Dogma

Dogma
November 12, 1999
View Askew
Comedy, Horror, Fantasy
DVD
C+

I said of Chasing Amy that it was a weaker film than Clerks, in part because it attempted more.  Well, this entry, which Kevin Smith spent years on, attempts even more, no less than an examination of Christianity, specifically Catholicism, but with, yes, a comedy/horror/fantasy slant.  And it just doesn't work.  It's not without interest and it does have some nice cameos, notably Janeane Garofalo as Liz and George Carlin as Cardinal Glick, but the leads are too given to speechifying, and mixing this with jokes about shit and acts of bloody slaughter does not help.  The best of the major characters is Jason Lee as Azrael.  Yes, he's doing his Banky thing, but it works for an annoyed demon.  Alan Rickman, as Metratron (the Voice of God) looks like he'd rather be somewhere else, and I can't tell how much of this is just the character and how much of it is Rickman.  (He is well cast though in the sense that in the following decade his voice would sway a fandom.)  It's always nice to see Bud Cort, but the plot renders him immobile for most of the movie.  Ben Affleck as Bartleby and Matt Damon as Loki, yes, once again besties playing besties, speechify and commit the aforementioned acts of bloody slaughter.  And Kevin Smith manages to pull a Thalberg on himself and "hetero life-mate" Jason Mewes, since Jay and Silent Bob are supposed to be heroes in this one, while still being low-lifes.  In fact, there are scenes where Bob is so MGM-Harpo-ized that he starts communicating in pantomime (though he can actually talk in this and other movies).

Verdict: I'm unlikely to buy any more K. Smith movies, but if someone gave me one, I'd probably keep it.

Among the View Askew regulars are Dwight Ewell (Kane), Walter Flanagan (Protestor #2), John Launder (Priest with Buddy Christ #1), Kimberly Loughran (Woman in Elevator), Scott Mosier (Smooching Seaman), Ernest O'Donnell (Reporter), Vincent Pereira (unknown character), Ethan Suplee (Voice of Noman), Guinevere Turner (Bus Station Attendant).  Also Jeff Anderson and Brian O'Halloran, Randal and Dante of Clerks, here play respectively Gun Salesman and Grant Hicks.  Joe Shelby, who was a doctor in Bob Roberts, is a Bus Rider here.

So, wait, you're smart enough to cast me and then you drop me from the rest of the movie?

Chasing Amy

Chasing Amy
April 4, 1997
View Askew/ Miramax
Comedy, Romance
DVD
B-

I don't think has held up as well as Clerks, ironically because it attempts more.  Clerks was a surreal day-in-the-life story, while this attempts to say things about love and life.  Also, when you're making a rom-com, even an indie rom-com, it helps if the main couple is likable, and Holden and Amy aren't really, separately or together.  Nonetheless, it is interesting to see how many ways they can screw things up, and I like the supporting performances, in particular Dwight Ewell, who was part of the He-He-Hello Trio in Party Girl but has a much more substantial role as Hooper X.  Alyssa (the "Amy" equivalent) is played by Kevin Smith's then girlfriend Joey Lauren Adams.  There are times when the character shows wisdom, but other times when she is as stupid as main character Holden, played by 24-year-old Ben Affleck, who would soon break through in Good Will Hunting among other movies.  Jason Lee is actually more intriguing, as Holden's conflicted best friend Banky.

This movie has narrative and casting connections with Clerks and Mall Rats.  (E.g. Alyssa had a crush on Caitlin Bree in high school.)  I still haven't seen the latter movie, and I still don't know if I will be adding it or anything else to my View Askewniverse collection.  I like Kevin Smith, but I'm just not a super-fan.  That said, if I saw Clerks II marked down, I'd probably get it.

I should also note that I saw this movie the summer after it came out (I think when it went into wider release), at a time when I was meeting more bisexuals.  (Until that point, I knew two: myself and my best friend.)  The film never uses the B-word, and it is misleading how Alyssa describes herself to Holden as a lesbian.  I get that it's a political/personal label choice, but a more LGBT-savvy writer/director could've brought up the whole "bi-dyke identity thing," which was a real issue in the mid to late '90s.  (I don't know about these days.)  Still, Smith gets points for trying to deal with the complexity and fluidity of sexual orientation, from the perspective of a tolerant straight man.

