- For those of you who were fans of his Chasing Amy score (or just fans in general), Dave Pirner has a new solo album, titled Faces & Names, arriving on July 30th. You can also visit his official web site.
- As you might have read, IMDB also reported that Matt Damon may have his choice of roles for the Superman/Batman movie. Apparently some insiders liked Damon in “Bourne Identity” so much that they want him on this project as well. Peterson however said he’s just using him as an example. Read more at Zentertainment.
- Finally today, this is an amusing one — In the newly-released PC game “Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos”, if you have a Death Knight from the Undead race, click on it several times. Eventually it will say “I hate people, but I love gatherings.” Obviously a Clerks/Randal homage from the programmers!
Author Archive
Kevin On TechTV: The Screensavers TONIGHT!
- Sorry for the late notice on this, it’s been a long day at the office and none of these scoops arrived until just today. Guess TechTV doesn’t normally advertise their guests until the day OF the show or something. Tonight, on The Screensavers, Kevin is advertised as a guest. Anyway, the first show will be airing at 7 PM tonight (by the time you’re reading this) and is LIVE! As of right now, they advertise him as being on LATER, so we’re guessing not until 45 minutes to an hour into the show. But if you’ve got TechTV, you can catch the reruns of this episode at 10pm EST/8 PM PST and twice again early tomorrow morning. The show DOES run (according to the DirecTV program guide here) a full hour and a half, so it should be a pretty nice piece. They state:
“Kevin Smith Strikes Back”
Filmmaker and actor Kevin Smith is known for such movies as “Clerks,” Mallrats,” “Dogma,” and “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.” Smith talks about the role of technology in filmmaking, as well as the tech he uses in his everyday life.”
Maybe he’ll even get a mention of the web sites in there! Again, sorry for the late notice on this one. Hopefully those of you who read regularly will see this update today. Don’t forget! Kevin’s ALSO on Jay Leno tomorrow night, for what we hear is another hilarious edition of ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS. We’ll remind ya tomorrow, too, for you absent minded-types out there. More news later! We’re rushing this story online first.
Panasonic Ads Under Fire!
- IMDB reports today that Kevin can’t even escape controversial stuff when he directs TV commercials:
Little People Raise Big Fuss Over Panasonic TV Ads
The civil rights group Little People of America has demanded that Panasonic yank its current TV ad campaign featuring 4-foot-1 comedian Ethan Crough. Jeanette Cimino, who heads a Long Island chapter of the group, told today’s (Tuesday) New York Post, “They think we are circus clowns and that’s where we belong. They are taking advantage of us because we are little.” But Crough commented, “A lot of the stuff in those ads is what I’d be doing as a comedian anyway. They are obviously using my size, but that’s the nature of the business.”
The story is also making its way around local news channels around the country.
First “Jersey Girl” Stuff Spotted In Philly Area…
- Here it is, folks, a scooper sends in the first report of “Jersey Girl”-like spottage in Philly!
Today while at the Philly airport I saw someone waiting in the baggage claim with a sign that said “new askew”. I got excited because the name sounded like View Askew, so I kept an eye out on the guy. It was the 3:45 from LA (I guess it stopped in Denver, cause that’s where my friend was coming from.) Anyways….
So, the baggage comes around and the guy gets his stuff.
And they’re two giant box crate things… and on the side it says “Jersey Girl” View Askew Productions. I’m not sure what was in them, they were pretty large and I’m thinking it’s some sort of film equipment perhaps.
View Askew NewsBites™
- Those whackos over at Something Awful have done it again: This time, they’re translating Japanese-translated film posters back to their native English. Confused? Check out a funny result of the Clerks poster over at their website.
- They’ve been mentioning Liv Tyler’s addition to “Jersey Girl” on the TV Guide’s Prevue channel on basic cable. The spot runs at random times during their entertainment news segment.
- Not so much Askew, but in case you didn’t notice this one, Wolfgang Petersen has been tapped to direct a Batman/Superman film. Should be very interesting if the project goes forward.
- Getting lots of notes on this so we figured we’d put up a reminder: Amazon.com lists that the reissues of all Fletch books happened today. Those who eagerly await the rebirth of Fletch through the great Jason Lee should pick up at least Fletch Won and read it over.
