Clerks (1994)

Quite a controversial movie, I would say, yet the very one from all by Kevin Smith I actually like. Not for those below-the-belt jokes but this lowlife vibe most of us lost on the halfway to adult life. Now I find myself lying with my laptop on a couch, like I always do after a long day at work, filling out the form 8862 and recalling the times like that. The times when the bare minimum seemed to be a freedom and the only thing one needs to be satisfied with their life.

**A rude but understandable film.**
I just saw this film, and honestly I was hoping for a slightly different comedy, with a more elaborate, more conventional structure and not based so much on endless dialogues. It is, however, an independent film, made a little outside of what traditional circuits and big studios are, and the budget is limited. If we consider all this, I think we can understand the film better.
The film basically accompanies a day in the life of two commercial employees who hate their jobs but need them, like any mortal. They work closely together and are friends, but the day promises not to be easy for either of them. The film is based on jokes of a very rude nature, sometimes also on the inelegant manners of the characters. There are a lot of allusions to pop culture throughout the movie as well, and I didn't always get that. It's not the kind of humor I really enjoy, though the film has its moments. Perhaps this style of humor works better with young people and teenagers than with someone more adult...
The cast features a number of actors that I don't really know. Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson had their most relevant work in this film, from what I've seen. The film is quite restrained in terms of costumes and scenery, and I believe that real stores were used for the production. What can be considered a weakness, the low budget, was to some extent an advantage, taking into account the type of film they preferred to make here. The cinematography is very good and well used, and is perhaps the film's most artistic feature.