Here’s our review for “Clerks III” as Kevin Smith returns to to complete the trilogy that started his career…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
It’s hard to believe that Kevin Smith’s directorial debut in “Clerks” is nearly 30 years old but that also feels like a lifetime ago, especially when you examine everything the New Jersey native has been up to lately.
While he still makes films — even after once declaring that he was putting the camera down for good — Smith has also built an empire around his podcasts, live shows where he spends hours with the audience doing Q&A sessions, hosting duties and even running his own online fan club. Smith rarely seems to have a day off but his life was changed forever back in 2018 when he suffered a heart attack that could have easily been fatal.
Following his recovery, Smith went vegan, smoked copious amounts of weed, reconnected with old friends like Ben Aflleck and decided that every second he had left on Earth was truly a gift. That’s at least part of the reason why he started working on passion projects that had long simmered on the back burner with nothing bigger than “Clerks III” — the final chapter in a trilogy for the film that launched his career.
Now Smith had actually written and completed a different version of “Clerks III” several years ago but he ultimately decided that wasn’t the one he wanted to film. He eventually put on a live reading with that script in his home state to benefit charity but Smith knew that wasn’t exactly the story he wanted to tell.
So Smith went back to the computer and started hammering away on a new version of “Clerks III” — this time injecting even more of his own life into the script, while also imagining all the ways he could welcome back his friends, both old and new, and make something truly personal to him.
For all the ways Smith has branched out of his comfort zone of comedy with underrated horror films like “Red State” and even the bizarre “Tusk,” there’s no doubt that he’s at his absolute best when he finds a way to blur the line between his own reality and the fantasy world he builds around it. That was exactly how “Clerks” started in the first place as he made a movie based around his actual job jockeying a cash register at a convenience store in New Jersey.
It turns out returning for yet another bite at that same apple produced what could be Smith’s strongest effort since he made the original sequel with “Clerks II” back in 2006.
With that said, let’s get to our full review for “Clerks III,” which is in theaters now for a limited engagement.
PLOT
When “Clerks II” ended, Dante and Randall had finally found peace by admitting that they were at their happiest when working behind the counter at The Quick Stop and RST Video — a convenience store and video rental place — that seemingly tormented them while working there fresh out of high school.
A huge part of that sequel centered around Dante (played by Brian O’Halloran) taking the next step in his life by getting married but what actually resulted was a love affair with a co-worker and a realization that his next step was really returning to the job he held for all those years at the convenience store.
Fast forward more than 15 years later and this time it’s Randall Graves — Dante’s foul-mouthed sidekick — who lands under the spotlight as he continues to dissect movies with the kind of dry, vulgar humor that has continuously made this character a fan-favorite. But after one particularly passionate argument at the store, Randall realizes that something is happening inside his body that doesn’t quite feel right.
A few moments later, Randall collapses to the ground after suffering a heart attack.
When he wakes up — his life saved and on the road to recovery — Randall decides that he’s done wasting his life so rather than continuing to talk about movies all day, he’s decided it’s time to make one of his own.
It doesn’t take long for Randall to think back to all the crazy stuff that’s happened at The Quick Stop and RST Video over the years to make him realize a life story might be the best possible movie he could make. That’s when “Clerks III” shifts into quite possibly the most meta movie ever as Randall looks to make his film, which is essentially what Smith really did with his own life, while seeking to bounce back from a near-death experience thanks to the heart attack — an event Smith actually suffered through himself.
ACTING, DIRECTING AND SCRIPT
Smith loves to mock himself for his lackluster directing abilities and maybe he’d have a stronger point if he somehow decided to take on a massive blockbuster like something at Marvel Studios — a job he has repeatedly stated he’d have no interest in taking — but when he’s handling the camera for a script that he’s written, the now 52-year-old filmmaker absolutely still knows what he’s doing.
That’s never more evident that the relationship that Smith has built with just about anybody who’s ever spent any time around him because the cast of “Clerks III” shows undying loyalty by trusting his vision at every turn. Smith’s popularity among the people he’s worked with also results in more than a few fun cameos from friends he’s made over the years on other projects.
The returning cast — led by Brian O’Halloran and Jeff Anderson — slip back into their old roles like they never skipped a beat. Trevor Ferhman returns to play Elias — an annoyingly hilarious character who first appeared in “Clerks II” and then the rest of the cast mainly centers around people who also starred in the original “Clerks” from 1994.
Of course, Smith is back alongside his actual hetero life mate Jason Mewes as the stoner pals return as Jay and Silent Bob and the core cast really does shine whenever playing these roles. If anything the one criticism would be Anderson choosing not to do any acting outside of occasionally returning to play a part in one of Smith’s movies because his comedic timing and sarcasm really is an artform.
Rosario Dawson also returns and she manages to steal every scene she’s in but that really shouldn’t be a big surprise. But for all the great acting Dawson has done other the years, one particularly beautiful moment shared alongside O’Halloran should truly be applauded and even awarded, although the crusty old farts who hand out awards would never dare to nominate this movie for anything.
The script is lean and filled with plenty of “dick and fart” jokes as Smith likes to say but perhaps the most surprising part about “Clerks III” is the emotional gut punch this movie hits you with several times over the course of the movie.
In a way, this feels like Smith saying goodbye — and that’s true at least for this trilogy of films — but it’s tough to imagine there were be nearly as many people crying as laughing when this movie ends.
WHAT’S WRONG WITH THE MOVIE?
If there’s one minor complaint — and this really isn’t a complaint — but this is really a much deeper movie than anyone will want to give Smith credit for. He’s never actually done a full blown drama but “Clerks III” feels like the closest thing to it even if there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments over the course of the film.
The comedy hits hard throughout the first two-thirds of the movie but there’s a chance you’ll watch the last 20 minutes wondering if somehow the theater just did a bait and switch with the film you’re seeing with so many emotional twists and turns.
Again none of that is bad — it’s quite possibly some of Smith’s best work to date — but if you’re expecting to go into “Clerks III” and just laugh until you pee, this isn’t exactly that kind of movie. There’s more than enough comedy to go around but the tears produced by this film won’t just be from laughing.
FINAL VERDICT
Smith is always at his best when he has something truly personal to say — and his ability to draw from real life experiences has created the biggest impact in his work when looking at films like “Clerks” or “Chasing Amy.” He returns to that formula with “Clerks III,” which once serves as the perfect bookend to the movie that launched his career.
“Clerks III” is definitely funny as hell but don’t be surprised if it also ends up being one of the most emotionally draining films of the year, especially if you’ve been following Smith’s public life for the past 28 years.
“Clerks III’ gets a 5 out of 5 on the Skolnick Scale
