Yes B&W was cheaper - you don't need expensive lighting on the set (and folks to operate the lights), the processing of B&W film is easier and cheaper, no colour correction issues obviously because it isn't colour. Kevin Smith sold some of his possessions, maxed out multiple credit cards, borrowed money, etc to make the film. He actually worked in that store and the owner kindly let him film inside while it was closed between 10:30pm and 5:30am. Many of the actors were family or friends, some playing multiple roles.
The Mandalorian makes a deliberate reference to this movie, and confirmed that there were indeed a bunch of independent contractors that were killed when the rebels blew up the 2nd Death Star.
I've lost track of how many times I've watched "Clerks" over the years. It singlehandedly proved that the watchability, entertainment value, and most importantly, the worthiness of a film do not necessitate having much money or even technical sophistication to make it. More important is a vision. a script, and the drive to bring it all to life.
The obscure chapter titles are references to "The Divine Comedy", a 14th-century poem/novel about Heaven, Hell , and Purgatory. Dante in the movie is named after its author, Dante Alighieri. Don't feel bad for not understanding the words; many don't.
I worked at the meat counter in a large grocery store and on one of my first days there, a lady yelled at me because she couldn't find strawberries. Another asked me for shampoo. If you've ever dealt with customers, this is a horror film.
CLERKS is the first in a series of 8 movies involving many of the same characters, mostly Jay & Silent Bob. So jumping from CLERKS 1 to CLERKS 2 won't work very well because there are other movies in-between, spanning 27 years. Kevin Smith wrote and directed all of them, so it's almost like watching the lives of friends evolve over time. Here's the list, in order: CLERKS MALLRATS CHASING AMY DOGMA JAY & SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK CLERKS 2 JAY & SILENT BOB REBOOT CLERKS 3 It's a trip worth taking. For those of us who grew up with the series, these characters feel like family, and the ride can be as emotional as it can be funny. The titles ("Vilification", "Harbinger", etc.) don't really mean anything; they're real words, but they aren't used properly. The original story was modeled after the Divine Comedy (that's why Dante is named Dante), so each title was supposed to mean a new level of Hell. But they abandoned the idea and Kevin Smith just picked random words out of a dictionary on the way to the lab where they were getting printed.
It's amazing how well Clerks stands the test of time. Kevin Smith pioneered that style of character dialogue in movies and shows ever since that have copied him - people having the kind of conversations that real people have every day, and especially characters talking about movies and comic books. At the time that was unheard of, now it's everywhere.
Not saying Marilyn Ghigliotti is channeling Marissa Tomei, but "My Cousin Vinny" was 1992, and this is '94. Veronica's character was informed by Mona Lisa Vito a bit.
Randal broke the first rule. You don’t talk to your friend’s girlfriend/wife behind his back. Unless there’s abuse, something illegal, or he’s got a family in the next town you keep your mouth shut about their relationship.
Thank you for reacting to this film, Dasha, it's one of my lifelong favorites. I have watched and loved cinema since I was a little child but I can say in all confidence that I have seen Clerks more than any other film in my whole life because it's timeless. I hope you someday react to Clerks 2 as it's a way worthwhile sequel, just as hilarious, and closes the Clerks saga in a fantastic way.
I loved this! I really hope you stick with the View Askewniverse. Clerks (1994) Mallrats (1995) Chasing Amy (1997) Dogma (1999) Jay and Silent Bob strike back (2001) Clerks II (2006) Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (2019) Clerks III (2022) Please, don't shy away from his Q&A:s. "An Evening with Kevin Smith" and so forth. It's the funniest thing Kevin has ever made, and he has made some hilarious movies. For being known as Silent Bob, he's a great storyteller. There are several clips here on RU-vid. Thanks again! Love ya!
I saw this film when it first came out. Everyone was so caught off guard. Reactions were priceless. People either really loved it or were totally outraged by it.
@00:19 Well, yes and no. Yes, most movies filmed in black and white past the 1960s were done so per artistic choice. However, clerks was filmed in black and white because of budgetary constraints. This was an amateur independent film written, produced, and directed by Kevin Smith. It was made on a budget of $27,000 that he raised himself by selling his comic book collections and maxing out his credit cards.
Clerks is the first film in the "View Askew-niverse." Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks 2, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot then Clerks 3. Really has some phenomenal movies peppered with gross out humor, deep social commentary and exceptional dialogue. There are a ton of big name stars scattered throughout as well.
Clerks is Kevin's first movie he made with his friends. From here on out, all his films have actors you'll recognize. His follow up movie to Clerks is Mallrats which is where he gave Ben Affleck his first significant screen role. His third film Chasing Amy is his no budget masterpiece and Affleck's finest hour as an actor. Plus, Stan Lee's greatest movie part ever. Kevin Smith was a producer on Goodwill Hunting and had a significant part in the careers of Ben and Matt Damon early on.
