"Clerks," his first film, was a no-budget film that had some of the wittiest, raunchiest, funniest dialogue ever put on film. It got lots of attention taking the film festival route, and it found success... for a no-budget film, that is. I liked "Clerks," but felt that the dialogue was TOO clever. Everyone talked the same and everyone was way too witty, but I DID like it. His next film was "Mallrats." I didn't see it theatrically because I figured Kevin Smith sold out. It didn't do well, and many film geeks seem to dislike the movie. I eventually saw it on video and loved it. Jason Lee, who I'd never seen prior to the movie, was brilliant. The way he delivered Kevin Smith's lines was hilarious. Though almost everyone I speak to disagrees with me, I actually liked "Mallrats" better than "Clerks." Then came "Chasing Amy," and though it cost much less than "Mallrats," it was (at the time) the biggest success of Smith's career. I walked out at the end of "Chasing Amy" feeling as though I'd just seen Kevin Smith's best film. The three leads (Ben Affleck in his first starring role, Jason Lee, and Joey Lauren Adams) had phenomenal chemistry, the script was his funniest yet, and it was probably his best work as a director (but directing really isn't his strong point, something he freely admits). My only problem with it was that I thought that the ending was terrible. I loved the movie despite the ending, though. I like all three of those movies a lot, so needless to say, I was REALLY looking forward to seeing "Dogma."
Seeing who was in "Dogma," it's hard to believe that Kevin Smith had a hard time finding a distributor (it was originally a Miramax film, but distribution was called off when Disney, who owns Miramax, feared the potential controversy due to the film's subject matter). "Dogma" features Ben Affleck, Matt Damon (who had a bit part in "Chasing Amy"), Linda Fiorentino, (the female lead in "The Last Seduction," "Vision Quest," and "Gotcha"), Alan Rickman ("Hans Gruber," the bad guy in "Die Hard"), Chris Rock, Salma Hayek, and George Carlin. Also there are some of the coolest cameos you've ever seen. Jason Lee, who was so great in "Mallrats" and "Chasing Amy" is in a much smaller role this time, unfortunately. Oh, one more thing that's absolutely essential for a Kevin Smith movie (so far, at least)... the return of "Jay and Silent Bob" (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, respectively). Those two characters have been in every single Kevin Smith movie, but in "Dogma," they're in the spotlight, and DAMN, are they funny! In "Clerks," I really disliked the "Jay" character, and I thought that Jason Mewes was a horrible actor, but by the time "Mallrats" came out, either he improved greatly or I got used to his acting, but I think that he's perfect in the role. And obviously, I love the "Jay" character now. Would you believe that for "Mallrats," he was almost replaced by Seth Green (the son of "Dr. Evil" in the "Austin Powers" movies)? I think that Seth Green is great, but Jason Mewes IS "Jay," ya know? As for Kevin Smith as "Silent Bob," he's mastered the art of using his facial expressions to convey a message. I'd love to see a series of "Jay and Silent Bob" comedies, sorta like the way there used to be "Laurel and Hardy" movies, or "Abbott and Costello."
By the way, "Dogma" was eventually distributed by Lion's Gate, the same company doing the feature film version of "American Psycho" (based on the insanely violent novel by Brett Easton Ellis). I read the book, and thought it was pretty good, but I think the movie is headed in the wrong direction. It's more of a satire of the 80s and greed where the main character is a killer. That's NOT what the book was about. Oh well. Anyway...
Though I really enjoyed this movie, it's got it's problems. Kevin Smith breaks simple rules of filmmaking all the time (especially the 180-degree rule), the movie references go way overboard, and it was perhaps a tad bit too long (which is interesting considering that the original cut was much longer... the cuts were for pacing, by the way, not content). As for the controversy, I CAN see why so many people have gotten upset over the movie. I mean, Kevin Smith absolutely tears into organized religion. That being said, I should also point out that the movie is very pro-God. In that respect, it damn near borders on preachy at times. Besides, the overall message is a very positive one.
With "The Blair Witch Project," "Run Lola Run," "American Beauty," "Being John Malkovich," and now "Dogma," 1999 has turned out to be a wonderful year for daring, truly original movies. This is a trend that I like, and I hope that it continues.
I'm not sure
what's next for Kevin Smith (it might be a clue that after the credits role
in "Dogma," it says "Jay and Silent Bob will be back in 'Clerks 2'"), but
once again, I'm really looking forward to it. His King Film Geek crown remains
perched on his head, and I think it'll be there for a while. Though flawed,
"Dogma" is a very entertaining, funny, intelligent, thought-provoking film
that Kevin Smith should be very proud of. Fellow film geeks, see this movie.
Now.