If you're like me and have spent way too much time on the internet, then you'll have gathered that a lot of people love Kevin Smith's 1994 debut, "Clerks." The film launched Smith into superstardom, giving him the industry clout to create a legacy of similar cult films like "Chasing Amy" and "Dogma." However, "Clerks" is also a film from a first-time director made in the 1990s. Does it have anything to offer for somebody who grew up in the 2000s?
The film covers a day in the lives of Dante (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal (Jeff Anderson), a duo of young clerks working at a convenience store and an adjacent video store respectively. We watch as the pair deal with annoying customers, complain about their lives, slack off and interact with pot-peddling duo Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Smith respectively).
The one undeniable positive that can be said about "Clerks" is that it accurately recreates the doldrums of working a 9 to 5 job. The weird lulls where there's nothing to do. The repetitive responsibilities with no novelty to provide respite. The inane conversations with co-workers to keep the time going. The situation is all very authentic.
It also manages to capture the angst and aimlessness of young adulthood, with Dante always complaining about how he should get his life together, but rarely ever doing anything different.
Most of the situations presented in the film are funny, like Dante and Randall going to a funeral which they promptly ruin. And while the dialogue isn't great, in fact it can be downright awful, the idiotic conversations they have can provide a chuckle.
"Clerks" was made on a budget of $27,575, mostly scrounged up by Smith from selling his comics collection, maxing out at least eight credit cards, dipping into a portion of the funds for his college tuition and using the insurance from a lost car. Filming was restricted to the convenience store Smith happened to be working for at the time and even then they had a limited amount of hours they could use it. Because of these availability and financial limitations, and the fact that Smith was a first-time writer and director, the film looks and feels understandably cheap. It's shot entirely in black and white, the picture quality is grainy and any intentional set design is non-existent. However, this isn't entirely a negative. There's a strange sense of charm to the complete lack of professionalism on display. It's not flashy or trying to draw attention to itself or even trying that hard period. It's humble, mellow, and has an endearing sense of passion to it.
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However, passion can only make up for so much. As mentioned before, the dialogue isn't great; it's awkward, not well-paced and the actors aren't nearly talented enough to make enough of it work. And since most of the story and jokes rely on the script for delivery, this is more than a bit of a problem. Quite a few of the jokes that could've been really funny are ruined because they weren't delivered properly.
Looking at "Clerks" from a gen-z perspective, it's amazing how little of what it touches on has changed. The frustrations and boredom of entry-level jobs are just as present now as they were back then. Part of the reason for this longevity, from my perspective, is the fact that the film was made and released in the 1990s. Looking back, the 90s are kind of a dead zone in terms of cultural identity. That's not to say it was a bad decade, it was just bland, at least in comparison to any other decade in American history. The 70s were Vietnam and the birth of New Hollywood. The 80s were big hair and adventure films. The 2000s were 9/11 and spy thrillers. The 2010s are politics and retro glorification. The 90s don't really have a discernible, identifiable cultural presence. Because of this, "Clerks," and its analysis of the frustrations of entry-level jobs, isn't dragged down by any cultural baggage that keeps it from being relatable to later generations of counter jockeys.
"Clerks" holds up surprisingly well. Despite the amateurish filmmaking and cringey writing, the fundamental appeal is still intact. It's the relatable opus of every cynical 20-something who's ever had to work minimum wage.
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