“I assure you that we’re open”

I love independent cinema. One of my favorites is Clerks, which I watched again last night. I really like the movie, but I realized that there isn’t a ton of plot. Mostly it’s the two clerks talking about events and their hilarious hi-jinks with various patrons. You can pick up at any scene and get sucked into the movie (i.e. their conversation). The way the day plays out is pure black comedy. It’s so ridiculous when you look at it on paper (an old man dead in the bathroom or a 6 year being sold cigarettes on accident). On screen, the rapport between Randal & Dante is what makes it all work. Plus, the director, Kevin Smith, really stretched the meaning of low budget. He financed the entire film on credit cards.

Smith used 16mm black/white film, but if it was made today, he might have used camcorders instead. A first time filmmaker could use a JVC everio to capture similar events at a convenience or retail store. I know at retail stores that weird things do actually happen. I’ve seen cats dressed up in pink dresses in the grocery store. Or people with gloves examining every product, which is similar to the egg-checking freak in the movie. What would be key for me to re-create Clerks is the acting. I would need an on-screen duo that can bounce off dialogue naturally. It’s all about the commentary on the strange events that you need to nail the entertainment factor. Once you have that, doesn’t matter if it’s shot on film or a dvd camcorder.

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