Clerks. Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Just Because They Serve You... Doesn't Mean They Like You.
A very funny look at the over-the-counter culture.
"I'm not even supposed to be here today!" - Dante
This Job Sucks
It Delivers.
Dante Hicks is a clerk at a local convenience store in New Jersey. On one particular Saturday morning, he gets called in on his day off. Once there, he must deal with multiple problems. The shutters outside won't open. His ex-girlfriend, whom he is still in love with, is getting married. His girlfriend, who bugs him about starting college, has revealed certain, uh...stuff about her past. His boss hasn't come in to take his place. He has a hockey game at 2 o'clock. Another ex has died, and today's the last day he can go to her wake. He must deal with customers that aren't so intelligent. His friend, Randal, a clerk at the video store next door, is even less dedicated to his job than Dante, and is always bothering Dante's customers. And the biggest problem of them all: HE'S NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE THERE TODAY!! Can Dante manage it all?
| Brian O'Halloran | Dante Hicks |
| Jeff Anderson | Randal Graves |
| Marilyn Ghigliotti | Veronica Loughran |
| Lisa Spoonhauer | Caitlin Bree |
| Jason Mewes | Jay |
| Kevin Smith | Silent Bob |
| Scott Mosier | Willam Black/Angry Hockey Playing Customer/Angry Mourner |
| Walter Flanagan | Woolen Cap Smoker/Egg Man/Offended Customer/Cat Admiring Bitter Customer |
| Scott Schiaffo | Chewlie's Rep |
| Al Berkowitz | Old Man |
| David Klein | Hunting Cap Smoking Boy/Low I.Q. Video Customer/Hubcap Searching Customer/Angry Mourner/Angry Crowd at Door |
| Ed Hapstak | Sanford/Angry Mourner |
| Pattijean Csik | Coroner |
| Ernest O'Donnell | Rick Derris (Trainer) |
| Kimberly Loughran | Heather Jones (Alyssa's sister) |
| Kevin Smith |
7.90 out of 10 (58406 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Wonderfully well told tale of workin man blues.
posted on 24 Aug 2009When all is said and done this movie really tells a great story, bottom line. And that is all that it needs to be one of MY favorite films ever.With Randal and Dante's foul mouthed conversing blended in with some very colorful antics, this film really tells the tale that every man feels every morning. The tale of having to get up and go to work! With all this even, somehow, a love story is also told. The relationship of best friends and girlfriends is told through wonderfully nasty humor...AND I LOVED IT.
A film that isn't afraid to rely on human verbal communication instead of special effects
posted on 24 Aug 2009Its refreshing to see a director take a script that is so simple in its premise and use it is such a novel and convincing manner. The way that the characters are brought to life in this grim modern day portrayal of convinence store behaviour. The film doesn't even seem to follow a script, instead almost fools the views in to thinking that a security camera has just filmed these people in there everyday behaviour, (even though it could be said some of the situations are slightly out there). I congratulate Kevin Smith of a fine tale of worker day blues, while mixing in element of good music, pop culture and damn amusing situations. Those who don't like it... I scoff (A pack of savages in this town)
Irreverence has never felt so good or been this funny!!!
posted on 24 Aug 2009Clerks is an irreverent, low budget, and poorly shot film that has perfectly captured a generation. It is about two drift-about clerks who talk ironically about a myriad of issues as they watch life (and customers) pass by. It's humor is brazenly audacious, and it is so smart with its attitudes towards apathy, pop culture, and urban life, that you forget you are watching a film by a 24 year old shot for 20K. Its humor comes not only from pop culture, but from Kevin Smith's perfect understanding of the dilemma that young people face in regards to career, sex, and social life.
All that, and it has the funniest demonstration of ironic detachment ever captured on film. It is as enjoyable a time as you can have watching people do nothing.
What a Flick
posted on 18 Aug 2009When I first seen this film I watch it through a friends recommendation after he had talked about the "Cousin Walter" scene constantly I liked the film but it wasn't until about a year later that I went back again and I loved it. There are no bad things in this film from Jay and Silent Bob through to Dante and Randal's Monologues this is one highly enjoyable film rent, buy, steal anything to see this film.
Superb fast pace comedy, which bears all the hallmarks of a Kevin Smith film.
posted on 15 Aug 2009Shot over a period of only two days and for a budget of only $26,000, Kevin Smith delivers a feat of cinimatical achievement. This film is constantly funny (albeit sometimes crude) and never leaves the viewer bored or confused. Similar to the later film `Mallrats` which was shot on a much larger budget, but equally as hilarious. Overall I think the major achievement is how Kevin Smith did so much with so little.
Low Brow
posted on 03 Aug 2009This movie is not brilliant as people seem to think. I was hoping for more but was disappointed to find that this movied relied on the tried and true formula of white trash humor. For some reason people eat this stuff up. Admittedly there are a few well written parts but it is overshadowed by the crust.
