Cinema a la Smith

                                    

Before we all fell over ourselves for Judd Apatow & Co., this generation of comedy film fans was all for Kevin Smith and his twisted take on the Jersey ‘burbs. In my opinion, Smith still holds the heavy weight belt when it comes to witty dialogue, which makes his films the kind that you watch several times before you pick up all the little witticisms and one-liners. It was a hankering for Smith’s smartly silly styling's that instigated a Kevin Smith Film Fest @ Casa Michelle this morning… Well, that and a desire to avoid being productive despite a shit-load of homework, housework, and house hunting to do. I watched his mainstream blockbuster successes - Dogma and Clerks II – but since I woke up waaaaay too early this morning, there was more time to kill. I pulled out my VHS copy of Clerks (the original), but my VCR is already packed up in a box somewhere. I enjoyed an illegally available internet version of Mallrats, then just as I nearly settled on watching Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back I remembered my all time favorite Kevin Smith cinematic gem… Chasing Amy! An hour of downloading later & I was in Romantic Comedy heaven! If you have forgotten how good the movie was, take my advice & refresh your memory! For those of you that have the misfortune of never having seen Chasing Amy, get on the ball Bitches. The film is chock full of ‘90s goodness, comic book-loving nerdiness, multi-faceted sexual confusion, and that patented Kevin Smith humor that takes dick & fart jokes to a new level of sophistication. Slacker humor aside, Chasing Amy is a classic because it’s honest & intelligent in it’s approach to the modern romance. The shaky love story of Alyssa Jones and Holden McNeal, the self-proclaimed lesbian and the inexperienced Jersey Boy, is sweet. It’s complex, it’s tragic and it’s believable. You can empathize with each of the film’s characters, regardless of your own sexual orientation or preferences. Holden is hopelessly in love with an unattainable girl, or at least his ideal of who this girl is, and who hasn’t been blinded by the glare of new love? Alyssa is just a girl who’s sexual exploration comes back to bite her in the ass because using one’s vagina has that effect in today’s society. Anyone of us that possess a pussy – the slut, virgin, prude, dyke, or whomever – knows that & can feel for Alyssa’s character. Bankee, Holden’s devoted sidekick & “tracer”, is the homophobic buddy trying unsuccessfully to save his friend from inevitable heartbreak. I can’t count how many times I’ve been there.

Trust me. Re-watch Chasing Amy. It will restore your faith in men & remind you that pussies don't have mileage limitations. Send K. Smith a Thank You card for acknowledging that on the Big Screen.

If you smoke reefer then surf the web, here's what you come up with

All I can do is giggle like a crazed villainess. Enjoy.

Few subjects are more hilarious than American Politics

I’ve said it before & I’ll say it again: The best way to honestly talk about politics is through humor and sarcasm. Impassioned protest, logical declarations of opposition, and thoughtful policy analysis are needed, of course, but most of the time that shit is just plain dull. Boooorrring. If given the choice between an afternoon spent watching C-SPAN’s Senate coverage and anything else in the world, most folks wouldn’t pick C-SPAN regardless of how important the Senate coverage might be. Humor has always been used to interject some life into politics and these days it’s no different. One unique aspect of modern political humor is it’s distinctly Left Wing appeal. I think the Bush Administration has been so ridiculous, so completely out-of-touch, and so hostile to any opposition that the only way the Left has been able to decry it’s many fuck ups is by using comedy to expose how retarded policy decisions actually are. Flat out criticism of Washington’s policies in the post-9/11 era could get you labeled Un-American or Sympathetic to Terrorists, but a humorous approach to the same policy might get you on The Colbert Report. Laughing at American politics is a favorite pass time of mine & apparently, many people are starting to see why I enjoy it so much. We have Jon Stewart & his Daily Show team, the spin-off Colbert Report, The Onion is more popular than ever, Michael Moore’s documentaries are in everyone’s Netflix queue, the cartoon Lil’ Bush is unfunny but popular anyhow, and SNL’s political sketches are among the show’s greatest. The popularity of political comedy is changing the way young folks see politics, not to mention how the world of politics sees us, and it is my opinion that this is a good thing. Average Twenty-something Joe's & Jane's across the country are getting familiar with policy matters that effect them, understanding the screwed up shit that Washington does when we’re not looking, and seeing the scope of their own political muscle and why it’s important. Politicians & media outlets are beginning to notice and court the 18-24 year old voting bloc, instead of just shuffling us aside & ignoring our interests. Books about the political comedy phenomenon are popping up all over the place. Laughing Matters: Humor and American Politics in the Media Age edited by Jody C. Baumgartner and Jonathan S. Morris came out last year and examines the subject through essays by political scientists and communications experts. Entertaining Politics: New Political Television and Civic Culture (Communication, Media, and Politics) by Jeffery P. Jones praises The Daily Show and it’s peers for making politics accessible to traditionally disenfranchised populations. The New Blue Media: How Michael Moore, Moveon.org, Jon Stewart and Company are Transforming Progressive Politics by Theodore Hamm expands the topic to include the progressive blogosphere in it’s evaluation. Cracking Up: American Humor in a Time of Conflict by Paul Lewis suggests that American political humor is becoming more powerful and more combative every day. How does it feel to belong to the voting bloc causing this much hoop-la? Personally, I am getting a kick out of all this analysis & discussion about young adults & political humor. Dude, just watch the shows & you’ll get it. It’s about honesty in politics during an era of exceptional corruption and dishonesty in Washington. Comedians are the only pundits with any credibility left. That’s all.

George Carlin tellin’ it how it is