Okay there is only so good a 16mm blown-up black & white film can look. For the 10th anniversary DVD, the film was restored and an HD version was made. Now we get the full extent of the restoration. It looks cleaner but most shots are still full of grain. None of the problems with the look of the film are part of the bare bones production not the transfer. The audio has also revamped for the 10th anniversary edition. It sounds as good as the source audio files can provide. The alternative and punk soundtrack takes advantage of the rear speakers. Otherwise, the sound is front speaker heavy, but what can one expect from a talky flick like this one?
As for the special features, they're mostly from the CLERK X DVD. But that's not a bad thing. Fans of the film can delve into the View Askewaverse for hours. New to the Blu-ray disc is "The Making of JAY & SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK." Wait, what? In an intro director Kevin Smith explains that if Miramax was going to release yet another version of the film, he wanted to give fans something new. This 90-minute doc from Malcolm Ingram and Smith's wife, Jennifer Schwalbach, is well worth it. It serves as a great extension of the "Snowball Effect" doc from the 10th anniversary disc. The STRIKE BACK making-of chronicles the making of that film and extends a look at Smith's career since CLERKS. A fact I never knew before was that it was Smith who gave the script for GOOD WILL HUNTING to Harvey Weinstein at Miramax.
The "Snowball Effect" making of doc is not just a making of CLERKS doc but also a wonderful look at the life of Smith. It's a must see for Smith and CLERKS fans. Smith's single-minded determination to make the film is impressive. There's also a host of outtakes from "Snowball Effect" that give more insights into the making of the film and the biography of Smith.
As for commentary tracks, the only new option is a pop-up window trivia track. The main audio commentary is from the original laserdisc release. Smith feature prominently in the commentary, which also includes actor/animator/Smith's friend Walt Flanagan, editor/producer Scott Mosier, actor Brian O'Halloran, actor Jason Mewes, actor/cameraman/grip Vincent Pereira, and Ingram. Smith mainly gives his thoughts about the making of the film. Now the picture-in-picture commentary track on the original "first cut" is infinitely more entertaining. Smith, O'Halloran, Anderson, Mosier, and Mewes cut into each other and Smith comes off more grounded in 2004 after the failure of MALLRATS then he did during the laserdisc commentary, which was recorded on the MALLRATS set. The least affective feature is the 10th anniversary screening Q&A. Nothing new is covered that isn't covered in the other docs and many of the questioners are annoying.
For the original script for CLERKS, Smith wrote out the infamous wake scene, but it just wasn't feasible on their budget. For the 10th anniversary disc, Smith went back and produced the scene in the animation style of the CLERKS TV series. It's a funny scene, but I think the film works better with the events left up to the imagination of the audience. The disc also allows viewers to insert the scene into the film.
Also included are Smith's short films FLYING CAR, produced for the JENO LENO SHOW; his Vancouver Film School short MAE DAY: THE CRUMBLING OF A DOCUMENTARY; and the Jay and Silent Bob MTV interstitials. There's also three featurettes on the film's restoration and the original audition tapes. You also get a music video for Soul Asylum's "Can't Even Tell."
Between the JAY & SILENT BOB doc, "Snowball Effect" and the theatrical and first cut versions of the film, this Blu-ray release is an independent film school for less than $40.
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Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
