Anyone Going To See Jersey Girl? (SPOILERS INSIDE)

[Evan L]

Kevin Smith's new film Jersey Girl opens nationwide on March 26th. It'll be the first film not set in the "ViewAsknewniverse", or with Jay and Silent Bob. From what I can tell, it looks to be a "heart-warmer" sort of film along the lines of As Good As It Gets. And it's PG-13, a first for Smith. Yes, Jennifer Lopez is in it, but dies in the first ten minutes(thank goodness for small favors).

This looks to be a career-defining change for Smith, the kind of film that even Chaplin made(one that is not part of a specific line of films). Do any of you plan on catching it?

Evan

[Jymn]

I'll go see it because I've liked everything Smith has done (except perhaps Mallrats, which I never have seen all the way through) but seeing the preview of Jersey Girl makes me cringe a little. Something a little too precious about the whole thing. But I'm keeping an open mind and going to see it anyway.

[dcooper]

I'm definitely torn. On one hand, I definitely want K.Smith to succeed (I,too, like all his movies except Mallrats) and I don't mind Affleck so much...though I still think his career high was playing O'Banion in Dazed and Confused :laugh:

However, I've had it up to here with JLo (How pathetic is that?). She's such an intolerable diva that I actually root for her to fail. So I guess that means I'm not rooting for Jersey Girl.

[reechie]

I'll probably see it eventually, being a Smith fan, but I'll wait for some reaction.

The J-Lo factor doesn't really come in to play here, as she's only in the movie for about ten minutes. Her part has even been minimized beyond what it was originally.

Personally, the one I've had my fill of is Affleck. I'd love for Smith to give us a break from the guy, and work with someone else for awhile.

[reidc]

I must be stuck in the 60's, 70's, and 80's, as I haven't seen a new movie in a long time. I think the last movie I went to was with Jodie Foster as the wife(????) of an emporer. I am so bad I can't even remember the name of it.

Before that I think I saw Twister, and then The Lion King going back further.

My wife brings home all kinds of new rentals, but I just can't get into them.

As for J-Lo- I did see parts of a coupel of her movies(Maid in Manhatten, The Wedding Planner) OMG- I remembered!!! I thought she seemed pretty fake.

Chris

[Pug]

Hey, don't be hatin' "Mallrats". That's one of Kevin Smith's best!

IHMO

Sean

[ACK!]

Yeah, but I'm not looking forward to in the same way I did his previous movies. Notice how they eliminated J.Lo from the marketing (pretty much) in the wake of the "Bennifer" implosion...?

I realize as an artist, Smith has to move on, but still...

On the other hand, Jay and Silent Bob will live on in the forthcoming Clerks Animated Movie, so it's not like they're lost and gone forever.

For the record, my favorite Smith film is Chasing Amy. :thumbsup:

[reechie]

On the other hand, Jay and Silent Bob will live on in the forthcoming Clerks Animated Movie, so it's not like they're lost and gone forever.

Indeed, although it looks like this has morphed into a series of forthcoming straight to DVD releases, instead of a single theatrical movie.

[Jamie Tate]

I never did like Full House. Isn't this a spin off of that show? Seems like it judging from the previews. I expect Bob Saget will make a cameo.


On another point, I'm surprised at all this anti-Mallrats sentiment. I think it's quintessential Kevin Smith writing. Great lines, the latent homo erotic humor, Star Wars references, profanity and doses of witty pop culture references. If you want to pick on one of his movies let's start with that last Jay and Silent Bob movie. Bleck! :hurl:

[reechie]

Mallrats gets a bad rep, because it flopped at the theaters, and it wasn't Clerks 2 for the critics. It's become a fan favorite, however. I just wish Jason Lee had been the breakout actor in that one, and not Affleck.

And hey, I kinda like Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back... :sigh:

[Jamie Tate]

I think Jay and Silent Bob did the best box office though. It was entertaining and I did buy the DVD but I find myself watching all his movies except this one.

[Jamie Tate]

Are there any reviews of Jersey girl yet?

[reechie]

Reviews so far are pretty good. Check for links at www.newsaskew.com

Lots of relief that it isn't Gigli 2.

[Evan L]

Kevin Smith's films always have a certain level of quality, so it isn't like this movie is going to completely suck. If nothing else, it will certainly be well written and acted, as usual.

