bifjenks

This peaks the resurgence of the great British Comedies

It seemed that there would never be another at one point and then suddenly BOOM!! Ab Fab, Alan Partridge, Father Ted, League of Gentlemen, Ali G

In short if theres a more funny take on real life then i want to see it!! It is every working mans club up and down the country, it's the entire Blackpool Prom in two series. Peter Kay has finally been given artistic licence and he takes it. The routines are excellent and you really have to see each show two or three times to take in all the jokes. The lack of canned laughter in the shows gives the audience an intellect rather than a cue and helps the show flourish.

Please! Please! more of this. It is the future of comedy. No it may not travel but who cares enjoy it it probably wouldn't last!

Ok lets look at this film from both angles. Coming after the amazing Clerks this second film in the series was always going to suffer from comparisons. I can see how film critics might see this as a poorer neighbour of his other films for a start it's shamless in its off the wall style humour it tends to read like a comic book rather than his previous and post masterpieces. Lets face it the acting sucks!! The more acomplished actors in the film shone through despite having to deliver some of Smiths more complex set piece comedy routines Jason Lee & Claire Forlani handled there parts to perfection Shannon Doherty tagged along for the extra publicity for the film (please see box covers) ,But some of the others always seemed out of their depth with Jeremy London at the top of the list. Kevins Smiths insistence in providing friends with bit parts hinders his films as scenes like the comic book store when Brodie finds out Stan Lee is signing spoil the film due to atrocious acting by extras. Now we have the negatives out the way let me say that out of all the Smith films it has a special place in my collection ok it's no Clerks but it's funny, the dialouge and comic timing of Lee give the film a great edge and the enclosed setting of the mall and limited number of characters makes for good development of the main 6 or 7 actors. All in all Mallrats is flawed but only in it's deliverance. The script is excellent and it could have been so much better had it come out maybe 3 or 4 years later when the budgets were bigger. I think Mallrats is the film Jay & Bob strike back should have been!!

Sorry did i miss something? did i walk out early? The first ten minutes of unusual (and untrue!) stories had me thinking "This is going to be a classic" But it was all down hill from there! The acting was brilliant, for what it's worth William H Macy is fantastic and just gets better and better every film i watch him in. But it never seemed to connect. I was waiting for the big moment where all the stories inter connect and then suddenly..it rains frog?? it was if the writer said "i've gone to deep how can i pull all these stories together cleverely....Oh sod it i'll just have it raining frogs". I like clever movies, i like strange movies but this was just odd and boring. 4/10

People think i'm crazy i don't care this is simply a fantastic movie!! I know, I know it's over the top. But who casts Richard E Grant & Sandra Bernhardt as main baddies and thinks "could happen". It's supposed to be over the top and it's wonderfully over the top from the musical heists to the psycho butler with his "Marathon man" weapon. It's comic book stuff. Yes it's no oscar winner and i'm sure looking back Bruce Willis probably would wince (He never admitted regreted colour of the night though!). Listen you either love it or you hate it. I love it. Give it a chance!! It'll grow on you honest!

Granted i was 13 last time i saw this one but it was and i'd wager still is a great, fun and enjoyable teen comedy. Coming at a time when the Haim/Feldman era was peaking it is possibly Lost Boys aside (different class!) their best movie. I can remember thinking "i wish i was Haim" by the end of the great reverse driving sequence and it also gave me my first real crush on a young Heather Graham. It's not going to win any awards but it was a trend setter for modern films such as She's all that, 10 Things i hate about you and Califonia Man (sorry Encino man for those of the USA variety). If you like them then this is a safe bet.