Clerks 2

I caught a late showing of Clerks 2 Friday night at the lovely Courthouse theater. You know what I love? That the Courthouse theater has a student discount. Oh, and also? That my grad school ID doesn't have an expiration date.

Anyway, Clerks 2. Right. So I headed into the dungeon of the theater (seriously, how many flights of stairs did we have to descend?) and watched commericals and then previews and then finally -- the main event. CreePaul had expressed his love for the film and how he and his Jersey buddies had been quoting it for weeks, blah di blah. He and I don't discuss movies very often, but he's a Jersey boy and very loyal to Kevin Smith, so as the opening credits began to roll, I was calm and relaxed.

When I was in high school, my friends and I watched Clerks at least once a week. Really. By the time I was a sophomore, I was pretty much addicted to Clerks, Mallrats, and Dazed and Confused ("Are you cool man?" "Like how?" "O-kay."). Needless to say, my Kevin Smith love started early. And when you've watched and discussed a movie like Clerks ad infinitum, you're more than a little nervous to see the... shudder... sequel.

But... it... was... great! I laughed harder than I had anticipated and I thought that it was a perfect conclusion to the whole franchise. Jay and Silent Bob are back, still dealing, even after a stint in rehab. And they'd discovered Jesus. Hilarious. Dante is now engaged to a woman even more annoying than Veronica and Caitlin combined. Randal is still as obnoxious as always, hating on the customers and the world. There are a few new characters, including Becky, played to perfection by Rosario Dawson, and Elias, a coworker played by Trevor Fehrman, who steals every one of his scenes. Seriously, keep your eyes out for this guy.

I honestly cannot pick my favorite part, but there is a Star Wars vs. Lord of the Rings debate that practically had me shooting Cherry Coke out of my nose. And if you're worried about seeing it without the knowledge of the first, no worries. There are only a few allusions to the "plot" in the first, so you won't be lost. For fans of the first, there are some great inside jokes, especially at the end.

I think that Kevin Smith did an excellent job of tying up any loose ends and really delved into the minds of his characters -- they're still clerks after ten years? How do they feel about this? What are they going to do? I was pleasantly surprised, and I think that you will be, too.