We apologize for the late notice on this, but apparently DVD File made a BIG mistake, as the information the revealed in a recent update, telling folks that Kevin would appear at a Virgin Megastore signing in LA tomorrow is NOT true. We have received word that there is no such appearance on Kevin’s schedule. While the Stan Lee appearance may still happen tomorrow, if it does, Kevin will not be in attendance. Guess this was just a miscommunication somewhere along the line that got blown out of proportion. Sorry to carry the story even further, but DVD File is usually quite accurate with things.
Archive for May, 2002
View Askew NewsBites™
- Kevin will be doing a phone-in call TODAY to the KROQ radio station in Los Angeles. He’ll be promoting his 5/31 “Evening with Kevin Smith” at the Writers Guild Theater.
- Kevin is quoted in this USA Today story on “Attack of the Clones” (Boba Fett in particular):
“It has to be the costume,” says director Kevin Smith, who is a big fan and has made dozens of Star Wars references in his own films. “He’s quiet, has a cool job and a mean costume. That’s all it takes.”
Episode II, of course, opens all over the place this Thursday.
- Finally, seems some folks are having fun with the Buddy Christ in some parody situations (this one, a reworking of the cover of videogame “Serious Sam”).
News From WizardWorld – “Jersey Girl” Likely PG-13!
- Howdy folks, we’re back from WizardWorld East, had a blast, saw a lot of great people, and of course caught Kevin’s signing appearance and Q&A seesion (pics coming soon). The con was full of outstanding guests, it’s a shame it ended so early.
Anyway, here’s some of the major points from Kevin’s Q&A that we wanted to get online for you here ASAP:
- Kevin’s draft of Jersey Girl wound up being around PG or PG-13 material, according to Kevin (and those who have read it). The film, if it stays as it is (and it likely will), will be the “PG” Kevin’s always mentioned he’d had in him.
- Jersey Girl will likely end up filming in TORONTO over Philly (much to the crowd’s dismay), due to a $2 million cheaper budget if they take it up North. Filming starts this August.
- Kevin gave some minor details on Clerks: Sell Out, the animated CLerks film. The film will defintiely be R-rated but not as obscene as Jay & Bob Strike Back. The project is still in the planning stage but moving along.
- Fletch Won will follow the book very closely, but Kevin will NOT make the film unless Jason Lee is cast in the lead.
- Kevin (for certain) & Jay Mewes (unlikely) will not appear in Jersey Girl.
- Kevin will be catching an advance screening of Episode II tomorrow afternoon. Chances are he’ll comment on the flick sometime early this week.
There may be a few more tidbits we aren’t remembering at the moment, but a lot of the older stories about Superman, the Scream 3 set, and others were told to audience memebers who asked as well. Kevin talked for close to 2 and a half hours, then had to catch a plane back home. That’s about it for now, we’ll have more details from the show for you later, just wanted to get the big news online for ya!
Kevin @ WizardWorld Philly Today & Tomorrow!
- Well folks, it’s the big weekend, when us east-coasters get some of Kev’s attention back for a 2-day stint at the WizardWorld Comic Show in Philly — We’ll be there tomorrow covering the event, so this will be the last update until Sunday — Hopefully we’ll have a nice report and some exclusive pics for ya then. Have a good weekend, and remember, just a mere 6 days until Episode II (maybe even less for some — The flick’s apparently already leaked onto the net!). See you at WizardWorld!
Kevin & Stan Lee Signing This Tuesday!
- Big news folks! DVD File reports that both Kevin Smith AND Stan Lee will be at the Virgin Megastore in Los Angeles this Tuesday to sign copies of the new DVD – Best of all, it doesn’t sound like Lee has any stipulations on what he won’t signed, so break out those old Spidey comics!!! Here’s the full details:
Spidey signing
Hey, kids, it’s time for another DVD in-store signing, this time the man behind Spiderman himself, Marvel’s Stan Lee. Stan will be appearing at the Virgin Megastore on Sunset in Los Angeles, California, along with director Kevin Smith to sign copies of his new DVD, Stan Lee’s Mutants, Monsters and Marvel.
The signing will take place from 7pm to 9pm on Tuesday, May 14th, and both Lee and Smith will each sign two items per fan, one of which must be a copy of the DVD purchased in-store at Virgin. The address is 8000 Sunset Blvd, and phone is 323.650.8666. See ya there!
