September 1999

Clerks: Collector's Series
Reviewed by Ian White
DVD Format

Overall Enjoyment:
Picture Quality:
Sound Quality:
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Starring Brian O’Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Marilyn Ghigliotti, Lisa Spoonauer

Directed by Kevin Smith

Theatrical Release: 1994
DVD Release: 1999
Dolby Surround 2.0
Widescreen

Director Kevin Smith (Mallrats, Chasing Amy) spent a paltry $27,000 making Clerks, and the success of this cult film opened the door for independent films at a time when Hollywood was seemingly only interested in roaring dinosaurs and exploding alien motherships. Unlike the smug, excruciatingly dull tripe coming from independent directors like Atom Egoyan (anyone who sincerely liked Exotica is in dire need of professional help), Smith’s work is refreshingly funny and original, and guaranteed not to induce heavy bouts of snoring. Convincing Miramax to distribute Clerks was a huge coup for the first-time director, and a very positive sign for small-budget films, considering that Miramax is part of the Disney family of studios. The financial success of Clerks (theatrical and video) gave Smith some leverage with Miramax and substantially larger budgets for his next three projects, including his most recent film, Dogma (soon to be released in Europe), which has already been the subject of an intense firestorm of controversy. In a move that can only be described as "hypocritical," Disney (and its parent company, ABC Capital Cities) caved into threats from right-wing Christian groups upset with the satirical nature of the film, which pokes fun at organized religion, and ended up selling the distribution rights to a company in Europe.

Set in a suburban New Jersey convenience/video store, Clerks is the story of two lazy and unmotivated employees who truly suck at their meaningless jobs and who do anything but manage the store. Dante (played by Brian O’Halloran) spends the entire day complaining about having to work on his day off and feeling sorry for himself when he reads that his ex-girlfriend is engaged to an Asian design major (or was it drum major?). To make matters worse, the under-achieving clerk is subjected to a constant stream of abuse from the customers, health inspectors, incontinent sexual deviants, drug dealers, his current girlfriend, and his co-worker.

Randall (played by Jeff Anderson) waltzes into work late, infuriates almost every customer with his disinterest and brazen behavior, and also manages to find the time to knock over a casket containing the body of a deceased former classmate. Anderson is terrific as the "rebel" whose favorite pastime is renting "hermaphroditic porn" and selling cigarettes to four-year-old children. Unlike Dante, who complains incessantly about every aspect of his life (yeah, it must suck to have a girlfriend who brings you lasagna), Randall turns his frustrations on to the customers and manages to stay sane in the process.

Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes (Silent Bob and Jay) are both hysterically funny and believable as the drug-dealing duo that loiters in front of the store all day long making deals and occasionally shoplifting snack cakes while Dante stares off into space feeling sorry for himself. Smith remains silent (hence the name) for almost the entire film, and when he finally does speak, his logic proves to be the only thing that gets through to Dante, who is ready to dump his current girlfriend when an opportunity to get back with his ex-girlfriend arises rather unexpectedly.

The high-school drama-class level of acting does detract from the solid script and continuity of the film, but the performances of Anderson, Mewes, and the remainder of the supporting cast help rescue the film when O’Halloran and the two female leads fall flat with some of their dialogue. The soundtrack is a great mixture of songs from Soul Asylum, Alice in Chains, SeaWeed, and The Jesus Lizard. If you listen closely during Randall’s theory about the destruction of the second Death Star, you’ll hear a rather insane song about Chewbacca playing in the background.

Clerks was filmed in B&W, and the film does have a grainy look to it. The DVD is not an enormous improvement on the VHS copy, and I was somewhat disappointed by the overall quality of the transfer. One thing that became apparent during my initial viewing of the DVD was that Smith’s uneven use of lighting does disrupt the continuity of the film. Don’t expect a sharp picture when you purchase this film.

The audio is also less than exemplary, but I had no problems understanding any of the dialogue. Hey, for $27,000 there is only so much that one can do. The stereo soundtrack is, well, a stereo soundtrack. In comparison to the incredibly over-hyped Blair Witch Project, Clerks looks and sounds like Lawrence of Arabia.

The bonus features, which include a Soul Asylum music video, trailer, alternate ending, deleted scenes, and audio commentary from Kevin Smith and the cast, are worth checking out. The alternate ending is really dumb, and I’m glad that Kevin Smith chose to end the film on a positive note. The audio commentary can be hysterically funny at points, and I’ve managed to sit through the entire film with it running.

My love for you is like a truck…Berserker!

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