Clerks II: Dante's Paradiso

The first half hour of this film hit me in the way of most Kevin Smith's films: a bunch of uncomfortable actors reading speeches they memorized just seconds before the camera rolled. Speeches about characters with bizarre hangups that keep them from interelating in a meaningful way. About high-falutin' issues they hold with society. Stances they can take that are unexpected, and creative, sure, but not of any real weight. In short, a bunch of grown 8th graders being different, just to be different.

But as the actors and I got comfortable with the roles, the film began to form in front of me, into somthing about something. I witnessed Randal open up, and become three dimensional. I witnessed Dante step back and see the world around him. We watched as stagnant youth grew quickly into something powerful, and pertinent. Clerks was about getting over onesself, and not pushing people away due to dickery. But Clerks II is about life. About being faced with a handful of major decisions, and realizing that the only best choice, is the one with the most personal growth. The least obvious, and most dfficult. A film about picking up the pieces, and building something true. Well done, Kevin Smith. Your decade shows.