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Clerks - DVD
Writer: Kevin SmithDirector: Kevin Smith Producer: Scott Mosier & Kevin Smith Studio: Disney / Buena Vista Characters: Dante Hicks - Brian O'Halloran Randal Graves - Jeff Anderson Veronica - Marilyn Ghigliotti Caitlin Bree - Lisa Spoonhauer Jay - Jason Mewes Silent Bob - Kevin Smith Review DVD provided by Video-Now! Features: Chapter Search, Theatrical Trailer, Deleted Scenes With Introduction By Kevin Smith, Alternate Ending, Soul Asylum Music Video, Audio Commentary by Director Kevin Smith and members of the Cast and Crew, Widescreen 1.85:1, ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround, Review: It seems fitting that Miramax's "Collector's Series" of DVDs would be introduced by Kevin Smith's uber-low-budget film, Clerks. After all, any DVD from a Disney division has had as little effort as possible put into it, so why not start the "Collector's Series" with a film which took an immense amount of effort to make? This way, the extra effort is put into a film which deserves it, rather than dumping all this effort into a film like, say, Armageddon which is just a complete piece of crap. For those of you who haven't seen the film, it tells the story of one day in the life of lowly convenience store clerk Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran). He works at a Quick Stop in (presumably) New Jersey, next door to a video store occasionally inhabited by his friend Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson). Dante's life, like so many of us, is stuck in a holding pattern. He has a dead-end job that he doesn't like, but he feels strangely devoted to, friends who give him advice which isn't really helpful, and a relationship that he's not sure he wants to be in. Through the course of one very long day, we get an insight for Dante and his friends, and hopefully enjoy a few good laughs along the way. Now, the story of Clerks has never been about the great cinematography, the masterful direction, the amazing editing or the stunning performances. It's been about the money. This film was shot for next to no money, mostly by buying film stock on over-extended credit cards, and it shows. The film looks and sounds terrible, but is carried by it's crisp, concise dialogue (courtesy of writer/director Kevin Smith), and believable characters. Once you get past the look and sound of this film, you can sit in and begin to enjoy it. Kevin Smith has injected each of his characters, important or inconsequencial, with a unique spirit. Something which can't be defined, but which you can't help recognize when you see it. Whether it's Dante's whining or Jay's inane chatter, you recognize all these people. Especially if you've ever been stuck in a retail job. Miramax has launched its "Collector's Series" with an okay, but not stellar disc. This DVD is pretty much just a re-hash of the previous laserdisc release, and contains all the same features. A widescreen transfer of the film (which is odd when you consider that the film was originally shot on 16MM and thus actually fits a 4:3 television screen, but makes more sense when you listen to the audio commentary), deleted scenes, including an alternate, much darker, ending, the Soul Asylum music video, the theatrical trailer (woo-hoo, don't go overboard, Disney) and the world's first drunken audio commentary with Kevin Smith and an assorted group of shady characters. I will make a point of mentioning that the disc is not enhanced for widescreen displays, even though Kevin Smith publically stated that he wanted this transfer to be 16x9 enhanced. Damn Disney. Sadly, because the DVD is essentially a re-hash of the laserdisc release, the audio commentary is entertaining but out of date. It contains several references to "the upcoming Mallrats", even though that film has been out for years and tanked a long time ago. There's no mention of Smith's other great film, Chasing Amy, because he hadn't even conceived it yet. It is interesting, however, to see that Dogma was already in the planning stages. Dogma will hopefully hit theatres this fall, and having had a look at an early draft of the script, it should be a very entertaining film. Overall, I'd say the Clerks disc is well worth owning for fans of the film, and easily worth a rental for those people who haven't seen it before. It's a good, but not great, disc, and it holds a very entertaining and informative film. Not to mention one of the funniest audio commentaries I've ever heard. Check it out. Ken Pierce Dvdken@home.com Contributing Editor, www.dvdfuture.com |
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