seem to be a script involved. Any Hollywood actor probably could not have played the part of Dante more believable than Brian O’Halloran himself. Literally stunning and without a doubt incredible to see a nobody at that time talk and have on screen conversations like a normal human being with the absence of a script.

The plot: Dante (O’Halloran) is a twenty-two year old, independent convenient store employee who is forced to work on his day off by his boss. Reluctantly he agrees to open the store, which he feels like he runs. Most of the day is spent socializing with his best friend Randal (Anderson) who works in a video store neighboring him.

The day’s antics include an angry cigarette rally, idiotic customers, rude behavior to innocent patrons, a funeral, and hockey on the roof. Both Dante and Randal are unsuccessful socially and in their relationships. Dante finds out from an article in the paper that his ex girlfriend Caitlin (Spoonhauer) is marrying an Asain design major. Shocked and outraged because constantly talking to her she never brought this up, it adds to Dante’s stress level as he tries to keep his current girlfriend Veronica (Ghigliotti, who I had the pleasure of meeting in 2010) happy.

It is normality and just another day in the View Askewniverse which is why I adore Kevin Smith’s film so much. They are basically focusing on regular guys who get themselves into quirky or hilarious situations unintentionally. The only Kevin Smith film I didn’t like as much as his others was Zack and Miri Make a Porno most likely because it was different and not on par at all with Smith’s previous work. I even called his negatively received film Jersey Girl “a work of heart.” He really satisfies me on every level of filmmaking. Something no other director does to me.

Clerks also includes one of the most powerful and fitting soundtracks to any film. Motivated by Alice in Chains, Love Among Freaks, and Soul Asylum, Clerks manages to use most of its $27,000 budget on music rights rather than actors, who were all part of Smith’s family or friends, and location.

It is truly amazing what can be accomplished with a small amount of money, two great leads, and a script that never fails. Never does a moment of Clerks seem boring or too long. No runtime for this film could make it too long. It is simply a film that has no rules and just wants to be a realistic film on behind the counter life. How often do we see a movie about cops, pimps, and drug lords? How often do we see a movie about behind-the-counter life?

Because of its oddball style, its premise, its actors, its fun, and everything else, Clerks stands as my favorite film.

Starring: Brian O’Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Marilyn Ghigliotti, Lisa Spoonhauer, Jason Mewes, and Kevin Smith. Directed by: Kevin Smith.

Just because they serve you , doesnt mean they like you. Today i am going to do a review on another one of my favorite movies Clerks. The movie follows two convience store clerks Dante and Randle who are both slackers Dante has a girlfreind called Veronica who worrys about his future and wants him to go back to school and his ex girlfriend Caitlin is going to marry a asian design major. Through the rest of the movie the two boys get into trouble, play hockey on the roof ,discuss about current event, bother the customers and mainly talk about sex . The film is is written and directed by Kevin Smith who is one of my favorite writer/directors some people either love him or hate him, me i love him i think he is a fantastic writer/director and clerks is one of my favorite scripts and plus clerks is my favorite comedy . the movie is full of so meny great jokes and so meny brilliant gags Kevin Smiths other films are mallrats,chasing amy,dogma,jay and silent bob strike back , clerks II and zack and miri make a porno and also his most recent film RED STATE which is currently my most anticipated film of 2011 it is going to be completley different to anything that Smith has ever done before. I have really have nothing bad about the film i apsolutley love this movie . Some time in the future i will go to new jersey where kevin smith was born and where clerks was made and i will visit the quick stop convience store it will be really cool. I also think the acting is very good exspiecally the fact that the movie is full of unknowns and most of the actors who never been in a film before. This was the movie that first starred the characters of jay and silent bob played by jason mewes and kevin smith himself who would apear in most of smiths other films of course the ones that are set in the view askew universe . Kevin Smith was inspired to make clerks from seeing the film slacker smith thought since that movie was done independently smith said he could make that so he got some money together and soled a bunch of his comic collection to finance the film the movie was done for $ 27.000 and the movie was bought by miramax i have never seen slacker but i would love to watch it in the future. Clerks of course formed a brilliant sequel showing the fact that dante and randle still work at the convience store. I have so many favorite quotes from this movie but i would have to say my personal favorite quote would be 37 dicks quote just type it into youtube its classic. I couldnt recomend this movie enough you have to see it , it is also exstremeley important to indie cinema although the movie is very vulgar so this isnt a movie you would watch with your grandmother if you know what i mean.