Affleck's real life bestie, 26-year-old Matt Damon, plays Shawn Oran.  This time, Brian O'Halloran plays Jim Hicks, presumably some relation to Dante Hicks in Clerks.  (He'd be Grant Hicks in Dogma.)  Since it's a Kevin Smith movie, Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) return.

Walter Flanagan, who was Woolen Cap Smoker/ Egg Man/ Offended Customer in Clerks, is simply Fanboy here and would be Protestor #2 in Dogma.  Bar Patron John Launder would be Priest with Buddy Christ #1 in Dogma.  Ernest O'Donnell was a Trainer in Clerks, is a Bystander here, and would be a Reporter in Dogma.  Vincent Pereira, Startled Pinball Player here, had been Hockey Goalie and Engagement Savvy Customer in Clerks, and would have an uncredited role in Dogma.  Virginia Smith (Kevin's sister) was Caged Animal Masturbator in Clerks and plays Con Woman here.  Ethan Suplee, who's a Fan here, would be the voice of Noman in Dogma.  Guinevere Turner, who's a Singer here, would be a Bus Station Attendant in Dogma.  Smith's producer Scott Mosier, who was William the Idiot Manchild/ Angry Hockey-Playing Customer/ Angry Mourner in Clerks, is a Collector here and would be Smooching Seaman [!] in Dogma.

Carmen Llwelyn, who's Kim here, would be Rob's Girlfriend in Never Been Kissed.  Affleck's 21-year-old brother Casey plays Little Kid [sic] and would be Morgan O'Mally in Good Will Hunting.

A more unsolvable triangle than in "Threesome" or "Design for Living."

Clerks.

Clerks.
January 1994
View Askew/ Miramax
Comedy
VHS
B

The low-budget film that launched a franchise, this Kevin Smith debut (as writer, director, and of course performer as Silent Bob) holds up very well.  Yes, it's dated-- how could such a mid '90s twentysomething movie not be-- but that has added to its bittersweet charm.  That Dante (as in circles of Hell) Hicks (Brian O'Halloran with his goatee and defeatist attitude) and Randal Graves (no need to explain that last name, played by a mostly straight-faced Jeff Anderson) are still stuck in their dead-end jobs a dozen years later (and apparently even beyond, since Shooting Clerks is in production), adds to the poignancy.  I haven't decided which Smith movies I don't yet own I want to get, but this movie is the then unintentional basis of them all, in the way that Sinclair Lewis didn't know he'd be returning to Winnemac when he wrote Babbitt.

There are continuity errors, including within just this movie.  (A heck of a lot of things somehow take place around 4 p.m.)  The movie is '90s proud of its budget, from the black & white simple shots to the sometimes off line delivery.  (I was surprised that Marilyn Ghigliotti has had the most mainstream success, because she's easily the worst of the leads, as Veronica.)  It has the nerve and cynicism of Generation X.  It is also college-age crude in its humor and sometimes characterization.

It is appealing in its What You See Is What You Get attitude, although I can also picture people hating it for those reasons.  It's also very witty, far too witty for its documentary-like feel.  (Juno would later be criticized for similar reasons, that no one, especially this young and working-class, could be that clever.)  But I don't think we're meant to take the movie that literally.  It's more like one day of Worst Customer Ever anecdotes, and if you've never found yourself thinking I'm not even supposed to be here today!, well, you're lucky.  It's an implausible version of relatable reality.

Besides the two pairs of bromantic friends (Smith and a raw 19-year-old Jason Mewes as Jay are of course the other duo), the movie has a number of supporting players who would be in either Chasing Amy and/or Dogma, as well as some other Smith movies I don't own at the present time.  Scott Mosier, who plays William the Idiot Manchild/Angry Hockey-Playing Customer/Angry Mourner; Vincent Pereira, who's Hockey Goalie and Engagement Savvy Customer; and Ernest O'Donnell, who is a Trainer, would all be in both sequels, as would the very versatile  Walter Flanagan (here Woolen Cap Smoker/Egg Man/Offended Customer/Cat-Admiring Bitter Customer).  Virginia Smith, who's the Caged Animal Masturbator here, would be a Con Woman in Chasing.  Kimberly Loughran, who plays Alyssa Jones's little sister Heather, would be Woman in Elevator in Dogma.