If you haven’t had the chance yet, rent out Kevin Smith’s previous films, Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy & Dogma. Between all these films runs a series of gags and off-beat reflections on youth culture that keep you laughing. Smith has promised that this will be the last film he makes which features the colourful collection of characters that fans have come to love.
Hopefully he keeps his promise. Interestingly enough, even Smith seems to have known this film was a bad idea. Perhaps that’s what he was thinking when he developed the storyline: Jay and Silent Bob find out that Miramax are about to make a film about them, an idea that displeases them immensely. So they set forth from their New Jersey home and head for Los Angeles with the intention of sabotaging the production. Despite the occasional bursts of Smith trademark humour (which often serve only to remind you of how good this film might have been), too much reliance is placed on re-enacted gags from previous Smith instalments and referential humour which amuses at first but can’t carry a film on its own. The film is full of references from the characters which suggest that basing a film on the actions of Jay and Bob alone is a bad idea. Even more frustrating is that Smith had many of the hilarious characters from his previous work at his disposal. Guest appearances are made by Brodie & Banky (Jason Lee), Dante (Brian Christopher O’Halloran) and Randall (Jeff Anderson) amongst others, with the scenes in which they appear being the funniest in the film. Which leaves you wondering why more was not made of their appearances and lamenting that instead, Jay and Silent Bob are left by themselves for too much of the movie, their uniqueness dulled as they gradually fade away rather than burning out in one final moment of glory.