View Askew NewsBites™
- Here’s your chance to catch Brian O’Halloran himself in a live performance! The New Jersey Reporter says:
Brian O’Halloran (a.k.a. – Dante) will be appearing as Jesus in the upcoming, outrageous comedy PANAMA playing at the New Jersey Repertory Company, 179 Broadway in Long Branch. Written by Mike Folie, this world premiere will be performed Thursdays through Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm June 20 through July 28th only! PANAMA is the story of a man who tries to cheat death by searching for the secret of eternal life. This leads him, his wife and two young serial killers on a chaotic, comic road trip, guaranteed to offend everyone. For tickets call 732-229-3166. For additional information visit www.njrep.org.
It sounds like a great show — If you’re in the area, we urge you to get some tickets!
- A new Jason Lee fansite has come online – You can check it out HERE www.geocities.com/aveseyca/JasonLee.html. It’s got a news section, filmography, chat area, and more.
- Eliza Dushku mentions working with Kevin in a recent article on her new flick (”The New Guy”) at IGN Filmforce:
Given that Dushku has worked with a variety of directors and actors, not to mention her stint on television as Faith, one can’t help but wonder if this was the most improv-oriented project she’s been involved with. “No, Kevin Smith takes the cake,” she replies. This comes as a surprise, given that Smith is supposed to be a notorious stickler not only in terms of dialogue, but also with hardcore rehearsals prior to shooting. “Half my lines on Jay and Silent Bob were given to me in-between the words “roll” and “action.” Exclaims Dushku. “[Smith was like] “Duck Shoot, [his pet name for her] before you throw the thing to Shannon say, ‘B-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b.’ And I’m like, ‘What?’ He would give me this whole thing to say. And I’m a good mimic, I have a terrible long-term memory, but I have a really good imitating ability. So he’d be like, ‘Say this, okay? And Action!’ The scene would be going on and all of a sudden I’d get to the point where I spit out the line and I’d hear Kevin just dying laughing. I’d be like, ‘Kevin, you can’t do that dude! I have such a potty mouth.’ The scenes were all full of curses and just really, really crazy stuff. I’m telling you some of those lines came on the moment. Kevin really liked playing that little game with me.”
You can read the whole piece HERE.
- And finally today, it’s nice to know that if he gets tired of working in the film biz, there’s something for him to fall back on. This sign was spotted in Kentucky. Catch ya later, folks.
Kevin’s Panasonic TV Spots Online!
- The View Askew website has placed Kevin’s television commercials for “e-wear” online — The spots are for a nifty little gadget that takes pictures, short films, and plays MP3 files. They’re now in regular rotation on TV stations, very fun and quite bizarre at the same time. You’ll find movies of the actual commercials, an introduction by evin, and a short behind the scenes spot on the making of the commercials online at View Askew HERE.
View Askew NewsBites™
- Zap2It has this new article on Kevin’s hosting gig on the Star Wars shorts special airing on Sci-Fi this weekend:
Kevin Smith Introduces ‘Star Wars’ Fan Takes for Sci Fi
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) – Long before he became a successful independent filmmaker, Kevin Smith (”Clerks,” “Chasing Amy,” “Dogma” ) was a kid in love with “Star Wars” (as the frequent “SW” references in his films make abundantly clear).
Over the years, his admiration for the original trilogy has not waned, but the release of “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace” saw him swearing off “being a gushy, avid fanboy. [The first three] are movies I really dug when I was growing up and kind of held over until adulthood.”
“But the new trilogy — which I’ve seen the first one, and am game to see the second one, very anticipatory — that’s not my generation. It’s the next generation. That’s for kids, primarily, just as the original ‘Star Wars’ trilogy was for kids when I was a kid.”
“So, swear off ‘Star Wars’? No. But I can’t really say that I’m lying awake in bed at night. There’s a line already in front of Grauman’s [Chinese Theater, in Hollywood] — I honestly don’t know if there’s much I would wait on line for, unless it’s the cure for death. ‘Wait on line, and we will cure you of that pesky death.’”
“But I’m always happy to see another ‘Star Wars’ flick. This one certainly seems much cooler than the last one.”
In anticipation of May 16 release of “Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones,” Smith is host of “The Official Star Wars Fan Film Awards,” airing Sunday, May 12 at 8 p.m. ET on Sci Fi Channel.
“It’s essentially a special made up of fan-made short films,” Smith says. “There was a contest sponsored by Lucasfilm and Atom Films.com, in which a bunch of fans sent in their spoofs, parodies or homages of ‘Star Wars.’” “I guess Lucasfilm and Atom Films pawed through the entries and came up with some winners. So I’m the guy that introduces the nominees and the winners.” Categories include “The Young Jedi Awards” (best film by an under-18 director); “The Audience Award” (as voted on by on-line viewers at www.starwars.atomfilms.com); “Best Animation” and “Best Documentary or Mockumentary.” There’s also a segment on “Pioneering Fan Films,” a montage of clips from such films as “George Lucas in Love,” “Hardware Wars” and “Geek Wars.”