The film is like a independent album it is stripped down and bare looks and sounds cheap but you like it and becomes a inspiration because you look at the film and think hey I could do that. Not fully realizing how much work went into what looks like simplicity. The ironic thing is that Director felt the same way after seeing Richard Linklater’s film SLACKER.

I first saw the trailer for Clerks when I saw Pulp fiction for the 3rd time. I had read a lot of articles about the film and saw reports on the entertainment shows but after seeing the trailer I knew I wanted to see it and so did my dad. I can’t remember why but I never got around to seeing in in the theater, but I did see it on Home Video and couldn’t stop watching it once I did. I watched it repeatedly for about a month.

The film was one of the milestones of the milestones of the 90’s independent film scene and was kind of like a blueprint for what a new generation wanted to achieve in films when it came both to the artists who wanted to watch them and the audiences that enjoy watching films. It was a film that showcased there generation and spoke to them and for them. The film is really about conversations and two guys at a point in there lives where there next moves will be what defines them. Yet the two have ridiculous conversations and hangout most of the day. Not genius but funny and yes witty to a point, Not classic wit but more modern wit.

The story of the film is the day in the life of a employee of a convenience store who works with his best friend who works at the video store next door. Dante is more of the straight man who believes he is smarter then most people especially his customers but doesn’t nothing about it amusing himself in his superiority. Knowing he is better then this but either too lazy or not confident enough to do something about it himself. While his friend Randal is truly his id. Who knows his limitations and just goes with the flow in search of excitement and fun. It follows them mainly through conversation and the hijinks they get into with customers. The film has a great sense of humor that is more verbal then physical. The situations come more from regular day to day social occurances then just rally crazy situations. So that it doesn’t seem to be funny just to be funny. It seems more natural like a person who is generally funny versus a person who is doing stand-up. While the film is not awe inspiring visually it has a tight script and passable acting. Quite accomplished for a low budget first feature.

The reason the film is in black and white is that color film was more expensive. He filmed the film late at night. Which is why the shutters in the film are closed since the film is set mostly during the day. He edited the film during the day in back of the store.
The original intention of the film was supposed to be a semi-autobiographical day based on his experiences working at the quick stand and video store. He had gone off to film school in Canada and realized that he could probably make a feature for as much as he was paying in tuition for his next semseter. So he came up with the plan to just go for it. Make a feature. Go home back to his roots and make a film. It was helped by the fact that he wasn’t doing as well at the school as he had hoped. Plus he felt like he was wasting money and barely got to touch the equipment. So he cast family and friends did some casting of a few professional actors. The original intent was supposed to be a joke. In the alternate ending, Lead character Dante gets shot to death on what was supposed to be his day off. That made the film all of a sudden to gritty for the laid back mood and atmosphere it had displayed throughout the film.

The Success of the film lead to it being a Cinderella story.It was bought by Miramax after Sundance. Who hired lawyers when the film got a NC-17 rating. Based on just language. Which got the film a lot of attention and publicity.

In full disclosure I have met Kevin Smith personally quite a few times so yes I am biased. He was always very courtly and nice to me. Even signing my version of his SUPERMAN RETURNS script.

He seems to mostly depend on his fans who he actually loves and will be the first to criticize his films and work. He is like a jolly smart clown less physical but just as fun.
I think his drive is what I think inspires a lot of people n youtube and other sites of that type to put up their films show their own sense of humor. Which might not be studio ready, But let’s them express themselves to an audience. His s just one of many fingerprints.

One of the arguments people have against him is that his style hasn’t changed or matured from this film on. As it is understandable for a first time filmmaker to stay in his comfort zone.

He has made a business off this film and his following films embracing fans with a chance to have access and meet him. Ask him questions they had about his films and in filmmaking in general, which rendered him more as one of them who got lucky instead of the establishment. Something maybe other filmmakers need to embrace.

When it comes to Mr. Smith and his movies his appeal seems to be that while other directors such as the Coen Brothers are more like bookish overachievers who make filmmaking look effortless and never fail to amaze. Then there are filmmakers like Woody Allen who have been doing it so long they seem to be repeating themselves and seem to be writing films to entertain themselves. Kevin Smith seems like the stoner student who you can tell is smarter then his work or necessarily the company he keeps. Yet seems like he is perfectly happy at just getting by. Never really applying himself too hard because it is naturally in his nature to rebel and be underestimated. He wants to do things the way he wants to do them as long as enough people like it and It entertains people like him or around him. Which maybe why his audience seems to be people who more relate to him and his stories more personally then admire his actual skill. Though he is not without his charms and good ideas. He is far from being talentless. The problems that relate to his films are more subjects of follow through, Cosmetics and material. Despite it all I like him. I see it like if I were a teacher he is that student who you see lots of potential in though everyone else has written him off. I enjoy most of his films.