All Character. No Plot.
posted on 31 Jul 2009The beauty of Clerks is that it realizes that its main characters are losers and thus doesn't even screw with a plot because quite frankly, when's the last time a Store Clerk shared an entertaining story that encompassed more than, `A real freak came into the store today, and . . .' These guys have no lives. We don't care about their lives. So Clerks shows off anecdotal moments from a day--strange customers, weird moments, conversations with no point that lead nowhere . . . and that's the film. And you know what? I like it more than most comedies out there.What I find frightening is that the Clerks cast has more development than most epics, tragedies, dramas. The characters don't have the plot to trip over, so everything in the film builds towards the characters; what's even sadder is the fact you wouldn't want –these- two losers to be some of the more developed characters you'll find on the rental shelf, but they are. Everyone wants to rave about plot and how important it is and put all your focus into just the plot, so it's kinda queer that we don't have more good plot driven films. Then when the plot is actually good, the characters are mediocre because everything was put into the plot . . . so we have a plot we don't care about because we hate the characters. When is the industry going to wake up and realize that storytelling is more than just one or two elements? That you have to combine everything together roughly equally?With that said, why do I still like Clerks since it has no plot to speak of?
If it had a plot, would I have cared about it with these two losers at the helm? Kevin Smith knew better, and set out with a different agenda . . . plot wasn't the point of Clerks. This is one of the rare times when someone goes to the other end of the spectrum without being offensive, but just goes to show how overrated the `plot' can be. As idiotic and worthless as the Dante and Randal and the people in the Clerks environment are . . . it's still entertaining without a plot. I wouldn't want my collection of DVDs to all be like Clerks, but the film is a nice film to pop in and ask, `How important is the plot when everything is said and done?'
Original, crude and funny
posted on 16 Jul 2009This is an indie film (VideoHound gives a $27,575 budget) filmed in not so glorious black and white that is strikingly original, and I mean strikingly, and funny. Depicting the early twenties slacker set in suburban New Jersey a decade ago, it focuses on convenience store clerk Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran), who is adrift in that never-never land between high school and Making Something of Himself. He still pines for his high school hottie Caitlin Bree (Lisa Spoonhauer), especially when he learns that his current girl friend Veronica (Marilyn Ghigliotti) has, shall we say, had intimate rocket knowledge of thirty-seven different guys, although she had sex with only three of them, including him. Ah, well, what's a snowball or two between friends?Next door to the convenience store is a video rental store clerked by Dante's best bud, Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson). Randal scares off the customers, rents his videos elsewhere and just generally slacks off and offends at all times, except when giving career and sexual advice to Dante.
Hanging out outside and dealing are Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith). Kevin Smith also directed and wrote the script and probably did the catering and clean up as well. He is one very clever and talented dude who told it like it almost was while mildly satirizing the New Jersey denizens and the slacker mentality, but with affection and a kind of light-hearted aplomb.There's some absurdity, Caitlin making love to a dead man and not realizing he's dead, the guys playing stick ball hockey on the roof of the convenience store, Randal selling cigs to a four-year-old who lights up, etc., mixed with the pathos of making minimum wage and going nowhere, and some sight gags and a whole lot of spiffy, crude, and dead-panned one-liners. Nothing is taken too seriously, including Kevin Smith and his film, so that when they run the final credits we are pleased with this slice of indeterminate life in the Garden State.I was reminded of some other low budget films made about the same time including Bang (1995), Floundering (1994) and The Unbelievable Truth (1990), especially the latter, but none are as outrageously funny as Clerks.
Incidentally, this is currently ranked in IMDb's Top 250.
Clerks * Kevin Smith * 1994
posted on 10 Jul 2009Dante, a grocery store clerk, is forced to go into work on his day off, one that turns out to be one of the most bizarre of his life. The acting and direction here is extremely average, but it is the fantastic, endlessly quotable script that makes this such a hugely popular cult film. The very definition of an 'indie'.7/10.
The penny-wise movie that began the snow-ball...
posted on 07 Jul 2009Kevin Smith. 1994. Fresh out of film school (yes, he went). A film in black and white framed with a 16mm camera. A budget not even sufficient for a car purchase. A multi-credited cast (see previous budget comment). And a script full of witty bar-stool jokes with language that would ban you from grandma's house forever.The Result: Instant Cult ClassicClerks is Kevin Smith's theatrical debut (50 screens count, right?) and hits a chord with today's "tweener"-aged crowd. The far-from-Baby-Boomers, but not quite Gen-Xers get the most out of this flick. Throw in a high school degree and your enjoyment level increases ten-fold.For a movie with such crude puns, the dialogue that runs aplenty in between the one-liners is so clever it demands several trips to the video store. Just make the purchase and save the effort; it definitely deserves a spot in your own collection.New Jersey natives will love the film's various homages, but they are only the icing on the proverbial cake. The conclusion of the film leaves you wondering just how you had such a good time with a "day in the life of" plot. After trying Kevin Smith's other works: Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, and Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, you will better understand. He finds plots (maybe except Mallrats), develops characters, and even moves the camera. Hey, he even grabbed School Ties's & Dazed and Confused's Ben Affleck before he was drilling holes in the moon. The man's got an eye for this film thing folks, watch his stuff and prove me wrong.He also had his creative hands on Drawing Flies, A Better Place, Good Will Hunting, & Vulgar.Watch Clerks and learn the double meaning of the Summary above. Kevin Smith is definitely on a roll and if the film world is smart, they'll step aside and let him lead.
