Clerks II

Plot synopsis:
A decade after the events of Clerks, thirty two-year-old Dante Hicks (Brian OHalloran) is still a disgruntled employee at the Quick Stop convenience store. He arrives for another day of work, only to discover, when he opens the security shutters, that the store is on fire. Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson), Dante's long-time best friend and Quick Stop colleague, had left the coffee pot on the night before. As a result of the Quick Stop's destruction, the two men begin working at a Mooby's fast food restaurant.After working at Mooby's for nearly a year, Dante is planning to move from New Jersey to Florida with his blonde, bony and wealthy fiancée, Emma (Jennifer Schwalbach Smith). Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith) have followed Dante and Randal throughout their adventures, and now loiter outside of Mooby's. Though they no longer use drugs (after being arrested, sent to rehab, and supposedly becoming born-again Christians), they continue to sell them and perform their typical antics in the parking lot.It is Dante's last day before moving, which inspires Randal to give him a "memorable sendoff" and secretly book a donkey show to perform in the restaurant after closing time. Randal takes great satisfaction in manipulating and shocking his 19-year-old co-worker, Elias (Trevor Fehrman), a hopelessly geeky conservative Christian and obsessive fan of Transformers and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Randal holds nothing but contempt for both franchises ("There's only one Return, and it ain't of the King; it's of the Jedi"), and taunts a customer who shares Elias' manic admiration of the LOTR series until said customer vomits in disgust.Dante, meanwhile, has become good friends with their manager, Becky Scott (Rosario Dawson), and the two had a drunken one-night stand several weeks before. Becky is aware that Dante is engaged and moving away and is visibly rattled by it, though she treats the subject casually in conversation. While working the counter, Dante and Randal are forced to wait on a former high school rival, Lance Dowds (Jason Lee), now a millionaire from launching a successful website. While Randal recounts Lance's humiliating initiation experience in freshman year which resulted in Lance being nicknamed "Pickle-fucker," he is still angered by Lance's condescending remarks towards him and Dante. After Lance leaves, Randal convinces Dante to blow off work with him and go ride the go-karts at a local fun center (which Randal claims clears his head). Upon their return, they find the restaurant understaffed and full of customers. While preparing food, Randal launches into a rant and angers two African-American customers (Wanda Sykes and Earthquake) when he incorporates the slur "porch monkey" into his speech. Randal initially refuses to believe it is a racial slur, as he did not know its real definition, and because his grandmother had used it as a "term of endearment" for him during his childhood (he initially did not consider his grandmother to be a racist, though he remembers her referring to a broken beer bottle as a "nigger knife"). Randal vows to reclaim the phrase and give it a more positive meaning.While Randal manages to hire "Kinky Kelly and the Sexy Stud" to perform the donkey show for Dante that night, Dante becomes torn between his mainstream fiancée, Emma, whom he cares for but has little in common with, and his increasing feelings for Becky. When asked by Becky if he has any fear of marriage, he admits he is scared of his wedding reception because he cannot dance. Becky enthusiastically takes him to the roof and gives him a dance lesson (as The Jackson 5's "ABC" blasts from Jay and Silent Bob's boom box, causing everyone in the restaurant and parking lot to dance as well). Overwhelmed, Dante confesses his love to Becky and is stunned when she reveals that she is pregnant as a result of their one-night stand.A shocked Dante reveals to Randal that Becky is pregnant with his child, and that she does not want an abortion. Randal is taken aback, but swears not to tell anyone, as Becky had already sworn Dante to secrecy. However, Randal ruins this moments later by congratulating Becky on her pregnancy ('May your first child be a masculine child!"). Becky is furious at Dante for blabbing the secret and lividly drives off. Dante erupts in rage and attempts to punch Randal, who panics inwardly when he sees the Kinky Kelly van enter the parking lot. Randal frantically escorts Dante to his car, telling him to follow Becky and talk to her for an hour. Once Dante leaves, Randal speaks with the gruff-looking driver of the Kinky Kelly van (Zak Knutson), and gives him an hour to set up