This was the ultimate indie film. Kevin Smith wrote and directed it (and played Silent Bob.) He did it with cheap equipment and did it in black and white because it was cheaper. The convenience store was where he worked and the owners let him film at night. The film became popular and started Kevin Smith's career.
Filming in black and white was a lot cheaper than colour because the convenience store had fluorescent lights and in order to film in colour they would have had to replace all the lights. Smith (and Scott Mosier) were extremely creative in finding ways to save money. Another example is the gum in the locks. That was done to hide the fact that they were filming at night.
Such a fun '90s indie film. It was nice to see you enjoying the opening song "Clerks" (many reactors edit the entire songs out, which is perhaps necessary, but a shame). I have a feeling you've taken your first step into a larger world, and I look forward to seeing it.
@@scipioafricanus5871 Clerks- Mallrats- Chasing Amy- Dogma-Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back- Clerks 2- jay and Silent Bob Reboot- Clerks 3. For live action atleast. There are actual animated version out there too. There is some Marvel crossover as well. The director actually wrote some comics for Marvel. (Some of which I think are a decade overdue....)including Daredevil. So he cameoed in the first Daredvil movie. Stan Lee does a cameo in one of Kevin's movies! This is referenced in Captain Marvel-he is reciting his lines for the movie and they used some old audio clips Kevin had of Stan after Stan Lee passed as they needed to punch up some of the audio.
The Clerks trilogy is one of my favorites! Very glad you chose this, I hope you watch the others too. The creator, Kevin Smith (he plays Silent Bob here and in other films), based this on his own experiences as a convenience store clerk in New Jersey. He went on to make other notable films beyond the Clerks series after the success of this one.
Clerks is a classic imo. Clerks 2 is good also. I personally really liked Clerks 3, but I know a lot of ppl that didn't. Kevin Smith's best film, by a mile, is Chasing Amy. That is AMAZING imo. Funny and sad at the same time. You HAVE to watch that. Actually, watch all the View Askewniverse. They all take place in the same "universe". Smith did the cinematic universe before it was a thing 😂 the order is - Clerks -> Mallrats -> Chasing Amy -> Dogma -> Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back -> Clerks 2 -> Jay and Silent Bob Reboot -> Clerks 3. I haven't seen the cartoon so didn't list it. Enjoy 🙂
Clerks holds a special place in my heart. I hope you watch more Kevin Smith movies. Mall Rats or Dogma should be next if you decide to go down the View Askewniverse rabbit hole.
Jay and Silent Bob became very popular characters in the Kevin Smith universe of movies, they make appearances in all the movies and are the main characters in several as well. The main core of actors in many of his movies are his friends he grew up with so you see the same familiar faces in different roles.
The instructor (Kevin Smith / Silent Bob) maxed out his credit cards to shoot this movie, and the location was the convenience store where he worked at the time He couldn't afford lighting, so the black and white made is possible to still do it with just the regular lights in the store And yes, he is basically most famous for the dialog in his movies :)
I don't know if real or rumor, but the opening animation (the creepy p3d0/clown) at the beginning cost a significant portion of the budget. What I heard was that they absolutely hated it, but they had already paid, and so they had to use it.
Oh my goodness! You have done it! You have reacted to my favorite movie. And you have inadvertently entered my favorite Cinematic Universe, the View Askewniverse.
You definitely need to continue, but there is a whole movie universe (the 'ViewAskewniverse' - because of Kevin Smith's production company View Askew) before you get to Clerks 2 and 3. Next is Mallrats, then Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay & Bob Strike Back, and then Clerks 2 😅
All 3 Clerks movies are good but 3 is so heartbreaking. You should check out all the movies in this Universe. Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and Dogma, they're all great movies.
I have to politely disagree. This one is the only one truly worth seeing. 2 is ok at best and the third one was complete and total trash start to finish. This first one is a movie made by a man that just wanted to make movies, 2 and 3 were made by a man that wanted to cash in and make money off of past fame.
What's funny, Dasha, is that I worked in retail for nearly 15 years (13 of which were at one particular store). I was very much like Randal in that I would say things that would get most other people fired on the spot. The difference was that I was a very hard worker, and I knew that the boss didn't dare fire me, because he'd go through a few hundred applicants to find one that worked as hard as I did, and that I'd have another job within a few weeks. I even told him that once, during an argument we were having. After I said that, he was fuming, but he knew I was right. That's when he said through pursed lips, "Get back to work." He was next level pissed off. Also, "Vilification" was basically referring to Dante (our main protagonist) being vilified (made out to be the bad guy) by that Chewlie's Gum representative. Something else, the main reason this was filmed in black and white was budget. Kevin Smith sold off his comic book collection and maxed out every credit card he had in order to make the movie. In the end, that came up to about $28,000. There was no room in the budget for colour film, and B&W was a good bit cheaper. Shooting the movie in colour also would have incurred another expense... lighting rigs to make the colours be filmed correctly. With B&W, they could just use the store's lighting. Kevin talks about this in his documentaries. Definitely go through all of the View Askewniverse movies in release order. Although, Mallrats takes place (timeline wise) the day prior to Clerks. I won't list the movies, as others have already done that. I will say that Chasing Amy is a fantastic movie, and really displays the range that Kevin Smith has with his writing. Dogma may be a little difficult to find, as it's not available on any streaming service. Lastly, Jay and Silent Bob are the C-3PO and R2-D2 of this universe, as they appear in every movie in some capacity or another. Some actors will also play multiple characters over various movies (and a couple, even within the same movie).
