- Mallrats makes a movies.com list of favorite “R”-rated films cites “Mallrats” as one of the best of all-time. The author calls the film his “favorite Kevin Smith movie”. We saw the flick opening night as well, though to a fairly packed theater here in PA.
- A French documentary about French geeks and nerds (called “Suck My Geek”) is in production. The filmmakers released a teaser via the website which contains a pic of Kevin. We dunno what they’re saying, but can only assume that Kevin will get a mention at some point in the film.
- Lawsuit!!! Ok, maybe not — But still, it’s humorous to see this new “Stink Palm” video — The spot is actually an environmental public service announcement made for the UK.
- Mark Joy, an actor who played a small role in “Dogma”, is celebrating the completion of his first film, the 37-minute short “Beast Of Burden”. Details on the premiere this weekend at inRich.com. Joy also stars in the film.
- And finally today — God loves hockey! Birthday girl (33 today) Alanis Morissette will be seen preforming live at Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Championships singing the Canadian and American Anthems. Monday, June 4th on NBC, CBC, and RDS.
Author Archive
View Askew NewsBites™
- NY Mag feature “The Vulture” has done an article set on upcoming television series, and gives an opinion on if they are TiVo-worthy or not. “Reaper” is the first show profiled, and gets a positive review:
The pitch: Kevin Smith–produced comedy-drama about a slacker who is forced by Satan to collect the souls of the damned who have escaped from Hell.
Breakout star: Obviously Labine, who’s surprisingly endearing as the Kevin Smith stand-in — that is, the fat, scruffy, wisecracking best friend.
Worth a season pass?: Sure! An engaging tone and funny actors go a long way. With its smart writing, well-observed big-box-store setting, and story of a wallflower coming into his own — plus its Hellish twist — it’s like The 40-Year-Old Virgin meets The Devil’s Advocate.
You can beat we’ll be season-passing this one in the Fall. We can’t wait.
- “Dogma” gets a little shout-out in the description of item #75 on this list of the greatest movie songs of all time.
Alanis Morissette, ‘Uninvited’ (‘City of Angels,’ 1998)
One year after Alanis penned this heavenly, Oscar-worthy song for a syrupy film about angels, she was cast as God in Kevin Smith’s brilliantly blasphemous ‘Dogma.’ Coincidence? — M. Tye Comer
- Here’s a fun little movie poster Photoshop-job from a contest that a scooper dug up — Throwing Silent Bob into a Men In Black film might not be such a crazy idea, really…
- Mallrats will be screened at Marcus Cinemas in Orland Park, IL (a Chicago suburb) on June 14th. Admission tends to run right around $5 for shows here, so this will be a fantastic deal and a night of fun at the movies. Mallrats is a blast with a good crowd. The show starts up at 9 PM.
- Blast from the past here — All those Nike commercials directed by Kevin and starring Jason Mewes have popped up on YouTube. It’s been ages since we saw these, so it’s cool to see someone else archiving them for posterity.
- Don’t forget – “Clerks” vet Marilyn Ghigliotti’s play “An Adult Evening With Shel Silverstein” opens up NEXT WEEK – Free food and drinks on opening and closing nights, we hear, so book up and book FAST as those nights will sell out. Marliyn’s hoping to see many fans throughout the show’s run. Opening Night is Friday, June 8th at 8 PM, with the play running through June every Friday and Saturday. For reservations, call (818) 206-4000. Ticket prices are $15 – $20, a steal for a night of theater!
- More on Mewes: The actor was recent brought up on CNN’s “Showbiz Tonight” on a feature covering addiction in Hollywood. He was part of the segment of success stories, where Kevin was also interviewed. We missed this, so if anyone’s got clippage anywhere, PLEASE let us know so we can post it up.
- Something else we’d love some scannage of — On Monday (May 28) in the King Features Syndicate “funny animal” strip “My Cage”, the main character’s girlfriend greets him at the door with the following: “Hon! Kevin Sloth, director of ‘Clucks’ and ‘Chasing Apey’ is doing a signing at my store!” This is a new strip, so it wasn’t featured in many papers (our scooper caught in in the Houston Chronicle). If anyone’s got a scan, or if a King Features rep might be reading, drop us a line, we’d love to run this at the site.
- And finally today, our scooper Eddie is an airbrush artist AND a big Dogma fan — Check out his beautiful work on a custom Buddy Christ tee he created for his girlfriend. One of a kind, and very cool! Nice work, sir. See ya’ll next time…
Auctions Askew: The Re-Return!