the show equipment in the restaurant. Meanwhile, Becky and Dante drive around separately, thinking over their situation. Becky pauses in front of a women's care clinic, while Dante is waved at by a little girl (Harley Quinn Smith) through a restaurant window, leading him to contemplate fatherhood.Dante arrives back at Mooby's, which is emitting smoke from its windows. Dante panics and calls the fire department, only to realize the smoke is from a smoke machine being used for the donkey show. Though shocked by Randal's choice of a farewell gift, Dante is drawn into the show's audience (Randal, Jay, Silent Bob, and a very drunk/stoned Elias). As the show begins, their hopes of seeing an attractive woman slowly disappear. Kinky Kelly, who was assumed to be the female exotic dancer, is actually the name of the donkey, while the Sexy Stud is in fact the burly, tattooed man who had driven the trailer. As the Stud prepares to perform an array of explicit acts on Kelly, Becky returns to the restaurant. Dante again confesses his love for her, and she eventually admits that she cares for him too. Dante's fiancée, Emma, comes to Mooby's to surprise Dante, only to see him kissing Becky. She angrily throws her engagement ring at Becky and leaves in tears.The fire department arrives, responding to Dante's earlier call. With the donkey show in full swing, most of the attendants drunk, and Randal having spelled out "PORCH MONKEY 4 LIFE" on the back of his shirt with masking tape, everyone but Becky is arrested. In their jail cell, Dante gets into a heated argument with Randal, blaming him for ruining his life. Randal becomes indignant and reveals how upset he was about having his best friend move away. They finally admit how much they care about their friendship, and Randal suggests they get back their good old days at the Quick Stop by re-opening it themselves. Jay and Silent Bob agree to lend them money for the endeavor, on the condition that they can hang out in front of the store whenever they want. They are released from jail shortly after, since (as the Sexy Stud had assured them) you cannot be imprisoned for watching an inter-species sex act.Dante finally decides to start a family life with Becky and proposes to her at the Mooby's drive-thru window. She, Dante, and Randal work on fixing up the charred Quick Stop, and hire Elias to work Randal's old job at the adjacent RC Video store. The film ends with a content Dante and Randal working the counter at the rehabilitated Quick Stop convenience, happy to be in control of their lives at last.

Tags: cult, comedy, entertaining, humor

Review:
Clerks II is a worthy successor to Kevin Smith's 1994 debut, "Clerks.".The continuing adventures of Dante and Randal speed along with witty dialogue, insightful social commentary, and a touching look at various levels of life, responsibility and most importantly, love.There's a lot of the requisite dirty jokes, but they enhance the golden center of the flick.
The story of Dante whining about his life and Randall putting him in his place is rehashed from the first movie, but with a sudden afflatus, Dante is finally able to do something about it.The humor is still strong with Kevin Smith, as he throws ridiculous sight gags at us in between the labyrinthine dialogue about Transformers, Star Wars, racial slurs, blogs, and life in general.
(And yes, it's in color...mostly.) Also, there was no subtitle...it was titled simply "CLERKS II"...no "the second coming" or "the passion of the CLERKS".I don't want to hit any spoilers this soon before the movie comes out, but the general idea is that it is a "coming of age" story for the Gen X slackers, who finally in their 30s find themselves not having advanced very far in life, careers, personally or even in general (this is primarily Dante's role, anyway).
He decides (due to some things beyond his control) to FINALLY move on, "grow up", get married and leave Leonardo New Jersey and its band of bad influences behind.Randall, of course, is not so keen at his only friend leaving NJ, is perfectly happy living with his parents and doing as little as possible, and a good part of the movie is spent on Randall challenging Dante's decision and exploration of their friendship.Now, this may sound like some kind of melodrama, BUT IT ISN'T!!!
That basic story is weaved between the plot devices, smart dialogue and gritty or "pushing the limits" humor we come to expect from Kevin Smith.There's Jay and Silent Bob of course, who have a mini-character arc/growth experience themselves, Jason Lee in with an all new character for one short scene (I think this is his 5th new character in Kevin's ViewAskew franchise), and Ben Affleck with a mercifully brief (one or two line) cameo.