View Askew NewsBites™
- The Digital Bits is indicating that Lions Gate will still deliver R-rated and Unrated editions of VULGAR on DVD this September 3rd. We haven’t heard a peep regarding commentaries or other features, so we expect that, if this release date is met, the discs will NOT be full-blown special editions.
- A new piece on the Daredevil movie was posted by Entertainment Weekly on the 4th. You can read it HERE.
- And last, but not least today, a new, postive review of Drawing Flies from Film Threat — This one’s now available on DVD and VHS everywhere. In fact, after Vulgar is available, the elusive BIG HELIUM DOG will be the only of the View Askew productions to not have yet seen an official release. Here’s that review:
DRAWING FLIES
By Kevin Carr
* * * 1/2
By Kevin Carr
* * * 1/2
“Drawing Flies,” like Bryan Johnson’s Vulgar, is one of the few View Askew films not directed by Kevin Smith. Written and directed by Matthew Gissing and former Film Threat magazine writer Malcolm Ingram, “Drawing Flies” is a surreal dark comedy about where you go when you’ve got nowhere to go. The story follows a crew of slackers in Canada who live from welfare check to welfare check, blasting their minds on pot and booze whenever the checks come in. (It is always refreshing to see that our good neighbors to the north have the same public assistance problems that we do here in the states.) After their stash runs low and they are threatened with eviction, Donner (Jason Lee) has a vision of the sasquatch calling him to the northern forests. Donner convinces his housemates to follow him into the woods by leading them along with a story of his father’s nonexistent cabin. Since no one has a day job or anything to tie them down, they follow him for a multi-week camping trip and eventually stumble into enough troubles for themselves, including a broken arm for Az (Jason Mewes) and the depletion of their food. This experience becomes a turning point for the group of friends, causing them to go their separate ways after the experience (especially Donner, who’s own separate way is surreal and funny at the same time). Curiously, their separate ways still allow them to wallow in Canadian slacker-ville. “Drawing Flies,” if anything else, falls into the “drinking game” category. Take a drink whenever you see a throwback to a Kevin Smith film. Even beyond the obvious principle cast members, you’ll see some familiar faces like Joey Lauren Adams, Ethan Suplee, and Scott Mosier (in an even more embarrassing character than Willam “Snowball” Black).
One of the more interesting parts of the film is watching Jason Mewes play a character off type from Jay Phat Budz (his contribution to Jay and Silent Bob). Of course, at times he channels Jay, but his primary character is much softer and innocent. He’s still a stoner and a slacker, and he doesn’t have the rancid attraction of Jay Phat Budz.
There is a Kevin Smith cameo as a lone wolf Silent Bob who shares a brief moment with Az in a scene similar to the Danny Glover Lethal Weapon throwback cameo in “Maverick.” Like the other View Askew films, “Drawing Flies” is replete with other pop culture references, including the familiar Scooby Doo discussion we’ve seen everywhere from the stand-up stage to Richard Linklater’s “Slacker.”
Co-director Ingram covering the production of Mallrats in Minnesota for Film Threat magazine. Keep in mind, this was after Kevin Smith’s meteoric rise from Clerks, before his crash after Mallrats but still before his subsequent indie-film demigod status with Chasing Amy and Dogma. Ingram made fast friends with not just Smith, but the cast and crew of Mallrats. Being any good film buff, he had a script with him and passed it around and got a lot of the folks interested in this film. This is the reason the film is a veritable Mallrats reunion. In fact, the only “Drawing Flies” principle cast member who was not involved in Mallrats was Martin Brooks, who mixed with the rest of the View Askew gang about as well as Jeremy London in Mallrats.
Carmen Lee (best remembered as the girl who made out with Joey Lauren Adams in Chasing Amy), who was married to Jason Lee at the time of this production, plays Cassidy, the angry girl with an attitude. Renee Humphreys (best known as the 15 year old sexpot Trish the Dish in Mallrats.) is particularly good in the film, playing Meg, the romantic lead opposite Martin Brooks. Jason Lee is clearly the star, however, and his screen presence is so strong throughout that it overpowers most of his supporting cast. And this is impressive considering this was his first role after Mallrats (where he was “discovered” by Kevin Smith after his professional skateboarding gig). In fact, Lee delivers an acting performance that is deeper than anything seen in a Kevin Smith film (where he generally isn’t given a chance to stretch out of his abrasive Banky/Brodie personalities). Although Kevin Smith does credit this film – and more importantly Lee’s performance in it – as the reason he knew Lee would have the emotional chops to take on his character in Chasing Amy.