- Auctions Askew makes its long-awaited return this week, with 5 more fantastic one-of-a-kind View Askew props — This time with offerings going all the way from Chasing Amy up thru Jersey Girl. This time, eBay is brokering every sale to make it even easier for those of you familiar with the world of the online auction. This time around, you can get your mitts on a Dogma cast and crew t-shirt, screen-used “Nails” cigarette packs, the Highlands seal from Affleck’s “Jersey Girl” street sweeper, and our two favorites of this edition: The one and only “Critters of Hollywood” sign from Jay & Bob, and best of all, the HUGE “White Hating Coon” bus poster from the now infamous panel scene in “Chasing Amy”. Wow. Potentially one of the coolest auction items we have EVER put up.
Kevin announced the return of the auctions via the Myspace blog and promises MORE items next week! We wish all of you luck, and remind you, most of this stuff isn’t coming back again — Get those bids in and bid wisely so you’re not kicking yourself for missing it.
The SMod is Back!
- SModcast returns after the brief hiatus with the 13th episode, and perhaps those superstitions around the number are true? For the first time, a guest host sits in a SModcast chair temporarily. In case you’re new, SModcast is a weekly discussion of anything and everything (typically current events with a lot of tangents) between writer-director Kevin Smith and producer Scott Mosier. Here’s the deets:
SModcast 13: SFodcast (or SWodcast) –
In which a hero falls…and gets temporarily replaced by a guest host, one man’s trash becomes another man’s trash at the local flea market, life behind a comic book store counter is brought to life with tales of a questionable customer base, and the war against the aggressors from the stars gains a production assistant.
SModcast is still totally FREE via your podcast subscription, or download at the awesome Quick Stop Entertainment website.
View Askew NewsBites™
- Joblo interviewed Seth Rogen, and during, he mentioned how the language in Kev’s movies have inspired him. Here it is:
What about other sex comedies?
“Bachelor Party” is a movie I always liked. It’s pretty dirty for a Tom Hanks movie especially. There’s some bestiality jokes in there and stuff like that. That one always kind of shocked me. Kevin Smith was an inspiration language-wise, I would say. His movies were some of the first movies that I saw people just cursing up a storm and that was very amusing to me [Laughing], so I think we took a nod from that, definitely when it comes to sexual language anyway. I don’t know though, what other ones are good? Any suggestions. [Laughing] What should I see?
We’re hearing great things about “Knocked Up”, which stars Rogen and hits theaters everywhere this weekend. Looks like a winner, certain to make some big bucks. Go see it and support R-rated comedy.
- Alright, let’s see what’s new in the NewsBite world today. First up, we hope you all caught Kevin’s hilarious turn on the History Channel’s “Star Wars” documentary last night — His bit involved his similarities to Jabba The Hut — We’ll see if we can get some clippage of it for ya. The History Channel has a nice schedule search on their website where you can look up the program, titled “Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed” — Currently it’s set for re-air TONIGHT (Tuesday) at 6 PM, Sunday June 3rd at 11 PM, and Saturday June 9th at 4 PM.
- What’s the latest on that children’s book that Kevin’s got in his head? Jen shared a bit more insight on the potential project via the View Askew Web Board over the weekend:
Q: “Also, a while ago Kevin said he had an idea for a children’s book. Do you think he’ll write that before Harley is too old to enjoy it?”
Jen: “Kevin has had a very funny, sweet children’s book idea for years. Since we lived in our first house in New Jersey. Harley was one, she’s now almost eight. I would be delighted if he wrote it in my lifetime. He found an illustrator that he liked for it, but he just can’t seem to commit. It would probably take him all of twenty minutes to complete. Can’t tell storyline, but it does have very familiar domestic characters you’re sure to recognize!”
Kid’s books are a HUGE market still and some of the best selling books in the biz — We’re sure Kev would have something unique and fun to offer, so here’s hoping we’ll hear more on this one in the future.
- Potentially a new record for the most advance notice for a Kevin appearance — The Bergen Performing Arts Center in Englewood, New Jersey has announced a Friday, March 14, 2008 (no, that’s not a typo). We’re sure this event will sell out being an east coast Jersey event, and there’s a wide range of prices, so it might not be a bad idea to get your seat reserved while it’s available. Full details for the 8 PM show are HERE. Prices range from $30 all the way up to the $100 “platinum” level and are available for immediate online purchase. For those of you who prefer to make reservations closer to the event, we’ll of course remind you and add this to our countdown list as well.
- Monday night’s broadcast of Jeopardy included a category titled “DC Comics”. One of the questions showed a picture of Kevin’s Green Arrow #15 cover art (Green Arrow in close-up with Onomatopoeia’s mask filling the background). The question simply asked who the front character was. No mention of Kevin, but it was nice to see his work referenced on one of the biggest game shows in TV history.