Jay and Bob's antics are always a great break from the other action, never an intrusion, even when they are TRYING to intrude, by making asses of themselves (literally) in the background of the primary action.Plus, a couple of new characters, a crew member at Mooby's (a McDonald's type fast food joint) named Elias who is a very religious, naive counterpoint to Randall's ruthless and jaded personality, and therefore the butt of many jokes/gags.
His and Randall's comments regarding "Lords of the Ring" vs "Star Wars" are priceless and vintage Kevin Smith.Another new character, "Becky", is played by Rosario Dawson, who is the manager at the same restaurant.
She plays the part of the good female friend who depends on Dante and challenges Dante to consider if he really wants to settle for a girl who is merely tolerable.As with the first "CLERKS", this movie pushes the limit of what can be put on film and actually get released in theaters.
'Cept Kevin Smith.Finally, the movie really does have a story without being preachy, we're treated to known characters without it being a nostalgia-fest (for instance, Jay and Bob are in their signature places in front of the Quick Stop, but Jay utters not once "Snootchie Bootchies"...but not to fear, he finds a NEW way to crack us up...Bob's discovered a way to keep Jay's mind off of drugs.
I can say that even in very conservative KC, the audience laughed A lot, no one walked out during the most "offensive" part, and everyone seemed to really enjoy the edgy wit, smart dialogue as well as the bathroom humor that kept the film at a fun pace.*EDIT-I've since read that 3 people walked out, which isn't bad from an audience of nearly 500 and with a movie this edgy.
I laughed so hard I NEED to see it again to hear what I missed the first two times around, and I even shed a tear or two.Kevin Smith is in fine form as Dante and Randal return 10 years older.
In many ways this is writer/director Kevin Smith's most adult film in that we see four characters that we've grown up with over the past 12 years finally grow themselves.
Its odd to find that in the past decade it is Jay and Silent Bob that have changed the most, true they still are up to their perverse antics such as ass rubbing on the window and the disturbing recreation of "The Silence of the Lambs" dance but they have grown more sensitive to other people's emotions and needs, especially Jay. I haven't mentioned Rosario Dawson, who gives a very charming performance as the clerks' boss.
Little attempt is made to create realistic dialogue, believable characters or even a credible fast food restaurant.Taking place some 10 odd years in the future, CLERKS II finds our heroes, Dante and Randal, played respectively by Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson from CLERKS, still slaving away at their dead end jobs at the Quick Stop and Video Store until a fire forces them to finally move on.
OK that may be true about the "Clerks fans" that became so after seeing seeing Dogma and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back first and said, "Oh, it's Kevin Smith's first movie and I love it, but Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is still my favorite." But for the people who were fans of the original for the right reasons, and from the beginning (ex.
Don't be surprised if Kevin Smith now has to make his living at Comic Con selling autographs, because making movies just isn't his bag.The notes I took during the film should be enough to keep you away: "Terrible opening." "What is the opposite of funny?" "Dialogue couldn't be worse." "It's like a vulgar commercial for ITT Tech.
I keep waiting for someone to say 'Call now for your free brochure.'" "Awful." "MGM must stand for More Ghastly Movies."Kevin Smith says, "All the fear about besmirching the original went out the door the minute I was finished with the script." I have no doubt that it did.Score Card: Number of times I covered my eyes in sheer agony: 5 Number of times Dante "shakes his head disapprovingly" at Randal: 10+ Number of times I shook my head disapprovingly at the screen: 50 Number of vomit inducing '80s-style music video montages: 3 Number of people who walked out of the screening: 2 Number of times I wanted to walk out of the screening: 98 Number of inane references to Buffalo Bill in Silence of The Lambs: 2 Number of times I saw the San Bernardino Mts. in the background of New Jersey: 1Number of times I laughed: 1 (I remembered a scene from Dumb and Dumber)Grand Total: Don't see this movie.Grade FClerks II Cast: Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Rosario Dawson Director: Kevin Smith MPAA Rating: R Runtime: 98 minutes Release Company: MGM.
I feel awful saying that as a loyal Kevin Smith and Clerks fan, however, twelve years later, the characters just aren't funny.
Dante is still making the same stupid relationship blunders as before, and most of the supporting cast do little to liven up proceedings  Trevor Fehrman's god-fearing Elias only existence in the film appears to be on the receiving end of most of Randal's grossed out wisdoms, whilst the various cameos (Jason Lee, Ben Affleck, Wanda Sykes) are all too brief to aid things along.The problem is, none of this would matter had the script been dealt some killer gags.
