"I’ll
never come back here again!" "You’ll be missed!"
Clerks is a landmark
comedy in independent cinema. Made with virtually no budget (the
budget was less than $30,000 and the director Kevin Smith filmed it in
the actual convenience store and video store that he and his friends
were working at), it was featured at the Sundance Film Festival in
1994 and picked up by Miramax. It launched not only the career of
Kevin Smith and his interconnected string of films, but it also
launched the popularity of the “slacker” comedy and pop culture
references. This rough edged, drab looking little comedy that was
embraced by a generation is now given the special edition treatment to
celebrate its tenth anniversary. This 3-disc set has everything a
Clerks fan could ask for and more.
Clerks
has a plot that is as thin as could be, following just one day in the
life of a lazy convenience store clerk, Dante Hicks (Brian
O’Halloran), who is called in on his day off and then struggles just
to get through the day. And yet the plot more than manages to
entertain. Dante has a lot of problems and he loves to complain about
them. He has a best friend, Randal (Jeff Anderson), who works directly
across the street at the video store and who takes extreme pleasure in
ripping on his customers, giving Dante a hard time about his life, or
just philosophizing about the fate of the workers on the Death Star.
Dante has to deal
with a multitude of weird customers, like the guy looking for the
perfect dozen eggs, the lady who goes through every gallon of milk to
find the longest expiration date, or the guy causing an uproar over
cigarettes when he’s really just a gum salesman. He has to deal with
the drug dealers across the street who hang out listening and dancing
to rap trying to get laid by barking at every girl who walks by. He
also has to deal with a disturbing revelation about his girlfriend’s
past, and figure out what to do about his feelings toward his
ex-girlfriend who he just found out is getting married. On top of
that, he has to deal with the fact that he can’t play his hockey game
he had planned for the day, until he decides to play it on the roof of
the store. And worst of all, he has to deal with the fact that he’s a
convenience store clerk and he hates it, but is just too busy bitching
to do anything about it.
CRITIQUE
Clerks may not be a nice
looking film and it would probably turn off most people not in their
20s due to the graphic language/subjects and the genuine appeal to the
slacker generation, but it is a truly remarkable film, in that it
works so well despite all its obvious flaws. This is obviously a first
feature and it shows; Kevin Smith had yet to hone his skills. The
black and white grainy production values are awful and the acting is
unprofessional and rough. Yet this all gives Clerks its
authentic feel and thus makes the events of the day seem more
plausible and far more interesting.
Dante and Randal
represent a generation raised on pop culture and convenience. The
convenience store becomes not just a store to Dante, but a lifestyle
he can’t escape and a large gaping hole he can’t climb out of. He is
blinded by his own laziness and can’t see the opportunities he has
right in front of him. And then there is Randal who revels in it, who
is comfortable being lazy, disaffected and disenfranchised.
O’Halloran and
Anderson bring an authentic and realistic edge to the characters, as
unpolished and inexperienced as they were. Anderson is especially good
as the sarcastic and sly Randal, his delivery and comedic timing is
pitch perfect. I’m surprised his career never took off. The rest of
the cast is very raw and not quite as talented as the two leads,
especially the girlfriends and the various cast of characters that
enter the store. The only supporting player who stood out was Jason
Mewes as Jay, and this is how and why the Jay and Silent Bob
characters became so popular and eventually spawned their own film (Jay
and Silent Bob Strike Back).
The true brilliance
of Clerks lies in the script. It is the brilliant and unique
dialogue that makes Clerks a stand out. Smith captured the
essence of a generation and their longing for more in life without
wanting to take any risks. The banter between the characters is what
is remembered. When you have nothing to do all day and spend it in one
place, it is amazing what kinds of things you talk about and
philosophize about.