- Jay Mewes was in Des Moines, IA on Thursday night at a new club called The Liar’s Club as a special guest. One fan was there and sent in this report:
I asked him if Kevin was writing him a part in his next movie and he said “yup we start filming in November” and I double asked him if he had a part and he said he did. So according to him we can officially say he’s in the movie. He seemed like genuenly the nicest celebrity I’ve ever met and it was a true honor to meet someone I look up to so much. With all he’s been through he should be an inspiration to everyone to strive for being a better person.
The weekly paper called “Juice” has some photos of Mewes in their online gallery from the event.
Lynch To Script “Sims”…
- Word around town at the end of the week was out regarding a feature film based on popular video game franchise “The Sims”. Normally, we wouldn’t get too excited about a video game to film project, but the news of the writer has us intrigued – Brian Lynch, who got his start writing and directing the rare View Askew sketch comedy “Big Helium Dog”, was hired to script “Sims”, and we think his razor wit and quick humor will be a perfect fit for this project. Given the vast amount of material to work with, we think Lynch will really shine with this one. Of course, what’s on the page is one thing, directors and actors are another, so we’ll keep our eyes on this one very closely. Still, we’re happy to see Brian get the much-deserved work, and look forward to seeing what he comes up with for this one. Stories are scattered around the ‘net on this one, Gamespot probably had the most to say :
The Sims Movie Planned
The integration between games and movies has grown steadily over the last few years, and now one of the biggest gaming franchises is getting involved. 20th Century Fox will be making a film version of The Sims, reports Variety. The screenplay will be written by Brian Lynch, but it is not yet known who the director or other “talent” involved will be.
The Sims movie will be a “live-action version,” reports the newspaper, presumably meaning that it will feature real-life actors and actresses as opposed to animations. It is not known how the producers intend to adapt the life simulation series for movie goers. The feature film project has been set up with producer John Davis, with Steve Asbell overseeing the project for Fox and EA’s Rod Humble managing the property for Electronic Arts.
Brian Lynch wrote and directed the movie Big Helium Dog, a 20th Century Fox mockumentary comedy released in 1999. John Davis’ production credits include Eragon, When a Stranger Calls, and Norbit.
EA’s Sims Studio head Rod Humble commented, “The Sims has done an interactive version of an old story, which is what it’s like to have infinite power and how do you deal with it. Given that that’s an old story, you can imagine how easily that would translate to traditional storytelling.”
The first Sims game, which was created by Will Wright, was released on the PC in 2000, and PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube versions followed in 2003. It spawned a series of expansion packs for the original game, a sequel, The Sims 2, and a series of expansion packs for the sequel, too. The Sims 3 is currently in development, along with a Wii and Nintendo DS game called MySims. In total, the games in the series have sold more than 85 million copies worldwide.
Due to the game’s audience, expect a PG or PG-13 rating for this one. More via Zap2It and Variety, Coming Soon, etc. There’s a lot of mixed reaction out there on the project, though we think Lynch’s writing should raise eyebrows when this one comes ’round.
View Askew NewsBites™
- Kevin scores a mention at the end of a CNN.com Star Wars article, celebreating the 30th anniversary of “Star Wars” (and the upcoming History Channel special in which he participates, 9 PM this Monday):
“It is bad guys versus good guys, and everyone wants to see that story,” says director — and hardcore “Star Wars” fan — Kevin Smith in the documentary. “That story will never grow tired, never grow old.”
- PWInsider is reporting that Sony Pictures recently acquired Richard Kelly’s “Southland Tales”, which as we know stars a ton of folks, including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Sarah Michelle-Gellar, and Kevin, in a small role. The film has had problems finding a distribution deal after it screened at the Cannes Film Festival last year, though a brand new cut of the film has it back on track for a release. There remains no timetable for when it’ll see the light of day, though the ball’s now in Sony’s court, apparently.
Kevin Smith Film Course In The News…
- Films of Kevin Smith course offered at Central Michigan Universtiy…
Students enjoy film course
Some students spend their summer vacations watching movies with friends.
Students enrolled in BCA 520J are doing the same thing – and getting college credit for it.
Department of Broadcast and Cinematic Arts faculty member Jeffrey Smith is teaching a one-credit summer class that will look closely at the works of writer and director Kevin Smith.
“We’ll be learning about Kevin Smith himself, and analyzing his films in terms of discovering what it is about Smith that comes out in his films, and how much of an effect that has on the stories,” Smith said.
“BCA 520J: The Films of Kevin Smith,” which runs from Monday through Thursday this week, studies the motifs, themes and styles of Kevin Smith’s movies “Clerks,” “Dogma,” “Jersey Girl” and “Clerks II.”
Shelby Township sophomore Michael Miserendino said he was excited to be able to take a class dedicated to Kevin Smith’s work.