Mallrats was the first KS film I saw, and in many ways, it's my favorite. It's like slapstick, just plain continuously funny. "Kneel before Zod...Snootchie bootchies!" :laugh:

Evan

[ACK!]

Indeed, although it looks like this has morphed into a series of forthcoming straight to DVD releases, instead of a single theatrical movie.

Let's face it, aside from a small cult of fans (i.e., us), the audience for a theatrical Clerks animated movie would be very small. Rather than go through all the studio ******** of releasing the film, Smith is better off to market this film directly to his fans on DVD. This way, the costs are less and if it sells x amount of DVDs, everyone's happy.

And for the record, I think Mallrats is a very cool flick. It's my least favorite of Kevin Smith's films thus far, but given the quality of the others, it's hard for it to measure up. And I thought Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back was a very funny way to end the "Jersey Chroncles".

Nugga-nugga-nootch!
:laugh:

[Pug]

[user requested delete -- HZ]

I believe what he summarized is from the trailer itself.

Sean

[Tyler]

I'm going to see it, I love and own every film Kevin Smith has made. I'm fairly confident he can make a good film outside of the whole viewaskew universe. Jersey Girl may be the first film that he makes that appeals to the masses.

[reechie]

To be fair here, Smith has been spreading this "spoiler" about the film for over a year now, it's pretty much common knowledge. Especially after Gigli, everyone concerned felt it was important that people know that Jennifer Lopez makes an early exit.

Smith's said it in every interview, it's in the trailer and all of the commercials, Affleck mentions it in every bit of publicity he's been involved in as well, it's been in every gossip column and every article about the film. Even the News Askew web site has given up trying to hide this bit of information. It's hardly a spoiler at this point. Kudos if you've been able to avoid hearing about it up until now.
;)

[Bob Lovely]

Friends,

By their very nature, threads created here about new films may contain readily available information regarding the films including links to "trailers". I believe any member needs to be aware of this and stand so advised...

Bob :)

[Evan L]

Thanks for putting this in a *civil* manner, Bob.

I didn't mean to ruin anybody's potential movie going experience, and didn't think I was saying anything that most people didn't know yet. I've seen Kevin Smith on TV a couple of times talking about this film(and especially about how he greatly reduced Jennifer Lopez' onscreen time). I now greatly regret creating this thread.

Evan

[Ken_McAlinden]

Evan did not reveal any plot point that is not all over the mainstream media. It seems unreasonable to me to expect an Internet discussion forum thread to be less likely to divulge it than, say, today's Detroit Free Press.

As long as it is not mentioned in the thread's title, anyone who is steering clear of news articles on the subject should have no trouble steering clear of the thread discussion as well.

Regards,

[RDK]

As someone who has disliked (if not outright hated) almost everything that Smith has ever done before (with the exception of CLERKS, solely because it was so lowbudget and fresh), including several screenplays that most of you guys haven't read/seen, I can't say that I'm eagerly looking forward to JERSEY GIRL. Nevertheless, I am interested in seeing it partly to see if Smith has matured any as a filmmaker. This is (hopefully) his first "adult" film, and I'm curious how he'll handle it.

[reechie]

This is (hopefully) his first "adult" film, and I'm curious how he'll handle it.

Did you not consider Chasing Amy more of an "adult" film? Smith has said Jersey Girl is closer in tone to that film than any of his other "Jay And Silent Bob" films.

[RDK]

Well, CHASING AMY is certainly "adult" in content, but - and I know that many might not agree with me - I found it rather juvenile in its sensibilities. I think Kevin can be a pretty good writer - at least with his dialog - but for the most part I think he's a terrible director. (Though I think he could be fine if he applied himself to something less "viewaskew-y" ;)). I've tried over the years to really like his stuff since Kevin seems like a cool guy and I share his passion for comic books, pop culture, and such stuff - but I *can't stand* those Jay and Silent Bob characters! They really annoy me. I don't really want to get into it too much with you, Rich, since I know you're a fan, but he's just not my cuppa. But I try to be optimistic and the bits I've seen of JERSEY GIRL do look promising...

[reechie]

Well. this is a deliberate attempt to get away from the whole "Askewniverse" format of Smith's previous films, and with Vilmos Zsigmond doing the cinematography, it certainly should look better than any of his previous films.

Not trying to change your mind of course... :)