If you’re a View Askew fan, check your local video store for a copy of “Drawing Flies.” (If you aren’t a fan, you probably should pass.) You probably won’t find it at every Blockbuster, but look at the campus video stores and places where you’ll find the more alternative and cult flare. And get it on DVD if at all possible. One of the best scenes in the film is in the deleted scenes section where the gang calls their pusher for their monthly fix. In fact, the full “director’s cut” makes a better film. Like all the DVDs from the View Askew folks, this one is packed full of interesting tidbits and makes a rental well worth it.
View Askew NewsBites™
- The UK Askew website has been discontinued after 5 months of operation by the webmaster. If any UK based readers are interested, the URL (which includes @ukaskew.co.uk email addresses) is available free to anyone who wishes to have a bash at a UK VA site. He can be contacted at chris@ukaskew.co.uk.
- Don’t forget, Dogma premieres on Comedy Central today and they’ll likely run the heck outta it for the rest of the summer. If you want to check out the TV-edit, be sure to tune in.
- Translations of those other Spanish titles of View Askew films prove pretty intersting: “Clerks – “Behind the Register”, Chasing Amy – “My Wrong Partner” and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back was called simply “Jay and Silent Bob”.
- Another slight reference Askew in the second frame of the July 4th edition of Movie Comics has been spotted.
- That does it for the weekend, slow goings as most here were on holiday time — Hope everyone had a good weekend! We’ll see you back here soon with more news.
Academy-Award Winning Cinematographer To Shoot “Jersey Girl”!
- Vincent Pereira has reavealed, via the WWWBoard, that an Oscar-winning cinematographer will be the director of photography on JERSEY GIRL. This is big news, as most of us expected that Jay & Silent Bob DP Jamie Anderson would be back. No word on who it is, but looking at some of the more recent winners, perhaps it’ll be John Toll, or John Seale who worked on Miramax’s “The English Patient”, or even Conrad Hall who did “American Beauty” and the recent “Road to Perdition” with director Sam Mendes? We’re sure that an official announcement can’t be far off…
View Askew NewsBites™
- A duo that appear in the just-released Powerpuff Girls movie is reminding some folks of Jay & Silent Bob – One long haired, chatty fellow and a shorter guy with dark hair that never speaks. Sound familiar? Check out the flick for yourself.
- The latest issue of SPIN magazine (the August Issue) contains a little blurb from Kevin, where he mentioned that about 10 thesis papers are written about him each year — One in particular was brought up, where a student discussed the “two Kevin Smiths” — One that appeals to the critics/studios, and the other that appeals to fans.
- The Comics review section over at AICN recently posted reviews of Green Arrow #14 and Spiderman/Black Cat: The Evil that Men Do #1. A quick snippet:
If you’re a super-villain looking for a name, Onomatopoeia ranks somewhere between Coprophobia and The Merkin. Somewhere in the Marvel Universe, Typeface is laughing his head off. A bad guy who talks in sound effects: The very idea seems to reverse thirty years of political correctness, and descriptors like ‘Retarded’ and ‘Mongoloid’ flock to the concept like moths to an open flame. But, as impossible as it seems, the best adjective to describe Onomatopoeia is REALLY F*CKIN” CREEPY! This character is responsible for three of the most disturbing murders I’ve ever read in a comic book. They’re so horrific, and brutal, and raw that the images build a nest in your brain, settle in and refuse to stop chirping.
- Finally today, a guy who runs a small Kevin Smith fan site in Mexico sent us the translations of the other Kev flicks released there:
Clerks – “Detras del mostrador”Mallrats – “Jovenes Modernos”Chasing Amy – “Mi Pareja Equivocada”Dogma – [not released in Mexico]Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back – “Jay y el Silencioso Bob”
Check Out Black Cat/Spidey Online!
- A flash version of Kevin’s Spidey and Black Cat crossover is up at Marvel’s website. It’s pretty cool, and allows you to actually click your way through the panels of issue #1! If you haven’t seen preview enough, now’s your chance to check out the book for yourself. Enjoy.