Filmmaker Kevin Smith returns to the stamping ground of his breakthrough independent film of 1994, with rather ingratiating, if imperfect, results. Dante (Brian O'Halloran) shows up for work one day to find the Quick Stop in flames. The next chapter of his life sees him and Randal (Jeff Anderson) working for the fast food joint "Mooby's"; however, there exists a chance for Dante to escape a dead-end life by marrying his girlfriend (played by Smiths' real-life wife, Jennifer Schwalbach) and moving to Florida.
There's the expected barrage of raunchy humour and vulgarities, but Smith still manages to come up with some priceless lines. His main problem is with the pacing, as some scenes really go on too long. And what's with that production number set to the Jackson Five? Anyway, the film ultimately emerges as pretty engaging, especially for any loyal Kevin Smith fan; there are some choice cameos by actors from the Smith filmography. But what's key to really making "Clerks II" work is its portrayal of the Dante / Randal friendship, which comes to a head in the third act, and some fairly poignant dialogue. The story *does* have some real heart.
The Randal character runs the risk of wearing out his welcome, but it's still amusing the way that this terminally immature, irresponsible character operates without a filter and says whatever he damn well pleases. He has a slew of sardonic comments for just about any occasion. (Although, along those lines, some of this viewers' favourite moments occur when Randal has *no* witty comeback to something someone else has said.)
The cast is just fine, with Dante as the perennial straight man and Randal as the irreverent one. Rosario Dawson is a delight as the "Mooby's" boss with whom Dante has forged another strong relationship; she and O'Halloran have great chemistry. Jason Mewes and Smith himself are still funny as shameless slackers Jay and Silent Bob (indulging in enough "Goodbye, Horses" gags for two movies). Trevor Fehrman is amusing as dorky "Mooby's" co-worker Elias.
There is an over-reliance on "nerd"-based humour, as the "Lord of the Rings" and "Transformers" stuff is dragged out too much. But Smith wraps things up with such an appealing conclusion that he still generates plenty of good vibes. At the end, there is a nice message about taking control of ones' life.
Seven out of 10.
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