Perhaps it is his return to a dried-up comedic well, stocked with unprofessional actors and tired delivery and dialogue, that makes Clerks 2 seem so parched for pleasure.The only actors worth watching aren't on screen enough, and when they are, Smith's film school dropout directing skills cramp them to the point where the audience is just aching to leave.
I was shocked to find that I was laughing at every sick joke, and delighted by every pop-culture and movie reference, not only the obvious geek references to "Lord of the Rings" or "Transformers," but also the more loving and creative ones, like the homage to "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" where Dante and the other guy ride bumper cars, the Bollywood tribute scene where Becky (a comical and gorgeously-game Rosario Dawson) teaches Dante how to dance, or the hilarious use of the theme music to "The Shining" during Elias' "Pillow Pants" revelation.There's also a great soundtrack that brought back both fond and angst-filled feelings from my youth.
I was going to ask why it is that film studios allow Smith to keep making films, but the answer is patently obvious from the IMDb vote for this movie - there are a lot of people out there who can't get enough of scripts by middle-aged screenwriters who like to pretend they've got their finger on the pulse of "yoof culture" by making a lot of references to drugs, plenty of slacker characters and supposedly edgy or ironic racist / sexual reference.
it just falls heavily and inelegantly between a bar full of stools in a very unsatisfying way.I've seen Clerks, Clerks II and Chasing Amy by Smith, and I'm actually going to go out and track down the rest of his stuff - it holds a kind of morbid fascination for me - i suppose its car crash TV really - how can one man make so many bad movies and so many people go to the cinema to watch them or rent them on DVD.
i get the impression from reading down this thread that kevin smith is very pleased with himself, and this is evident from the unconvincing, grand-standing dialogue in all of his films that i have seen - he may be trying to make a virtue out of geek / chatroom culture with his references to "online handles" but none of it rings true - unfortunately for smith, even for geeks, a one-size fits all arrangement of stereotyping isn't appropriate, and just tells the audience that the writer is lazy and arrogant and has poor character observation skills.
Clerks 2 was released over a decade after the original, over which time Kevin Smith directed and released several films of varying quality.Clerks 2 finds our 'heroes' Dante and Randall still working a counter, only because of the unfortunate demise of the Quick Stop they are stationed at the local Moobies fast food chain.
I'll kinda defend an indefensible dance number half way through the film as it had a great Jackson 5 song, some inspiring jiggling from Ms Dawson, and was basically fun if totally out of place, but the bestiality sequence that ends the film was desperately try hard and basically lacking any semblance of comedy.Aside from that there was a Lord of the Rings diatribe by Randall that was as funny as it was accurate – and I am a huge LOTR trilogy fan – and the film ended reasonably well, hopefully putting a full stop to the adventures of Dante and Randall.Final Rating – 5.5 / 10.
Same for your films up to Dogma, by the way.I even really wanted to like the smarmy last twenty minutes of the movie, but by that time it was too little, too late.I guess it was a combination of ALL these things.
I suggest skipping the movie entirely and renting the "Clerks" cartoons disc 1-6, or better yet, rent "Mallrats", "Dogma" and "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" to not pollute your mind with the trash of this movie, but instead see what Kevin Smith at his best is capable of.
Also on the menu (eh, get it, because that's about how complex the humor in this movie is), are Jay and Silent Bob, a parade of cameos, a big fat biker and the donkey who loved him, and a sexless teenage boy, who is actually the funniest character in the film.
You can walk into this knowing nothing about it and easily pick up on what's happening.When I heard "Clerks II" was going into production I was very skeptical  especially back when its subtitle was "Passion of the Clerks"  but I've got to hand it to Kevin Smith: this is one of his best movies, and a worthy successor to "Clerks." The novelty might be gone and the slacker generation of a decade ago may be a thing of the past, but Smith's finally starting to learn how to expand his characters, and that's a fine point here.
