The November 17 release of Chasing Amy on Blu-ray will be offered in 1.85:1 1080p video and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio 48kHz/24.bit.

Bonus features are a mix of what was included on the previously released Criterion Collection DVD and newly produced extras. What will not be ported from DVD is the Kevin Smith DVD introduction (naturally), screen specific audio commentaries with the cast and crew (replaced with new commentary and a q/a), and The Askewniverse Legend guide. At the end of the day this new Blu-ray edition’s supplements are on par with the Criterion DVD, only more relevant in retrospect to where the cast and crew’s minds are today.

All of the new bonus features on Blu-ray are marked as such in this comprehensive list.

* NEW: Commentary with Kevin Smith and producer Scott Mosier
* NEW: Tracing Amy: The Chasing Amy doc
* NEW: Was It Something I Said? A conversation with Kevin and Joey
* NEW: 10 Years Later Q/A with Kevin and the cast
* Deleted scenes
* Outtakes
* Trailer

We’re stoked for this release, as Amy is one of our all-time faves. It’ll be great to watch the film again and take in all of this new material. Seeing what Kevin & Scott have to say about the film with all this time passing should prove for an interesting new commentary. As soon as the Stash has pre-orders out there, we’ll let ya know.

“…O’Halloran and Anderson pick up the characters of Dante and Randal so easily it is like they are putting back on their favourite old shirts, making the audience feel as if two old friends have just popped in to let you know what they have been up to recently. The flow of their dialogue is seamless and totally in line with the previous film, something which really could have unravelled the entire movie if it had not been done right.

As always, Jay and Silent Bob add their own personal brand of comic relief throughout the movie and special mention goes out to the two new main additions to this Askewniverse, Rosario Dawson’s Becky and Trevor Fehrman’s Elias, who both slot into this world so brilliantly it is hard to believe this is the first we have seen of them.

…

Clerks II is a sequel that really works and should be made as essential viewing for any Hollywood writer/producer/director who is even thinking of putting a number 2 next to a movie.”

The retrospective will conclude next week with “Zack and Miri Make a Porno”. We’ll then run a post with links to the entire series in case you might have missed any.

CHATHAM — Movie funnyman Jason Mewes is returning here this weekend. The New Jersey-based actor, best known as Jay — as in Jay and Silent Bob — in Clerks and other Kevin Smith films, will perform a stand-up set at the Encore Bar & Nightspot tomorrow night. He filmed a horror film, Silent But Deadly, in Chatham-Kent last year, though he says the film has been “put on hold.” Chatham-Kent, though, is an “interesting place,” he recalled.

Encore Bar is charging $12 at the door for the show tonight. If anyone happened to make it, drop us a line and let us know how the guy fared up there. It’s possible this is just a Q&A that they got mixed up. We’ve heard that some bar-hosted appearances can get a little dicey as far as acoustics and logistics, so tread carefully.

“Chasing Amy” will be the long-awaited anniversary edition of the beloved film, which adds over 4 hours of brand new exclusive content that you won’t get anywhere else, including a brand new documentary from Zak & Joey at Chop Shop (which is sure to be brilliance as always), that Arclight reuinion Q&A we were fortunate enough to be front and center for, and lots more.

On “Clerks”, the Clerks X stuff comes back in a nice single disc package, with the added bonus of the rarely-seen Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back “Oh What a Lovely Tea Party” documentary. Previously, you could only see this doc on the festival circuit — Now, you can catch it at home. We’re betting they’ll throw a few more surprises in there, too.

Since “Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back” has already arrived on Blu-ray, they’re also offering up a special 3-pack which includes that flick along with these two releases. If you don’t have it yet, you might want to look into nabbing that multi-pack at a bargain price.

Retail on the first two is $39.99 each and on the pack is $89.99 each — But as always, stick with us as we’ll likely have a big party or signed copies of these direct from the Stash announced over the next month or so.

Read more on the anouncement at the following fine locations for DVD news on the web: The Digital Bits, DVDTown, and AgentDVD, and High Def Digest.

“…there are more than a few stand out scenes, although my personal favourite is Ollie’s conversation with Will Smith. The scene is seamless and so well written when it could really have turned into a giant joke.

Like most movies with children included in the cast, it does sometimes fall into its own sugary sweetness and you can’t help but notice the influence of the late, great John Hughes’ She’s Having a Baby running throughout. Both director/writers were influenced by their own families.

As this genre of movie goes, you could, in fact, do a lot worse and if the critics put you off watching this movie first time round then take a look at it when it’s next on TV. And if you haven’t watched it in a while, wait until the next rainy afternoon and put it in your DVD player, you’ll feel better after.

This is one of those flicks we hope that many folks, including critics, take a look at again with a lot of the Bennifer stuff now in the distance. And we’re really hopeful that many of you can one day see Kevin’s extended cut of the film, which we feel gives it an even stronger emotional connection and impact with the viewer. Kevin’s stated it’s a possibility for an eventual special edition Bluray, so keep your fingers crossed.

Dogma (1999)

Being an angel is a cushy job. You mooch around Heaven, taking time out to fluff your feathers, attend celestial choir practice and pose for the odd Renaissance painting. Unless, of course, like Loki and Bartleby, you get the Almighty heave-ho and find yourself exiled to Wisconsin. The smart-mouthed seraphs don’t take rejection lying down, though. Exploiting a Biblical loophole, they set off on a cunning quest for forgiveness that threatens to invalidate God. Considering God turns out to be Alanis Morissette, their failure is ours too.

