Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6247 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-02-19
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 93 minutes

Amazon.com
Kevin Smith knows his audience, so he's mostly indulging his fans with the abundance of Clerks II's DVD extras. On disc 1, three separate commentaries cover the entirety of Clerks II's production, beginning with Smith, producer Scott Mosier, and original Clerks director of photography David Klein talking about Clerks II's technical details, focusing on Klein's approach to the film's desaturated colour palette, the benefits of digital color manipulation, and other aspects of the DP's craft. It's informative material for anyone who's curious about the many decisions that go into any film's overall look and feel. Smith and Mosier return for the cast commentary, which quickly devolves into a casual free-for-all with Jason Mewes, Jeff Anderson, Brian O'Halloran, Trevor Fehrman, and Jennifer Schwalbach candidly riffing on varied topics including reluctance or enthusiasm in reprising their Clerks roles, on-set romance (Mewes and Fehrman got some), working with Dawson (who was unavailable when the commentary was recorded), and their general happiness with the film. Smith, Mosier, and Anderson also provide a podcast commentary that's more focused, but mostly redundant if you've listened to the other two. With an introduction by Smith and Mosier, over 30 minutes of deleted scenes are OK but not great, with some nice character interplay between Anderson and O'Halloran, and some mostly-improvisational riffing from stand-up comedians Wanda Sykes and Earthquake in extended takes from their "Mooby's" scene. "A Closer Look at Interspecies Erotica" is a good-natured featurette about Zak "Sexy Stud" Knutson, who gamely made movie history with his leather-clad performance in the infamous "donkey-show" scene.

Mosier and Smith (who obsessively monitors his fans and critics on the Internet) also provide introductions to the features on disc 2, starting with "Back to the Well," a comprehensive 90-minute "making of' documentary that's almost as fun as the movie itself. "How Movies Are Made" is another name for "Blooper Reel," with nearly 30 minutes of flubs, goofs, and crack-ups--enjoyable enough for a quick look, but mostly a waste of time. The 50-minute compilation of "Train Wrecks" (or video production diaries) is more worthwhile, covering such topics as crewmember intros (with Mewes), Smith's early feedback screening (in December 2005) for friends Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, and the eight-minute standing ovation that Clerks II received at the 2006 Cannes film festival. All in all, these bonus features function as a video scrapbook for Clerks II's cast and crew, revealing a happy shoot that led, to the relief and delight of everyone involved, to a happy ending of critical and box-office success. The uninitiated should be forewarned that most of these features are just as lewd and crude as Clerks II itself, but devotees of the View Askewniverse wouldn't have it any other way. --Jeff Shannon

Synopsis
In 1994, writer-director Kevin Smith scored a surprise indie hit with the low-budget, black and white CLERKS, which won awards at the Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals and has attracted a growing cult audience over the years. Following such movies as MALLRATS, CHASING AMY, and DOGMA, Smith returns to his roots for CLERKS II, a very funny, very raunchy sequel. It's been more than 10 years, but Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson) are still working at the same Quick Stop video and convenience store in New Jersey--until it burns down. They both end up finding jobs at the nearby Mooby's, a fast-food joint (with the motto 'I'm Eating It!') managed by Becky (Rosario Dawson). While Dante gets prepared to move to Florida to marry Emma (Smith's real-life wife, Jennifer Schwalbach), Randal harasses geeky 'Funployee of the Month' Elias (Trevor Fehrman), a dweeb who worships the TRANSFORMERS and believes, much to Randal's consternation, that THE LORD OF THE RINGS is superior to STAR WARS. Also back are Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith), who contribute their own warped world view of sex, drugs, and rock & roll. The film features a string of cameos by familiar faces from other Smith films, and an eclectic soundtrack ranging from Talking Heads and the Smashing Pumpkins to King Diamond and the godly Alanis Morissette.

Customer Reviews

One of the best film sequels ever!
'Clerks 2' sees Randal Graves and Dante Hicks return in the long-awaited sequel to Kevin Smith's 1995 low-budget, independant film 'Clerks' and although not as clever or as funny as the original it is still one of the best comedies I've seen in a long time.

The film begins when the convenience store from the original and where Randal and Dante have been working for the last decade, is burnt down when Randal accidentally leaves the coffee machine on overnight. This then forces the two to work in a local fast food chain, Mooby's where they are faced with the everyday annoyances such as their colleague and uber-geek Elias, Jay and Silent Bob and various other ignorant customers (including cameos from Ben Affleck and Jason Lee) and general boredom, resulting in a lot of arguements and trouble. Dante however is planning on leaving this minimum wage job to marry his fiance, Emma and start a family, but he falls in love with his boss Becky, which causes no end of problems.

I'm a massive fan of the Kevin Smith films such as the original Clerks (and the animated series), Mallrats, Dogma and Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back (although I didn't much like Chasing Amy) and 'Clerks 2' is a fine addition to the collection and is probably the best and funniest since the original. With so many memorable and hilarious scenes such as the "best trilogy" scene and the Jackson 5/A-B-C dance scene, as well as spoofs from films like Silence of the Lambs, this film is simply unmissable and as offensive and brilliant as ever. I can't recommend this film highly enough!

What on earth are some people complaining about?
Jonathan Ross couldn't stand this film. I can think of no higher recommendation than that.

Yes, it's in colour. Yes, it's had a bit more money spent on it. Yes, they're all a little older. Grow up!

Still laugh-out-loud funny, though. Randal's recreation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy on the floor of Mooby's hamburger bar (and he's NOT a fan) is worth the price of this DVD on its own!

It won't replace the original, but it is surprisingly touching
Making a film sequel to a comedy is like performing heart surgery while blindfolded. In 1994, Kevin Smith struck the world with his debut, Clerks, a black and white, minimalistic and very profane indie, not to mention one of the best comedies ever made. 12 years later, he brings everyone's favorite slackers back, with hilarious results.

Things have changed over the years, despite the apparently normal opening sequence: still in black and white, it sees Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) getting ready for a new day of work. Then comes the shocking discovery: the Quick Stop store is on fire! From that point on, the film is in color, as it chronicles Dante's last day working at Mooby's (a fictional McDonald's-like place). You see, he's moving to Florida with his fiancée, Emma (Jennifer Schwalbach, the director's wife), which implies leaving his boss Becky (Rosario Dawson) and nerdy co-worker Elias (Trevor Fehrman) alone with the consistently rude Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson). Oh, and Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith), quite simply two of the best comedy characters ever, still hanging outside the store doing nothing. But last day doesn't mean it's any different form other days: as usual, Dante and Randal do anything except work, whether it's discussing racial insults or receiving unexpected visits from old high school mates (Jason Lee in a cracking cameo). Same situations, different movie, then?

Not quite, as Clerks II has one special thing that was missing back in 1994: sentiment. This time the characters have feelings, even Randal who, despite refusing to admit it, is going to miss his friend (as the beautiful, Butch Cassidy-referencing go-kart sequence shows). As for Dante, his scenes with Becky are the most touching material Smith has ever shot, thanks to brilliant dialogue and a great performance from Dawson.

This new ingredient, however, doesn't mean the director has forgotten what made the first movie so great: the outrageous, so-filthy-you-won't-let-your-mom-see-it humor. Moving it may be, but fundamentally Clerks II is exactly the same as the original: extremely funny and incredibly foul-mouthed. The jokes are relentlessly crude, but the actors'comic timing (particularly Jeff Anderson's) ensures viewers will keep laughing long after the end credits have stopped rolling.