Review LXVIII - Chasing Amy

Review LXVIII
Chasing Amy (1997)

While discussing the films Clerks II (which I totally reviewed already) and Dogma with my boyfriend, he asked me if I had ever seen Chasing Amy from the same director, Kevin Smith. I had not, so I quickly got to seeing that one given that he enjoyed refusing to tell me the explicit sexual dialogue in the film. Curiousity persists, my friends!

The film opens with Banky Edwards (Jason Lee) raging at a man at a comic convention who has declaired him a measly "tracer", instead of the inker/embellisher he is for the comic "Bluntman and Chronic". We then meet Holden McNeil (Ben Affleck, the artist of the comic, who is more relaxed and easy-going than his best friend and partner. While talking to fellow comic book artist, Hooper X (Dwight Ewell), Holden and Banky meet the lovely Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), who is also a comic book artist (getting redundant, isn't it?). Holden quickly falls for her and believes she is as well until he discovers she is a lesbian.

The sexual dialogue in this one is frequent, but man, it is completely accurate. I have argued the "do lesbians actually have sex?" argument with people before. I've also discussed other sexual topics brought up in the film. For that reason alone, I was able to relate. But that is something Kevin Smith really seems to hit on the head - his dialogue usually flows in a direction that either you have experienced or in a way that seems very real. Chasing Amy is no exception. I swear, if you're, minimum, in your teens, I'm sure you'll relate to the dialogue, even if you believe in sexual abstinence.

While the film has impeccable dialogue, the characters are not necessarily the most memorable. Jason Lee is pretty snazzy with that beard so I find it hard to forget him, but his character is not super developed. He's involved in interesting dialogue, but I didn't find him that present in the film. He's established as part of the duo, but when the whole mess with Alyssa comes up, he comes in maybe twice. The viewer is left to imagine that he is upset during the whole ordeal instead of actually being shown it. Not to mention that when we do see him, he doesn't seem that angry with everything. Holden was a "meh" character, in my opinion. He was a typical middle-middle guy who gets the girls. Otherwise, I can't really say much about him. Hooper X suffers the same thing as Banky. He's there, but not super there. I find he was more present than Banky and more developed, but he was still under-developed. Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob make an appearance, as usual, but you know how they always are. Alyssa is developed. I liked her character a lot. She's headstrong and interesting, instead of being vapid like so many female characters can be in movies. Yay for one developed character! Nonetheless, I was not disappointed with the film. Kevin Smith has always been about his dialogues. If he nails the dialogue, you'll enjoy yourself, even if the characters talking don't feel developed. In this case, he got the dialogue down, in my opinion. As a result, I really enjoyed myself.

I'd give the film seven point nine stars on ten. I really enjoyed it - especially the ending - but the lack of development in most of the characters was a bit bothersome. Definitely worth watching, though, if you like Kevin Smith's films. And if you don't, well, I'd still say go for it because how can you deny yourself dialogue like this?

Pirate Bay torrent

Review XIX - Clerks II

Review XIX
Clerks II (2006)

A long time ago (two months ago), I reviewed Clerks from Kevin Smith. After watching and reviewing the film, I really got into the mood of watching the sequel again. I couldn't find it anywhere (I had put it on a DVD) and couldn't be bothered to re-download it. There was a huge thunderstorm last night, and I lost my Internet connection for a little while. I decided to watch a movie instead of playing Minecraft. During my search, I found Gentlemen Broncos, but more important, Clerks II! Thus I sat down to watch the sequel for the second time.

Dante (Brian O'Halloran) heads out to open the Quick Stop only to find that the store is on fire. Randall (Jeff Anderson), it turns out, left the coffee pot on after closing up. The two end up getting employed at Mooby's, a fast food restaurant, only to be surrounded, once again, by some new, weird, and annoying customers. Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith) are back, as well as some new friends including Dante's new fiancee, Emma (Jennifer Schwalbach Smith), Dante and Randall's boss, Becky (Rosario Dawson), and Elias (Trevor Fehrman), a very peculiar co-worker at Mooby's.

The first time I watched this film, I loved it. I loved it even more after watching it a second time because I got to re-hear jokes I found hilarious the first time, and appreciate them even more the second time. I also, cough, was also more informed about certain events that happen in the film since I last watched it, so it also added some more hilarity to the film. The acting is way better in this film than Clerks, and though the dialogue isn't necessarily as witty, it's still amazing, and I laughed a lot. I also liked the new characters that were added in, and I found I appreciated Jay and Silent Bob a lot more in this film. In Clerks, I found they were more of just a little side bit, but in this film, they were better incorporated with the main characters.

Overall I'd give the film an eight on ten, just as I did Clerks. I can't say which one I prefer because I felt both films were a bit different, but were both really good. While Clerks is more safe to watch around family and friends, I'm warning you that you should probably only watch this film with a close friend because it can be pretty graphic. Someone told me they watched it with their parents - by god, I feel for them.

Pirate Bay torrent

Review IV - Clerks

Review IV
Clerks (1994)

I watched Clerks many months ago, re-watched it again a week ago, and again last night. It's definitely become one of my favourite movies. It was directed and written by Kevin Smith, and it stars Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson as two best friends who work at a convenience store and a video store respectively.

Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) works at a convenience store - but not today. Today he has planned to sleep in and play a hockey game. Unfortunately, he's called in to replace someone who's sick. He agrees with the promise that the boss will be in at twelve. Things go downhill from there. Randall Graves (Jeff Anderson) is constantly pestering Dante instead of working at the video store like he should, customers are constantly bothering both of them, Dante's girlfriend is revealing maybe a bit too much information about her past, Dante's ex-girlfriend is getting married, and a bunch of other funny situations ensue, including Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith) hanging out in front of the stores.

Unlike Jane Eyre, Clerks has fabulous writing but not the best acting. I would say the school plays I have been in have matched acting skills as most of the acting in this film. It really depends on the scene, but sometimes, dialogue is just delivered with such lack of emotion, and it obviously shows it was scripted. Still, I don't find it a major complaint because the dialogue that is written is really good. The scenes that come up are hilarious and original, and the "philosophical" (I can't think of a better word) views on people is really top notch. If you have to deal with people for your work on a daily basis, you can relate to this film. If you enjoy a bit of dark humour, you'll most probably like this film. I can't emphasize enough how well this film is written. Just go watch it! I also would like to warn you that this film is in black and white. I never had a problem with black and white films since I watch older films that were only ever shot in black and white, but some people have a problem with it. Trust me when I say you won't be begging for colour in this film. It's not like it emphasizes on colour ever, and honestly, don't make a black and white film stop you watching it. Many, many good films are in black and white, and this is one of them.

This is an extremely short review, but I honestly don't have much else to say about it. I'd give the film eight stars on ten. Like I said, the acting is really not that good, but the writing is superb, and the acting is not the worst either. If you're looking to be entertained, check it out. I've also watched both the version with the lost scene (funeral scene, for those who are wondering) and without it, and I prefer the one with the lost scene. It just adds an extra part of hilarity.

Pirate Bay torrent (with the lost scene!)