Angelic retribution level (out of 10): 7

Chances against massed armies of Heaven: High. Well, one of them’s the Angel of Death and the other’s Jason Bourne.

You just know Jason Lee’s stash has some serious classics hidden in there. Plus, this is the collection that stated the rules we all try to follow: “Touch not, lest ye be touched.”

If you wanna see this show, we highly recommend you don’t delay, as we’re positive this will sell out. Right now is your big chance, as the show has not been announced to the general public. Whether you’ve seen Kevin do a Q&A before or not, this is not a show or venue you will want to miss. If you wanna buy them officially through the House of Blues you will have to wait a bit, though they DO offer their members some specials. If you’re in with the crew there, give them a call.

In another part of the US? Never fear. 2009 is shaping up to be the biggest tour year EVER for Kevin. We can’t tell you the cities JUST yet, but we can say there are FOUR of them — One very near and dear to us at News Askew, two of them in a really warm place, and one of them up north. You’re gonna love it, seriously. Great cities, some of which we have NEVER seen Kevin appear in before. What a cool year. We know we say this all the time, but we really mean it — If you have the means to see Kevin when he comes to your area, do NOT miss it. His shows are the best. Stay tuned for more info. And get booking those seats, Dallas!

In a recent tweet, Kevin reveals that he’ll record a long-awaited new SModcast with Mosier this weekend, in town to celebrate Kev’s birthday. Also, he’s shooting nights as “A Couple of Dicks” hits the home stretch, right on schedule. Don’t forget, the new SModocast-based book hits shelves this Fall.

And finally, our favorite tweet of the week:

Landed safe at Newark Airport. Shocking, considering I sat behind LOST’s Ben Linus. Plane did not go to The Island, but Jacob hogged toilet.

Would you NOT be freaked out to see Ben on the plane with ya? Great stuff.

As for the above quote, we can’t gloss over Jason Lee’s performance as lead singer Jeff Bebe, just the right mix of jealousy, overconfidence, sarcasm, stringy hair and mellowed-out, super-cool, ’70s onstage enthusiasm, as this deleted concert scene proves. Not an easy role. Lee pulled off three distinctly different characters over the years — Bebe, Earl Hickey and Banky from “Chasing Amy” — and remains severely underrated.

Speaking of Mr. Lee, he also joined the ranks of Kevin as a recent guest of the always enjoyable Kevin Pollak Chat Show.

See ya next time!

Kevin Smith in San Diego 2009

PART 1
PART 2
PART 3
PART 4
PART 5
PART 6
PART 7
PART 8
PART 9
PART 10
PART 11

More San Diego stuff – Before he made the trip, Kevin took a few moments to talk to NPR about the Con, which is available for your listening pleasure.

Also, if you don’t have time to watch the videos above, Screencrave has a bottom-to top (read it reverse) twitterish feed from an attendee of the event. If you’ve got the time, watch the video. It’s very rare to see a full unedited Q&A show up like this.

Smith did, sadly, deliver the word that his film, currently titled A Couple of Dicks will probably have to be retitled, as was rumored earlier in the year because of advertising issues. Three networks(ABC, NBC and CBS) have refused to air ads for the film before 9pm killing, as Smith puts it, the sports audience that’s his core audience.

…Chasing Amy is a movie that totally fits its time. Released in 1997 it takes a honest look at relationships and how people define themselves not so much by being heterosexual or homosexual but by being honest and falling in love with the person rather than the gender of that person. Of course everybody has a preference, but you are not chained to that decision. That’s the moral at work here.

…

The glue that holds it all together though is Smith’s script which starts off more in a comedic vein and then reveals itself to be this honest romantic story. Friends, background and timing can all affect who we fall in love with but not everybody gets a happy ending, and that is the beauty of this script. Life does move on when a relationship ends and even while you are in it, it’s not all roses and romance. Smith manages to find that balance of honesty and comedy while keeping in his trademark in-jokes.

…On the other hand, my appearance on Kevin Smith’s list of the five coolest people I’ve met at the San Diego Comic-Con put me in mind of the time I encountered Kevin Smith. It was round the back of the San Diego Convention Centre, near the loading bay. I was on my way to a panel when a gentleman with a kerchief-mask covering his lower face, holding a brace of pistols and wearing a rakish tricorn hat leapt out and demanded my wallet, and to dance a measure with my female companions. Obviously, I was having none of it, and with a cry of “Never, miscreant!” I stumbled into the fray. During our struggle the kerchief-mask slipped and I was shocked to see that our attacker was in fact director, writer and raconteur Kevin Smith himself. He fled, dropping my wallet and also several of the original Graphitti Buddy Christ and Jay & Silent Bob toys.

I can only presume that Mr Smith’s description of me in EW as “a sweetheart” was due to the fact that I did not turn him in that day to the San Diego magistrates that day to be hanged and gibbeted as a common highwayman or footpad.

Dogma

When Kevin Smith’s Dogma script hit the net in ’98, the mix of profound and profanity sent the powerful Catholic League into overdrive, especially given that their favourite target Disney was distributing. The subsequent furore forced the Mouse House to dump the movie and even saw Smith receive death threats.

In response, Smith anonymously joined the small group protesting his movie outside his local cinema, even doing an ‘in character’ interview with a news team. This is an act arguably funnier than anything in to the worthy-if-hit-and-miss loveletter to his Catholic faith. Still, any movie that has people explode upon hearing the voice of Alanis Morissette must have its heart in the right place.