Also, "Harbinger" (with a "hard G") refers to "a sign of things to come". Most of the words have something to do with the following scenes, even if it's very subtle. This is one of them.
There is a really good documentary about the making of this film, a very low budget independent feature. Choosing black and white film made the lighting easier.
When this came out, I was just out of the military, and was working two jobs. One was at a convenience store, the other one was at a video store. This movie SPOKE to me!!
DO NOT!!! Watch more clerks films until you have worked through the rest of the series. Mall Rats Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and then Clerks 2. The film series get better and better as you go along. Brilliant reaction as ever Dasha 👏
I love Kevin Smith, Silent Bob's, conversational writing style. This movie is only the first of many that he made. Besides the Clerks a few of my favorites are Dogma, Chasing Amy and Jersey Girl.
"I'm making a broad generalization." "You're making a generalization about broads." Seriously underrated exchange. I also love Snowball. We know one fact about his private life, about the snowballing, but otherwise he's just an absolutely chill guy just living his life. The next movies in the series, and they should be watched in order, are: - Mallrats - Chasing Amy - Dogma - Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back - Clerks 2 - Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (I haven't seen it yet) - Clerks 3 (also haven't seen it yet)
Kevin Smith continued to make great movies, but this one will always be my favourite. It has this "1st-time-filmmaker, low budget, but we make the absolute best out of it"-vibe. And I'm with Dasha, the Star Wars conversation is indeed one of the best "random conversation"-scenes every written.
Dasha finally takes her first step into the View Askewniverse! Next up should be Mall Rats then Chasing Amy, Dogma(my personal favorite), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks 2, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, and finally Clerks 3, in that order.
Just started the video and at her mention of seeing that this had a couple of sequels here's me thinking "ohhh you're in for a lot more than just those two!"
OK, so you need to check out, in order: Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Clerks: The Animated Series, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks 2, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (not great) and Clerks 3. There's a cartoon Jay and Bob movie as well but it's dreadful.
This is such a cool fun movie. The whole Star Wars conversation is just genius. This movie introduced Jay & Silent Bob excellent characters. Kevin Smith (the director) is Silent Bob pllus if you want to see them again then I recommend Dogma or Jay & Silent Bob movies.
Yes watch the other Clerks movies!!! Also Jay and Silent Bob have their own movies aswell. There is also another called Dogma u will find the characters playing themselves in, kinda a side movie but same characters involved
Actually it WAS black and white because it was the only choice. In 1993 black and white was cheaper than color film and WAY cheaper than digital. KS spent every penny he had and every penny he could borrow making Clerks. Nowadays he says if Clerks were made today, it wouldn't be made in black and white for 19 thousand dollars, it would be made on a phone for 500 dollars.
Please continue with the Askewniverse. The next movie on the list is Mallrats. You still have a couple movies to go before getting to the next Clerks movie.
The actual order is Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Clerks the animated series, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks 2, Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie!, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, and finally Clerks 3
Mallrats, chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks 2, Jay and Silent Bob's super groovy cartoon movie, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, Clerks 3. (Yoga Hosiers, Red State, Tusk ? Optional* same director and very mildly in the same universe, not "Red State" it's its own thing)
There is a Clerks 2, but that's not the next movie. In the ''Jay and Silent Bob'' universe, Mallrats is up next, then ''Chasing Amy'',and several after that. You'll laugh like crazy at Mallrats. And there will be quite a few ''Are you serious?"'s :D
The other Clerks movies are definitely worth seeing, though first, you really should watch Mallrats and Chasing Amy before Clerks 2. It's not the same character (with exception)s, though some of the same faces, and a few stories that intermingle. They're all worth seeing.
Clerks is probably the best Kevin Smith movie for a reaction. Funny, random, quirky. As for the rest of Smith's movies, Chasing Amy is necessary for you to watch. The rest are amusing but aren't as amazing. I love Dogma the most but it's not for everyone
Hey Dash! Your English sounds great! You had some trouble with "Harbinger" so I thought I'd give you a hand. It looks weird because it has "ing" in the middle of it, but it isn't pronounced the way you think. You break up the in, and then the g, so it sounds like "har-bin-jer" instead of "Harb-ing-er". English is a weird language haha
Yo Dasha...just gotta say: You look PHENOMENAL in All black! Especially when your Hair is freshly done Like it is currently... Looking AMAZING... Have a great Holiday hon!
Chasing Amy is one of my all time favorite movies. Every time I meet someone who has never seen Kevin Smith ... I look up the "Hooper X Star Wars Rant" ...