The funniest film ive seen in years!
posted on 25 Jun 2009This is brilliant! I had heard people talking about this for ages before i finally decided to sit down and watch it, but im so glad i did. My first thoughts where 'Ow, it's in black and white, what good movies have ever been made in black and white?'then i thought to myself 'Raging Bull, Schindlers list, etc'. This is hilarious! And endlessly watchable. If you havent seen it i strongly suggest that you rent it out immediately!
How was this rated so high?
posted on 22 Jun 2009I went into this movie expecting laughs galore. To be fair, i watched half of the movie before turning it off, so I'm only commenting on the first half. I love all types of comedy, but this movie was abysmal. The acting was HORRENDOUS, with the exception of Jay (and I guess Silent Bob). The other actors sucked the big one. They sounded like they were reading off of cue cards, with no timing in between lines of different characters. I admit that the movie's story had some type of depth, but it was lost to me due to the horrible acting and total lack of funny scenes. As I said, I didn't laugh one time. Very highly rated by other users, so maybe it was just me, but this is quite possibly the worst movie I've ever seen (I've walked out on 1 other movie in my 30+ years of life).
For the lowest common denominator
posted on 19 Jun 2009If you like humor that contains phrases like ' That's what she said ' and other equally crass dialogue, then you will love this movie. Kevin Smith is supposedly this wunderkind of writing dialogue. However it really just appeals to the lowest common denominator.
Total Garbage
posted on 19 Jun 2009I've heard so many good things about this movie that, I just had to see it. What I came away with after viewing it was a bad taste in my mouth.How can so many people like this piece of garbage? I'll summarize with this... Unlikely dialog, delivered by slack jawed uninteresting losers, who feel life has given them a bad break.No one talks like they did in the film. I've met a broad spectrum of people from every conceivable profession and, none of them spoke the way the people in this piece-of-crap film do. This movie is so overrated its not even slightly funny.I do like some other of Kevin Smith's films however. But this is not one of them. I'll never figure out why people hold it in such high regard.
Overrated But Worthwhile Nevertheless
posted on 13 Jun 2009Clerks has, in my opinion, been ridiculously overrated by critics and moviegoers alike. It's uneven and much of the humor is sophomoric.Still, I like it and purchased the DVD. There are moments that are laugh out loud funny. If you're looking for a few good laughs on a Saturday night you should definitely rent it.
Clerks=great comedy
posted on 13 Jun 2009Clerks 9/10Wow this movie is just plain good. This movie really has the best dialog written for a movie. It just reflects how when you get that point of your life when you got to figure out how you are going to get through life. Dante and Randell are not going to take any risks, instead they are going to live in their hometown (parent's house) and work at a mediocre job for the rest of their lives.Dante's relationships with Veronica is his path for him to move on with his nothing of a life to maybe a future of taking risks. Then there is Veronica where he is trying to regress to his high school days. It is sad that Dante doesn't realize that she is the past move on. Dante situation I think most people go through a period of not knowing where to go. We got choices to regress or make progress. That is something the movie really got me to thinking.Dante's and Randell's friendship is the beginning of the friendship with two guys that can be seen in Superbad. Randell is hilarious and that is how I will always typecast Jeff Anderson. Least favorite parts: Black and white (it just scares away casual film viewers from watching) There was a whole film sequence that was not film which would be entertaining to see. Favorite Parts: 37, Berserker,Happy Scrappy Hero pupRecommendation: Buy it and then put it on your ipod because of being so dialog heavy
37?!?!
posted on 14 May 2009THIS MOVIE KICKS!!!! IF YOU LIKE PROFANE, OFF COLOR (OFTEN VULGAR AND DISTASTEFUL) HUMOR, AND IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT, RENT IT NOW!!! ALSO WATCH "MALLRATS" , "CHASING AMY" , AND "DOGMA", ALL WRITTEN BY CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED DIRECTOR/COMIC BOOK WRITER KEVIN SMITH. YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!!!
Kevin Smith makes awesome movies, BUT...
posted on 30 Aug 2009I've seen a few of Kevin Smith's flicks: "CLERKS", "MALLRATS", "CHASING AMY", "DOGMA" and the all of the animated episodes of CLERKS which are comic gold!, but i believe the CLERKS movie is the worst of them all...and i dont mean that its a good movie but the weakest from Kevin Smith. It's about nothing...2 guys just bitch about thier lives, and worst of all, it's not funny. I kept eyeing the clock while sitting thru this one. All in all, an awful movie that's not worth the rental fee, but dont get me wrong! Rent the sequels mentioned above. Click movie connections on the left hand side of this page in the menu bar to find more info about the sequels. My vote a 3/10