The creator of “Star Wars,” George Lucas — who directed and co-wrote “Attack of the Clones” — makes an appearance to announce the film worthy of the highest honor, the “George Lucas Selects” award. As might be expected, clips from “Clones” are also included.
As a fan, Smith is happy to see Lucas and company embracing the creative efforts of other fans. “It’s always befuddling to me when I see George Lucas in the press going, ‘I don’t get it. I don’t get all these people who love the movies.’ It’s like, ‘How can you not get it, man?’ If he got down there with the great unwashed, he’d see why it means so much to them and makes such a difference in their lives.”
“I get why people like what I do. They identify with it; they see themselves in it. I’m sure you can plead the same case for a 35-year-old guy who lives by the code of the Jedi, but that’s a whole different thing. There may not be that identification factor between the fan base and ‘Star Wars,’ but it means something to them. It’s their mythology.”
Check the article out HERE as well.
- Will Ferrell is leaving Saturday Night Live to puruse a film career. Yahoo News and the L.A. Times have the story.
- Kevin’s films continue to impress around the world – This French fansite. was just found, though you’ll hafta be fairly fluent in the language to read what’s been written.
- Congrats to Dogma cast member Alan Rickman for his 2002 Tony Award nomination for Best Actor. This, we believe, is the first Broadway nomination for a previous View Askew actor/actress! Good luck, sir.
- Fans can record their own DVD commentary tracks at the website www.dvdtracks.com. Folks can then download the files, and listen to them along with a DVD on their computer. One fan has recorded his own track that runs the entire length of the Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back DVD. If you’re interested, it’s an 11 meg download, it’s zipped, and inside you’ll find the file in MP3 format. It certainly is an interesting concept.
The New Arena Column Has Arrived!
- Once again, we’re happy to debut Kevin’s newest Arena Magazine column for ya right here. This month, Kevin gives his take on one of our favorite flicks of 2001, and one that was robbed at the Oscars! What did Kevin think of “Mulholland Drive”? Check out the scan above or view the text version in our Arena Archives. As always, thanks to Martin, our man in the UK, for supplying this for us.
View Askew NewsBites™
- Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back got a video/DVD review in UK magazine “Total Film” this month, and we’ve got the scan for ya just above. Check out the text of it right here as well:
Does Kevin Smith’s final outing for his slacker heroes make the cult or not?
Juvenile, self-indulgent, shambolic: say what you like about Kevin Smith’s latest (and many will say all of the above), but there’s no denying it’s damn funny.
For the uninitiated, the chubby writer-director here gives his favourite comedy creations – stoner foul-mouth Jay (Jason Mewes) and his “hetero life mate” Silent Bob (Smith himself) – their very own movie. In it, the boneheaded double-act find out that Miramax are shooting a major film based on comic-book heroes they inspired – and they’re being stuffed on the cash. The lads embark on a Jersey-to-Hollywood road trip to wreck the flick, running into the likes of Seann William Scott, Shannon Elizabeth, and Chris Rock en route.
Displaying no more finesse than Smith’s last outing Dogma, JASBSB makes you wonder if Smith just belched up everything that was on his mind one day, and started shooting the next. The plot veers up and down and from side to side, and the tone careers from gut-busting hilarity to clumsy tedium. But while the hirsute helmer has little to say beyond “Aren’t internet movie geeks annoying?”, he should be thoroughly backslapped for coaxing a succession of big names to join in the fun. Best of all are Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, who mercilessly rip the piss out of themselves and each other. After watching this, you’ll be praying that they make Good Will Hunting 2.
Matt Mueller / * * * (out of 5 stars)
- Kevin was mentioned on last night’s edition of TechTV’s “The Screen Savers” during an interview with Stan Lee. Lee mentioned he had a DVD coming out with Kevin Smith, and the interviewer replied “Oh yeah, Mallrats” (with applause from the audience). They then went on to talk about the DVD a bit. You can check it out online HERE.
- Finally today, we’ve got some very cute and charming pics of Kevin and daughter Harley Quinn backstage at a recent Alanis Morisette concert (look, she’s a VIP!). Check them out above, with thanks to Francis Martin and the Alanis N Pete website. We’ll see ya next time.