Review of Dogma (1999) by Brett C — 10 Jan 2015

Review In A Nutshell:

Kevin Smith has grown on me with splendid films like Chasing Amy, Mallrats and Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back; but then a misfire like Dogma comes along that lets me take a step back and realise that the director is capable of misfiring.

Dogma is a story of two angels out to reach New Jersey in order to enter a passageway of a church that would allow them to re-entry into heaven; but that would disprove one of his principles, ergo a "chosen one" is sent to stop them, with the companion of angels, prophets and such. Similar to Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back, Dogma is a road film that places characters in pit-stops that would eventually come together in its end on a climactic showdown; but what made the former such a fun and entertaining film, is the exciting and humorous events that the characters get into; here the road is filled with excessive expository dialogue that shows deep intellect of the Catholic religion, but lacks the ingredient that blends these together and create a sweet and delicious flavour; I was constantly chewing, waiting for an opportunity to swallow. I wanted the dialogue to be less on plot and more on comedy, like Mallrats; displaying conversations that are light in story but heavy on humour. There were only very few instances where I released a chuckle or a smile. I think the plot is too big for Smith's sense of style; he suits more when he is handling grounded and relatable characters, rather than fantasy and heavy symbolism.

I could go on and on about this film, and the outcome of this review would still be the same, this film is an underwhelming and often dull journey that focuses too much on the wrong aspects of its storytelling. Kevin Smith is much too good for this.