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Poster (c) Miramax
Third in Kevin Smith’s series of five “View Askew” films, Chasing Amy is probably his least funny of the ones I’ve seen (half of Clerks., Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), and, although it’s a better movie than the others, doesn’t have that unique “Kevin Smith” film. Although this film had some, I like my crude humor just out there and said, instead of hidden underneath, subtly hinting only.
After a very annoying opening credit sequence, we meet Holden McNeil (Ben Affleck) and Banky Edwards (Jason Lee) in a regular Smith moment with Banky arguing with a customer at a comic convention over the correct definition of his job as an inker on a comic book; the customer just says he traces the lines. Then they meet Hooper (Dwight Ewell), who, at first, seems a lot like Chris Rock’s Chaka Luther King in JASBSB, and he introduces them to Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), whom Holden instantly falls for. That is, before he finds out that Alyssa is a lesbian.
Although it is an un-Smith film, Chasing Amy does have one regular Kevin Smith trait: most scenes go on for too long. Smith knows when something works and something doesn’t, but he obvious feels too much for his work and doesn’t want to let any of it go (that’s also why there are so many deleted scenes on the DVD). He should have, because it’s 110 minute runtime goes on for too long, and without many funny parts in it, it loses something.
However, if you take it for something else, a romantic drama, that Chasing Amy is your movie. Not only does it really evoke the feelings of the characters, it has excellent acting, leaded by Adams. Although she had to destroy her credibility two years later in Adam Sandler’s Big Daddy, she’s a terrific actress. Affleck, amazingly, wasn’t bad, in fact, he was pretty good, and so was Lee, who’ve I always liked. However, Jay and Silent Bob only had one scene in Chasing Amy, and if they had been included in more scenes, it would have been funnier (maybe that’s why I liked JASBSB) a lot.
If you’re a huge fan of Kevin Smith, you’ll love Chasing Amy. If, like me, you’re a casual fan, you’ll think that this movie is OK but doesn’t live up to the others.
Rated R for strong graphic sex-related dialogue, language, sexuality and drug content.
Review Date: July 13, 2003