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Description: If you're in the market for wildly funny entertainment, CLERKS delivers with wholesale hilarity! It's one wacky day in the life of a pair of overworked counter jockeys whose razor-sharp wit and on-the-job antics give a whole new meaning to customer service! Even while bracing a nonstop parade of unpredictable shoppers, the clerks manage to play hockey on the roof, visit a funeral home, and straighten out their offbeat love lives! The boss is nowhere in sight, so you can bet anything can -- and will -- happen when these guys are left to run the store.Amazon.com: Before Kevin Smith became a Hollywood darling with Chasing Amy, a film he wrote and directed, he made this $27,000 comedy about real-life experiences working for chump change at a New Jersey convenience store. A rude, foul-mouthed collection of anecdotes about the responsibilities that go with being on the wrong side of the till, the film is also a relationship story that takes some hilarious turns once the lovers start revealing their sexual histories to one another. In the best tradition of first-time, ultra-low budget independent films, Smith uses Clerks as an audition piece, demonstrating that he not only can handle two-character comedy but also has an eye for action--as proven in a smoothly handled rooftop hockey scene. Smith himself appears as a silent figure who hangs out on the fringes of the store's property. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews:
- Vulgar, raw, real, funny but not overly silly...a true cult comedy classic!: Kevin Smith's first movie in "The Jersey Trilogy" is arguably still his all-time best! Shot in Black & White on a low budget, it features content over flash. It chronicles a day in the life of Dante Hicks, a convenience store clerk who gets called in to work on his day off. His friend Randall Graves works at the low-rate video store across the way. Randall is a bitter, cynical young guy who doesn't like or respect anyone or anything (except maybe hermaphorditic porn). Through all his trials in this day, Dante keeps whining his tag phrase, "I'm not even supposed to be here today!" This movie was everyone's first introduction to the characters, Jay and Silent Bob. Writer/director Kevin Smith is excellent in the role of Silent Bob. J & SB are great as minor, background silly, obscene characters to lighten the plot (which is brilliant...but even this heavily real comedy benefits from the comic relief). But in other movies where Kevin has tried to feature J & SB as main characters (such as "Mallrats", "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back"), the plots get silly, juvenile and aimed at teenagers. This is a more mature and real comedy aimed at adults. Please, Kevin.......for the sake of the part of your audience that has a brain, keep Jay and Silent Bob as minor side characters in all upcoming flicks. This is a stark, vulgar, real comedy that looks at life from the vantage point of someone who has grown up a little. It's funny, because it's real. Kevin's co-producer Scott Mosier also takes 2 small roles in the film. Mosier plays a stoner who is knicknamed Snowball because of a sex practice he likes. Scott also plays an irate customer who gets mad that Dante closed the store to play hockey on the roof. This irate customer bullies his way into the game. And when Dante gets fined for selling cigarettes to small children (even though he's innocent?) and a college girl accidentally has sex with a dead guy in the bathroom, the authorities are left to wonder, "What kind of a store are you running here, anyway?" There is nothing dirty or nasty that happens on-screen. But due to adult language and frank discussions of adult subjects, this film is not for general audiences. With the possible exception of "Chasing Amy", this is by far Kevin Smith's best film (and that includes all 5 or 6 flicks that comprise "The Jersey Trilogy"), because it is vulgar and raw and very real. Clerks has become one of my all-time favorite comedies! In one word: Brilliant!
- Clerks: I thought this film was good. A cult film by Kevin Smith, with great characters, especially Randall and Dante, also the hilarious Jay and Silent Bob.
A good DVD for all Kevin Smith fans to own. - A great start from one of Amercia's best directors,: Clerks has to be one of the best starts from a director who has never made a bad movie. Sure Clerks is in black and white but it's hialrous. Look for the first apperance by Jay and Silent Bob in this classic humourous flick. The DVD gets extra points for adding the animated funeral scene.
- Amazing Flick: This is easily one of my favorite top 3 movies. I saw this when I was a teenager, and it wasn't the crude humor or bizarre situations discussed in the flick that drew me in, it was the incredibly witty writing that Kevin Smith is now famous for. The film is totally spoken script driven, so if you are looking for a Stallone-type action flick, go elsewhere. This movie launched Kevin Smith's career(and shot for only $30,000!) and watching this movie clearly shows why. Probably wouldn't want to watch it in front of Grandma, but a great flick, none the less.
- It's not all Black & White: An interesting look in the lifes of a handful of people working at and hanging around a small grocery store and video store. This microcosm is filmed in black and white either for economy or perception. The story is not dull and a fair amount of wit is layed upon us. Overall a decent work if you enjoy character developed stories like "Crash". Although this may not have the cast or budget of that magnitude, it stands up well against such comparison. At first I thought this was just going to be a comedy about shopkeepers, but it goes well beyond any superficial farce. I recommend it at least as a rental and there is a good chance you may want to add it to your collection. Good quality DVD, lots of extras, and good replayability.
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