Cannes this year seems to be a little more lightweight than usual, with even Ken Loach’s IRA drama The Wind That Shakes The Barley failing to rattle the press. Which might explain why the selection committee decided to put the verite-style 9/11 drama United 93 in an out of competition slot, simply because it’s so effective it would have made everything else seem trivial by comparison. Put simply, Paul Greengrass’s film is a tour de force, and anyone who’s seen his Bloody Sunday will know just how brilliantly he does this kind of thing. At 111 minutes it might seem ambitious (the doomed flight was only in the air for some 50 minutes) but Greengrass paints a stunning portrait of an unbelievable day. Ironically, the film works best on the ground, with air traffic controllers coming to terms with the realization that they are dealing with the first hijack situation in almost 20 years. And although we all know what happened next, Greengrass handles the WTC attacks with expertise and subtlety, capturing the full, jaw-dropping horror of the event without ever sensationalizing it. One could argue about the film’s intent and meaning, and the passengers’ final rebellion does pack a strangely Hollywood let’s-get-the-bastards punch, but whether or not this film should have been made, it’s indisputable that it could not have been made better. Cannes loved it.
Another film that some thought should not have been made is Clerks II by Kevin Smith. After Jersey Girl, some felt that Smith had spunked his mojo, and heading back to Clerksworld could so easily have been a mad dash back to the comfort zone. It’s good to report, then, that Clerks II is what Smith does so well; it’s a tender, scabrous and very, very funny comedy that picks up 12 years after the original. After Randal (Jeff Anderson) accidentally burns down the convenience store, he and Dante (Brian O’Halloran) move on to the Mooby fast food joint. Dante has met a girl he plans to marry, and she’s hoping to whisk him off to Florida to run her family’s car wash business.
The fly in the ointment is Becky (Rosario Dawson), Mooby’s foxy manageress, and an ill-advised late-night tryst with the boss compromises Dante’s intentions. Will he leave Jersey or not? It’s a big question that sustains a small movie with a huge heart.
Perfectly recapturing the original film’s provincial whimsy, Clerks II successfully folds in the romanticism of Jersey Girl but this time with Smith’s familiar, unique voice. And after so long, it’s not only a pleasure to see O’Halloran and Anderson back on screen again, it’s a positive joy to see how well they work together – so much so, you wonder why they don’t make more movies, and not just for Smith. Jay and Silent Bob pop up (Jay’s, er, nude scene is truly eye-popping), and some of Smith’s celebrity mates make entertaining cameos (Ben Affleck, Jason Lee), but the best thing about Clerks II is that Smith doesn’t rely on the regulars to carry the movie.
It’ll be interesting to see how it fares in the marketplace but Smith’s loyal fanbase will flock to this; it’s as good as they could hope for and maybe even better. It’s a film about friendship, loyalty, love, sex and donkey shows. The Jacksons, trilogies, Jesus-freakery and pillow trolls.
You’ll never feel bad about going ass-to-mouth again. Start counting the days…