After 12 years of wondering what happened to Dante and Randal after the ending of the first Clerks, this sappy sequel might not have the artistic integrity of the original, but it certainly answers all the burning questions in the viewer's mind.If you're looking for a film with the intelligence and depth of the first, you will be disappointed.
If you've just fallen in love with Kevin Smith's characters from Clerks--Jay and Silent Bob included--then this is the movie you've been waiting for for over a decade.And it's certainly a better ending than Jersey Girl!.
There is a bit of shaky camera movements, and a few scenes that look a bit wacky, but for the most part, it totally works.O'Halloran and Anderson are just as great as, if not better than, their original performances and add a totally new dimensional feel to their characters in this film.
Just a small nitpick, but it just seemed a bit weird in comparison with how busy things get in the original.While it was obvious from the start that the film would not be as good as the original, Smith makes a valiant attempt at returning to his roots and makes for a very funny, and very entertaining movie.
I felt humour sank to new levels of low after Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, a tasteless and juvenile comedy about two people we would only despise in real life; then there is Clerks II which has the added bonus of having people we may give a damn about chasing and dealing with 'real-life' issues, but the film remains a tasteless and comically deprived one all the same.Clerks II is the sequel to the only Kevin Smith film I actually like, 1994's guerrilla hit Clerks which was shot on a nothing budget but had big ideas; jokes and situations you could perhaps relate to and dialogue that would later become synonymous with American Indie.
I enjoyed the original "Clerks", and thought "Chasing Amy" was excellent, but, unless my memory fails me (which is possible), it seems that Kevin Smith has become increasingly vulgar with his dialog over the years, to the point where I simply can't watch his stuff anymore.
Clerks II is NO exception, but he's reined in the stupidity and added enough real human drama to make it bearable for the rest of us.The store from the first movie has burnt down due to Randal's incompetence and he and Dante are forced to work in Mooby's, a Cow-themed fast-food restaurant with the lovely Becky (the utterly gorgeous Rosario Dawson, who I would do 86 ways) and Elias an ultra-Christian who seems to be an exaggerated cross between Rod AND Tod Flanders.
Even Randal, the classic jerk (and my all-time favorite Smith character) has motivations and feelings.Overall I felt that this was the perfect sequel to the original Clerks.
Clerks II is written & directed by Kevin Smith and stars Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, Trevor Fehrman and Rosario Dawson.A calamity at Dante and Randal's stores sends them looking for new horizons - but they ultimately settle at the fast food empire, Mooby's.Following the incredible success of the 1994 classic 'Clerks', Smith returns to write and direct a sequel that holds on to all of the things we loved about the original.
He added a nice dynamic to the movie and I really liked his character.I greatly respect Kevin Smith for his realness in writing and directing, his love for comics, and almost anything else the guy touches.
Staying faithful to everything that made its predecessor an instant classic, taking its graphic humour to a whole new level of extremity and exhibiting a significant upgrade in all aspects, Kevin Smith's follow-up to his 1994 debut feature is definitely one of the funniest, crudest & raunchiest comedies to surface on the silver screen yet carries a charm that most examples of its genre lack.Set 10 years after the events of the first film, Clerks II follows yet another day in the lives of Dante & Randal who, after the accidental incineration of their respective stores, now work at a fast food restaurant.
Dante is about to leave his dead-end lifestyle to settle down in Florida with his girlfriend, Randal has a surprise going-away party planned for his best friend, and both Jay & Silent Bob are still around selling drugs.Written & directed by Kevin Smith, Clerks II is a huge improvement over Clerks that takes everything that was remarkable about the original and catapults it to a new high.
With big time directors such as Michael Bay producing the same stuff over and over, its refreshing to see someone who makes genuinely funny and enjoyable movies and Kevin Smith does this with his sequel to the cult classic Clerks.
He played this great and don't even get me started with Jason Mewes who(if you've seen the other Kevin Smith movies)is so funny and it's good to see that he his keeping himself clean.
I have to admit after seeing Jersey Girl, which was OK, I was a bit skeptical that Kevin Smith could pull off another Clerks/Malrats/Jay and Silent Bob film.
While not quite as good as the original Clerks this one still has a lot of humour, heart and is just a pure entertaining movie that fans of the original and other of Kevin Smith's films have got to check out.