Kevin Smith, pt. 2

What is it about Kevin Smith movies? They're so bi-polar when put up against each other that they could easily all be made by other directors. The only thing that links them together is the sometimes-obvious, but mostly subtle references to each other. Let's start at the top.

1) Clerks: His first effort was the little movie that could. A little black-and-white movie that showcased a day in the life of two convenience-store jockeys. Sometimes funny, sometimes heart-breaking, it's a true-to-life look at twenty-somethings in the '90's.

2) Mallrats: This was a total departure from Clerks. It's a flat-out comedy that has no dramatic undertone whatsoever. People loved Clerks. They didn't love Mallrats. Watching is it a good way to waste an hour and a half but when it's over, you walk away with nothing to show for it.

3) Chasing Amy: Back to Clerks territory. It's a movie about real relationships in the '90's. Like Clerks, sometimes funny but often dramatic, it's a film that takes a look at how relationships work, and how they can often be ruined by one person's petty insecurities.

4) Dogma: Now this is a weird one. Something so totally different from the other three that it almost doesn't count. Angels and demons, a race to save the world. Funny, but also a fantasical look at crisis' of faith.

5) Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back: Another comedy that gives you nothing to walk away with. You laugh, and then wonder what's for dinner. Nothing more than that.

Now, a lot of directors make different kinds of movies, but Kevin Smith writes his own scripts taken from his own life. Other directors just take scripts to direct as a job, but Kevin's are more personal. I'm watching Chasing Amy right now and it the dichotomy of his films just made me think.

On a lighter note, Batman Begins, Land of the Dead and The Big Lebowski come out on DVD in a couple of days. Can't wait.