Review of Clerks (1994) by Cameron H — 05 Jun 2014
D.I.Y. to the maximum, Clerks is an independent film of such admirable success and plenty of observational humour that it inspires me to make films in my spare time. The story runs through the course of a single day, following the convenient store clerk Dante Hicks who isn't even supposed to be there today.
Throughout the film, I laugh and reflect on my life at the expense of Dante's worst day at work, on which he plays a 12-minute hockey game, his friend and video store clerk Randall tips over a funeral casket, and his ex-girlfriend Caitlyn accidentally has sex with a dead man.
Dante hates his job, but puts up with everything his job requires anyway. Randall is content with his job, but does not put up with anything that customers ask of him. If there is a moral to the story, it is to find balance between these two archetypes.
The lack of pretense is refreshing. Not even the B&W cinematography feels forced. If anything, the lack of colour adds to what should be a mundane day at work. Clerks doesn't hold the greatest acting or the greatest attention to artistic detail, yet that's actually why Clerks stands out as a cult classic.
The jokes are so well executed in their context that I feel Kevin Smith is simply rolling his camera in a convenient store for a single day. My, are they quotable too -- "Try not to suck any dick on your way through the parking lot!" Unless you have an amateur filmmaker as a friend, Clerks is a different experience.
A repeatedly rewarding one, too.
This review of Clerks (1994) was written by Cameron H on 05 Jun 2014.
Clerks has generally received very positive reviews.
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