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Chasing Amy
Continuing with the Kevin Smith DVD Review Marathon to hype his fifth (and final) "askewniverse" film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, we will be reviewing Smith's third film, Chasing Amy. BLACK RAGE!
Movie: 10/10
Personally, this is my favorite Kevin Smith movie. It works as a comedy, a romance, and my personal preference: a drama. Upon my first viewing of the film, it was my least favorite. I had in mind that it was this big comedy that would be better than Mallrats and maybe even better than Clerks. This held true for the first twenty minutes, but from then on, it's no longer a comedy. I watched the film again and recognized it as more of a drama and I would venture to say Smith is a regular Shakespeare with this film and it is his best work to date. The story deals with a pair of friends, Banky (Jason Lee) and Holden (Ben Affleck). The two of them are creators of a comic book (modeled after Jay and Silent Bob) known as "Bluntman and Chronic". During a comic con, one of their friends, Hooper X (I love that guy) introduces them to Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams) and Holden quickly falls in love with her. Problems quickly arise when Holden finds out that Alyssa is a lesbian and he fights to win her heart and change her sexual preferences. Meanwhile, it's a fight between Banky and Alyssa over who Holden's best friend is. This is a real film which examines real problems and refuses to take the easy way out. I, personally, love Holden's speech to Alyssa in the car and it has become very personal to myself. This is a great film, a contemporary classic as Criterion calls it's DVD edition. The performances are all top notch, especially Affleck, Lee, and Adams. This is a great film.
Video: 6/10
This was a very low budget feature and you can see it on the graininess of it's picture. (It was shot on a lower end film stock, I believe.) I also enjoyed a lot of the camera angles and such. Normally, Smith is a great writer and not a bad director, but I feel he can't shoot his way out of a paper bag. He needs to explore with the camera a bit more. Enough of my rambling, the video isn't great but it is widescreen and it's better than the VHS copy.
Audio: 8/10
A 5.1 track that isn't bad, but the movie doesn't do much with it. There is no action or anything really to showcase... That's all I can really say about it.
Extras: 8/10
This film has a great commentary, not as good as Mallrats, but good nonetheless. It also has a lot of deleted scenes with introductions, which are also very nice. The outtakes are typical, but very funny. There is a new introduction to the DVD which isn't bad and the color bars are hilarious. The only thing that disappointed me was that it took Criterion so long to put this DVD out there. There was supposed to be a documentary on the Askewniverse, but instead we get a fold out timeline. I want that documentary! I also really like the front photograph. I don't know why Jay and Silent Bob are on it, but it's a classy looking photo.
Overall: 9/10
Buy it just for the film. The extras are great too.
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