Kevin Smith’s a hit-and-miss director. He himself admits freely that he’s not good on the visual stuff, and since I’m such a fan of visual cinema, this leaves me in an uncomfortable place being a Kevin Smith fan. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, to go straight to the most extreme case, leaves me feeling sore and embarrassed. But Chasing Amy is one of his good ones, up there (and up there alone, the rest all have little flaws for me) with Clerks..

My favourite scene last time I saw this movie, and the many viewings that accompanied that viewing, was always the scene after Ben Affleck confesses his love for Alyssa. His confession is so well written, leaves nothing out, leaves Alyssa no option but to feel sorry for him despite her anger, and then her outburst outside the car, “Do you know who I am?” is just amazing. Sue me, I love it when actors yell their emotions with tears in their eyes.

But I guess I’ve changed. That scene is still great. But I have a new favourite scene, and it’s much earlier in the movie. It’s when Ben Affleck thinks he’s getting into Alyssa’s life somewhat and suddenly the revelation comes that she’s a lesbian. Jason Lee’s performance in this scene is just hysterical. His simultaneous loyalty to his friend and desire to take in the scene of two girls kissing Right In Front Of Him, and his final abandonment to the joy of the whole experience, it’s just downright hilarious. Intercut it with Affleck’s increasing discomfort and disappointment, and you’ve got gold.

Then there’s the racist dissection of Star Wars, the Easter Bunny / Santa Claus / Male-Friendly Lesbian / Man-Hating Dyke monologue, and some of the best Jay and Silent Bob material. But I don’t want to spoil it for anyone.

This is a great film to watch if you’ve never seen a Kevin Smith movie before. It’s probably his most ‘together’ piece. Not overly indie-like like Clerks., not overly studio-fied like Mallrats, not overly personal and sweeping like Dogma, and not insanely cash-cow-ish like Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Jersey Girl I still can’t speak for, but I’m told it’s very corny (not that I’ll mind), which Chasing Amy is anything but.

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 10th, 2004 at 8:19 pm and is filed under 5 hearts, Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.