Kevin Smith's real gift is writing funny, witty dialogue, and that's what carries this film. From Star Wars debates (did the destruction of the second Death Star in "Jedi" cost innocent contractors their lives?) to perfectly serious debates about sex ("Thirty-seven???"), this is the ultimate movie for anyone who's ever been going nowhere and doing nothing. It's a day in the life of the guy working at the corner store, no more, no less. But it's absolutely brilliant.

It is incredible what Kevin Smith was able to do with his first film and so little money. The dialogue is fantastic. Just the arguing about stupid stuff is so fun and feels real.

I remember watching this film as a kid and I did not understand it whatsoever. The black and white was rather off-putting to my limited appreciation for film at the time. Needless to say, the sequel was always enjoyable, and the third one was really impressive this year (it got an actual tear out of me). Going back and revisiting this nearly 30 year old movie was awesome! The way the sequels wrapped into this one, the way this was shot on a minimal budget, the way the interactions and conversations are so authentically human. Great stuff by Kevin Smith!

Rating: 3.5/5 - 8/10 - Would Recommend

Still not a bad movie all these years later, some of the humor is a bit juvenile as I age but most of it still holds up well.

Although I was a big fan of "Dogma" and "Chasing Amy" in my teenage years, I had never seen "Clerks" until now. So it was time for a "View Askewniverse" marathon to close this gap. And even though I'm not that fond of his later films, "Clerks" quickly makes it clear that Kevin Smith was an extremely motivated filmmaker in his early career. Of course, it's an ultra-low-budget production, but that shouldn't be held against the film. On the contrary, despite the lack of an overarching plot, this film is extremely entertaining. The characters are definitely interesting, and the dialogue is witty. In this context, I'm not bothered by the poor acting. Meanwhile, the humor is not particularly profound and, as is typical of Smith, is rather juvenile as well as somewhat problematic from today's point of view. Nevertheless, I laughed a lot. Overall, I am positively surprised that Smith already delivered quite a decent showing with his debut. The film is a cult classic, and rightly so.

New Jersey trilogy by Kevin Smith
Clerks - Part 1
Mallrats - Part 2
Chasing Amy - Part 3

Randal: "What the hell's your problem?"
Dante: "This life. Why do I have this life?"
Randal: "Have some chips, you'll feel better."

Level "Interesting" • 7 :heart: • Entertaining and Good.

Kevin Smith has a habit of making movies with a million words in the dialogue, characters use words and phrases that real people usually wouldn't. Normally his movies can be pretty jarring because of that but there's something about this film that just works. Highly relatable. I'm sure most of us have been in jobs like the main characters in this movie or in similar situations. I usually watch this a couple of times a year. Great movie. Maybe smiths best.

"I'm not even supposed to be here today." From writer/director Kevin Smith comes the indie comedy Clerks. The film follows a day in the life of two convenience store clerks as they deal with the public and the shenanigans that go on at the store. The storytelling is a bit clumsy and disjointed, but the characters are so interesting and engaging that they overshadow whatever weakness there are in the plot. And, Smith is particularly adept at writing dialog that's clever and poignant (especially for Generation X). While it's a bit amateurish, Clerks has an authenticity to it that gives the film a uniqueness that makes it compelling on a lot of levels.

Removed from the Netflix Catalog