“I’m just pumped to be taking the class in the first place,” he said. “Kevin Smith has been my favorite filmmaker for a long time and its pretty cool that there is a class offered.”
Jeffrey Smith said students are attracted to film courses by either the films being shown, the director of the films or both.
“Once (students) get into the courses, however, they find they enjoy learning a new way to appreciate the films they already like,” he said.
Holt senior Amanda Dykhuis said she is a fan of Kevin Smith and wants to get greater insight into his movies.
“I love Kevin Smith movies, he’s my favorite director,” she said. “I just want to learn a little more about Kevin Smith and the kind of work he does.”
There are a number of special film classes that are being offered this summer by the Department of Broadcast and Cinematic Arts.
Lansing sophomore Jose Velasquez said he is interested in learning more about movies so he can analyze and contrast other movies.
“This summer I am also enrolled in BCA 520A,” he said. “It’s a class about devil pacts in the movies.”
Jeffrey Smith said the only other director course being offered this summer is BCA associate professor Kevin Corbett’s “Terry Gilliam Films” which runs from June 4 through June 7.
Smith to CMU?
There have been rumors that Kevin Smith would be making a surprise visit to CMU to speak in Jeffrey Smith’s class this week.
Jeffrey Smith said that while news about the class was post as front page news on Kevin Smith’s website for a number of weeks, he has heard nothing about a possible visit.
“If he does show up, it will likely be a huge surprise for everyone involved — especially me,” Jeffrey Smith said.
View Askew NewsBites™
- We’ve got some airdate/time info on the History Channel’s tribute to Star Wars 30th anniversary which Kevin participated in. The show is titled “Star Wars: The Legacy” and airs at 9:00 PM THIS MONDAY, May 28th. We believe the time will be 9:00 PM EST/PST, but suggest you check your local listnings. We hear Kevin’s part in the show is fantastic, and look forward to hearing what the man head to say. History Channel, next week!
- In this article from The Independant about the relationship between Quentin Tarantino and Harvey Weinstein, it also brings up Harvey’s relationships with other directors, including Kevin:
“…It should be noted that Harvey Weinstein has forged fruitful relationships, perhaps even harmonious ones despite his reputation for shouting matches, with several directors. Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma) Anthony Minghella (The English Patient, Cold Mountain) and Lasse Hallstrom (The Cider House Rules, Chocolat) all came back to work with him.”
- Some more info on that Howard Stern/Jay mention last week — The show with said mention is now available on the Howard TV on Demand services, titled “Intern Awards and Henry Hill”. The radio show was originally broadcast on 5/17. You can see the Jay reference in the right hand blue collum marked “Today’s show companion” in the show rundown for that day. Our scooper has a clip description:
Currently they are showing the clip of the interview with Rachel the intern on their Howard TV on demand channel. When they reference him they even show a quick picture of him on screen, the producer Gary (Bababooey) incorrectly refers to him as Silent Jay (which I find hilarious) which then brought out a couple people singing the “Smoking weed” song and Howard says “That guy is a genius”.
- Kevin and “Clerks II” get a brief mention towards the end of this article on Star Wars fans from NorthJersey.com:
Atheists. And then there are the people — yes, they exist — who don’t get “Star Wars,” don’t like “Star Wars,” don’t think Luke Skywalker is fit to kiss Frodo’s big hairy toe. One such heretic showed up in Kevin Smith’s film “Clerks II” defending “Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.” “There’s only one return,” sneers the film’s hero. “And that’s ‘Return of the Jedi.’ “
- In this little link list from VH-1’s fun “Best Week Ever” show, one of the links is to a study showing Christianity is still the biggest religion. Our friend the Buddy Christ shows up to illustrate.
- Thanks for dropping by today, and enjoy one of the last BIG TV nights of the season — LOST and American Idol come on for 2 hours tonight, so we imagine most of the world will be glued to their sets. Personally, this LOST episode is a make-or-break, so let’s hope for some shocking deaths and big twists to keep viewers back for the final 3 years of the show. See ya soon…
Check Out A Couple Minutes Of “Reaper”!
- TVWeek’s doing something really cool this year — Hosting a few select segments from a bunch of network pilots scheduled for next year. What a fantastic idea to give viewers a little taste of shows well in advance of next year. And hey, guess what — The CW sent over two and a half minutes of Kevin’s “Reaper” pilot, consisting of 3 scenes (an intro, action/FX sequence, and an outtro). It even kicks off with the great Ray Wise, Leland Palmer (from Twin Peaks) himself!
“Reaper” looks to be a good mix of humor, plot development, and action. Here’s hoping it catches on with a broad audience. Kevin’s direction looks great here from the bits we’ve seen — We’re stoked for a chance to look at the entire show this Fall.