THE VIDEO
The transfer on the
10th Anniversary disc is exceptionally good. The difference between
this transfer and when the film was first released on DVD is
remarkable. And yet the film is still pretty raw and ugly. The grainy
black and white is cleaned up and the dark, almost pitch-black
portions of the film are lightened up but it is still exactly what it
is, pretty ugly. For a truly amazing comparison, play the original cut
of the film on disc 2. The original cut is almost unwatchable.
THE AUDIO
Miramax presents
Clerks X in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and the audio is
fantastic. Again, compared with the original cut or the first release
of the film on DVD, this is a big difference. The background noise now
blends in to the dialogue instead of ripping into it, and the balances
are perfect.
THE EXTRAS
Commentaries –
There are two different commentaries available. One is the commentary
that was done for the laserdisc edition of the film which was done
when they were filming the follow-up, Mallrats, and it has
almost the whole cast (along with a gang of other people involved in
some aspect of the film). It sounds almost like the entire room is
filled with a bunch of drunks. Jason Mewes even admits to being
plastered. It is pretty funny for a while but gets tiresome. Everybody
is talking over each other. The other commentary is brand new and it
is on the original cut of the film. This commentary has only the
principal cast and is much better. They really get into the details of
what went on behind the scenes and what it was like to make an
independent feature with no budget and all the events that lead to the
film’s success.
“Clerks” The Lost
Scene –
This is an animated short that was made to visualize a scene that was
written into Clerks (the funeral parlor scene) but was unable
to be shot because of the limited budget. It is a funny scene but it
would have felt “off” if they had been able to include it. It is a bit
more slapstick then the rest of the film. There is an interesting
Chasing Amy link in this scene.
The Flying Car –
This was a short film shot by Kevin Smith with O’Halloran and Anderson
before Smith began shooting Jersey Girl. It is a very short
scene with the two of them stuck in traffic and Randal continuing his
verbal tormenting of Dante. For those of you who have heard that a
Clerks sequel is now in the works, this is a very interesting
scene because it is a brief glimpse into what the sequel would feel
like. The two leads still have their banter down perfectly.
MTV Spots with Jay
and Silent Bob – These are the four MTV shorts that were played frequently
in the mid-90s after the release of Clerks and Mallrats.
Some of them are very funny, especially the one with Jay and Silent
Bob having to baby-sit for an unruly little girl.
Snowball Effect –
This is a documentary on Kevin Smith, from his high school years in
New Jersey where he first found a passion for comedy and film (and
where he first hooked up with Jason Mewes) to when he wrote Clerks
and all the issues and problems that went in to making the film. This
is an extremely informative and interesting documentary; you get
insight into what it takes to get an independent film made. Smith had
to max out all his credit cards and sell his comic book collection to
get the tiny budget for the film. This includes all the original
auditions and takes you through all the decisions and last minute
changes that were made to the cast.
10th Anniversary
Q&A –
The principal cast, Kevin Smith and the producer all take questions
from an audience for this DVD edition about the experiences of filming
Clerks. Kevin Smith is a very articulate and interesting
speaker and Anderson is a very funny, sarcastic-type of guy in real
life as well, which provides some needed comedy. The audience that got
to ask the questions are such a bunch of idiots, I was amazed by the
questions and the gall of these people. But this makes for a high
comedy extra.
Outtakes from
Snowball Effect – This is some additional footage from the Snowball Effect, just some
footage that got cut from the original documentary. The best bits are
Anderson’s
quips on his experiences.
Original Kevin
Smith journals – These are Smith’s original journals from pre-production through the
completion of the film up to its Sundance release. The journals are
fascinating in getting more insight into the development of the film.
There are also some
articles and reviews included on the disc and in the booklet in the
DVD case.
FINAL THOUGHTS
While the
production values are quite bad and the acting is a bit raw, Clerks
has become a landmark in independent cinema because of the brilliance
of the dialogue and the passion of its director. The tenth anniversary
edition is a must have for any Clerks fan; the extras are
plentiful and terrific. This is a great DVD set.
