Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith) are
characters that were introduced in Smith’s first movie, the hilarious low-budget
comedy Clerks. Jay is the loudmouth, expletive-shouting ignoramus who stands
outside the Quick Stop convenience store and attempts to deal drugs (or throw insults) to
the customers as they walk inside. His sidekick, Silent Bob, stays quiet unless he has
something important to say -- sometimes only once per film. Smith has managed to include
the duo in every film he’s made, and here he gives them the starring role in this
movie that attempts to send up not only his own work, but also that of many of the actors
in this film and some Hollywood icons.
Strike Back features an abundance of stars including Ben Affleck, Matt Damon,
Carrie Fischer, Shannon Elizabeth, Jason Lee, Mark Hamill, and many others -- many of who
have been in Smith’s four previous films. Even directors Gus Van Sant and Wes Craven
show up to let themselves take some gentle ribbing. It’s an alumni feature, but
unfortunately the humor is as inconsistent as it was in most of Smith’s other films.
The beginning is great as he starts off with some clever scenes with Jay and Silent Bob as
children and how they first came to stand in front of the Quick Stop store in the first
place. The next part is almost straight out of Clerks where Randal (Jeff Anderson)
and Dante (Brian O’Halloran) get a restraining order to keep the unscrupulous duo
from hanging around outside. It then turns to a story about a trip to Hollywood where Jay
and Silent Bob intend to destroy a film being made about characters based on them (which
are related to characters from Smith’s Chasing Amy). It’s after that
strong and funny beginning that it starts to hit and miss.
Clerks was Smith’s most consistent film in terms of making an audience
laugh. The others have sputtered throughout with moments of extreme highs and lows, all
seemingly attributable to Smith’s inability to determine what is funny and what is
not and when we’ve seen too much. In Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob were the best
part of what was essentially a mediocre comedy. Here they’re funny too, but
they’re best in smaller doses like in Dogma. However, Smith recruited a lot of
stars who try to fill the void. Ironically, the two genuine comedians who show up for
brief appearances come off the worst. George Carlin and Chris Rock fall completely flat
with embarrassing scenes that should have been left out completely. Surprisingly,
it’s Ben Affleck who comes across the best. He successfully mocks himself and films
and then lets Smith have others poke fun at what are likely some of his own Hollywood
indiscretions. It’s these inside jokes that are the funniest.
Smith made Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back for two audiences: those who have seen
all of his previous films and like to revel in all the inside jokes and those that see way
too many Hollywood movies and like to see Smith throw darts at his own industry. I fall
into both categories and liked the film enough to recommend it to people just like me.
And, yes, like Smith’s other films, it not only has its bad moments, but it also has
great ones too that almost had me out of my seat again. For the rest of the world, though,
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is an uneven ride and only worthy of a **1/2.
Writer/director/actor Kevin Smith’s movies are sometimes difficult to
watch, and that’s surprising because he makes comedies. His brand of rude-and-crude
humor can be funny -- very funny. But just moments after he delivers something
on-screen that is so funny that it has you nearly falling out of your theater seat,
he’ll deliver something that will make you either groan with disappointment or, worse
yet, make you and the audience feel so uncomfortable and embarrassed for him and the
actors that you want to turn away and run for the door. He can go from exceedingly clever
and funny to stupid and immature in a snap.