It is ironic that he was the first to embrace the internet and it’s evolution of things offered but is slow on embracing filmmaking technology.

I can go on and on about this film. It is definitely worth seeing one of the few most people can agree upon Is his masterpiece.

Watch Clerks Here

Clerks is Kevin Smith’s first feature film and, in my opinion, his best so far. With this movie, he inaugurates the so-called View-Askew universe, whose places and characters will be present in many of his later movies. View Askew is the production house behind most of his following flicks, and it is formed by none other than Smith himself, and Scott Mosier, who we see in Clerks appearing as Snowball.
At the time of shooting, Smith used to actually work at the convenience store in Leonardo, New Jersey depicted in the film. He worked at Quick Stop during the day, and filmed Clerks at night, so that, for the three weeks necessary to shoot, he was getting something like one hour sleep each night.
The main characters impersonate that kind of comic-books and mainstream sci-fi movie fanatic, who will be present in many of his films, and is quite common in real life, as the nerd type. The roughness of the film, resulting from the low budget, which Smith managed somehow to put together himself, is definitely an attractive factor; in fact, stripped of all the pretence, and apparently nonplussed by the minimal scenery and (sometimes) heavily improvised props, the acting flows beautifully and the jokes acquire that much depth.
We can appreciate more the directive skills of Kevin as a one-man filmmaker, and his ingeniousness, considering he also wrote the screenplay, and appeared in the movie as Silent Bob, the grumpy and taciturn partner of Jay, who dispenses gems of wisdom the few times he actually speaks. The black-and-white assigns lyricism to some of the scenes; for instance when Jay and Silent Bob dance at the sound of their ghetto-blaster, while Dante talks to Kaitlin inside the store.
All in all, Clerks is a witty and ruthless comedy about anti-conformism, friendship and youth, where the diverseness of the characters helps us to grasp what actually are their common grounds, and appreciate the film that much more.

“Clerks” is a cult classic and is one of Generation X’s great movies. Kevin Smith’s first movie is a irreverent look at the “Slacker” generation, and one of the funniest movies from my childhood. A look at the bleak choices of life inside a convenient store is pleasant in its minimalism, presented in simple steady cam shots and in the black and white of the security camera. None of these actors are going to win an Academy Award anytime soon, but the quick, biting dialogue looks good on them and their quickly paced, deadpan delivery is right on. Despite some of its failings, “Clerks” has maintained its beloved status and is celebrated among college movie buffs everywhere.

Made for $27,000, the Vancouver film school dropout directed the movie in the same convenience store he worked in. The subject matter in itself is wonderful; the day in the life of two clerks at Quick Stop Groceries in Ashbury, New Jersey. At first, given the realistic setting, the unprofessional actors and cheap black and white look, the rapid-fire dialogue seems a bit jarring, almost vaudevillian in its setup and punchlines.

It doesn’t take too long to settle in, however. The picture moves quickly after that and the smart writing and clever cinematography demonstrates the movie has more talent behind it than previously thought. The comedy ranges dramatically from bizarre gags, smart social commentary, incredibly dirty jokes to witty dialogue.

The film is divided into several chapters including spelling bee worthy words like “Catharsis”, “Vagary” and “Malaise”. It can feel a bit arbitrary at times, but works well for the darkest part of the film titled as “Whimsy”. There are some scenes that can drag on a little long. My friend beside me watching it for the first time said of the scene between Dante and his ex-girlfriend in the video store “Okay, this is boring.” But overall, the film plays well and consistently throughout, with good pacing.

When I was in 7th grade my parents had Clerks on VHS hidden in their closet. Eventually I got my hands on this grotesque contraband. For someone raised on the Lion King and Independence Day, clerks was mind blowing. Sure, I was in it for the ejaculate humor, but it totally changed my perception of what made a good movie. Overnight black and white became, if not cool, than at least acceptable. Punctuation, and an absence of punctuation, started to matter to me. I can’t say I ever really thought that hard about the director’s role, not even Spielberg’s, until I realized Silent Bob was Kevin Smith.
Perhaps it’s overrated as cinema or “art”. It had a tangible and positive impact on my life. A director could ask for more from a movie, but might be pushing his/her luck in so doing.