I’ve found Kevin Smith’s movies fairly enjoyable over the last few years, but it’s usually the person himself that far exceeds the humor of his writings. I enjoyed his open forum discussions “An Evening with Kevin Smith” to be far more amusing than the content of his films. Things that define Kevin Smith are what make his works good. “Clerks”, to me, wasn’t nearly as enjoyable until I understood the adventure it took to become the movie. Jay and Silent Bob is more of a meme, though it played an excellent role in “Dogma” which I finde to be one of his funniest works. Chasing Amy is the best movie he’s ever done, and I was hoping for one as high a quality as it in “Zach and Miri”.

“Zach and Miri” is what you’d get if you mixed the bad humor of “Old School”, the disgustingness of “Superbad”, and just a little bit of the charm of Kevin Smith enough to know he was there, but not enough to be convinced it was his throughout the entire project. It even got the from-the-hip reaction of

…it sucks and you might as well watch porn and get more out of it.

My problem with “Zach and Miri” was that it wasn’t the definition of Kevin Smith that I’ve come to love. Movies like Clerks, Jersey Girl, Dogma, and Chasing Amy define Kevin Smith to me. His most recent movie “Zach and Miri” just doesn’t have the same appeal to it. It seems to be more tuned to the rotten, disgusting, trashy humor that is found in “Superbad”, “Old School”, and all accounts of the “Scary Movies” instead of the perverted yet sensible humor in his own “Clerks”, “Clerks II”, and “Mallrats”.

What I did like about “Zach and Miri” in bulletted form:

• Smith’s somewhat-perverted sense of humor showed face in a few of the scenes (Untrustworthy Boss, the After-Closing Customer, Paintball Hockey)
• The little geeky references that make it into all of Smith’s scripts.
• The actors worked well together, and all of the main characters were cast into roles correctly.
• Even minor roles were given some worthy thought. Specifically, Craig Robinson (Darryl, from “The Office”) and Justin Long.

Smith has good judgment when it comes to casting actors into their characters (or maybe he just has a rock-star casting director). The initial pick to use Star Wars as a plot for the porno was somewhat amusing. The paintball booth at a hockey game scene near the end of the movie was the biggest part that seemed all of Smith’s vision, with the Laxative-related reference coming in close second. I’ll have a question for him regarding both if I ever make it to one of his “Evening with…” sessions.

What I didn’t like about “Zach and Miri” in bulletted form:

• Rotten trashy humor like is found in less experienced and less respected writers/directors.
• Focus more on the raunch and less on the story until it was too late.
• Very amateur-like teen girl storyline went full force for the last 20 minutes.
• The need for Jason Mewes to have a fairly sizable role in this film.
• T&A films are not Kevin Smith.

If Kevin Smith wanted to take notes on a good T&A/porn related film he should have taken a look at “Girl Next Door” which though a very sexual story and filled with items from the adult film industry, was very tastefully produced and included elements for all kinds of mainstream movie-watchers.

I’m keeping a close watch on “Red State” and hoping it will be a good example (though a new genre) of Kevin Smith’s talent. If you’ve seen “Zach and Miri”, what do you think? How does it compare with Smith’s other films?

At the time the movie was showing in theaters I couldn’t find anyone that was available to go see it with me, mostly because there were other movies of higher interest to the persons I attend the theaters with. When I first saw the previews for the movie “Into the Wild” months ago, it piqued my heaviest interest being an Eagle Scout (with merit badges including Wilderness Survival and Camping), and an experienced backpacker. Though I’ve found RottenTomatoes to be unreliable for most of my “gems of film making” of recent years, they scored this film an 83% giving it a ‘Fresh’ rating. Thanks to NetFlix, who recently added the film to their available titles, I had a chance to sit down and enjoy “Into the Wild” on my own time without leaving the comfort of my own living room.

The story as told by the screenplay is not in sequential order, and actually starts his Alaskan quest fairly quickly into the movie. Though usually this annoys me, it was very appropriate for this tale and provided me with a nearly instant interest in the development of the story.

The story as told by the screenplay is probably the closest to home to my innermost storyteller could ever come up with. Christopher grew up in Annandale, Virginia located in Fairfax County (the same county of Springfield, Virginia where I grew up). Then attended college at Emory University in Atlanta, GA (where I attended Georgia Institute of Technology). Though, I didn’t finish college and didn’t have a rocky childhood with a home filled with spousal abuse and emotional disturbances. He decides to abandon the expectations of his parents, turns down graduation gifts, severs communication with his sister (a very close family member), and set out on his adventure.

Along the way he provides comfort and companionship to a variety of characters, delivering his philosophy welcomed quickly by some and slowly by others. For a lot of his trek to the Alaskan frontier he hitchhikes and crosses paths with a vagabond couple, healing their relationship with each other as a result of their meeting. He comes across a young musically-gifted female who takes a romantic interest in him, only to be left broken-hearted when he leaves to continue on his trek; though my words don’t paint the picture as nicely as the story is told. His last acquaintance is a Korean War Veteran and widower, who by the end of their short-lived relationship is left with a lasting impression of the younger generation. I was touched deeply by their parting of ways, both of them seemed to be heroes at the time.

When he finally makes it to the Alaskan frontier, he manages to come across an abandoned bus previously used for a shelter which he titles the “Magic Bus”. Once settled in and cleaned up, this is where he takes notes, creates poetry, insights, and develops his philosophy to fit the solitary lifestyle he has begun. He quickly realizes that his organization skills need to be put to use in order to make his lifestyle last. In between reading and writing, he sets exploration goals for himself, blazes trails, and hunts for food with a scoped .22 caliber rifle. He verifies his own strengths and finds his weaknesses. He is happy and miserable with various turns of events. Overall, you begin to identify with his character and ultimately are cheering him on for success. Although the story ends tragically, it tells the story of a great person and will be life changing for some viewers.

Excellent screenplay, character development, minor plot twists, and scenic photography play into what may become this generation’s greatest adventure story. I only wish more of Christopher’s works had been made possible. Other people I’ve asked that have actually seen the film have enjoyed it very much and I was even questioned “Made you want to quit work, huh?”. Though parts of it did have me pondering what it would be like to leave my life and society and venture out on my own with no definite plans or real goals beyond learning more about myself, ideally I could never bring myself to do it solo. I’m very happy with my family, friends, and coworkers and couldn’t bring myself to leave the settlement I find myself in even as restricting as it sometimes is.

I highly recommend this film to add to your queue of “movies I need to see” if to at least get a little insight on the true freedoms of solidarity. Look forward to more Movie Reviews by me in the future.