Posted by Isis at nas-200-61.rochester.navipath.net on August 19, 2001 at 00:34:08:
Okay I can't believe that I'm about to say this but...
Either J&SBSB is one of the most brilliant, structure-mocking, farce-tastical movies of all time, or it's the biggest piece of self-indulgent crap I've ever had the pleasure to waste money on. It made me feel dirty, I can't decide whether in a good way or not.
So I guess I'm going to have to sit through it again, and you bastards will actually reap 50 cents or so of my hard-earned cash.
The preview I went to was packed -- very surprising considering all the college kids are gone and it's practically a ghost town, so we're talking mainstream Americana here, middle aged folks, townies, etc. This also in a town so politically correct, if there's nothing controversial this week, people will get together and protest just to keep in practice. My friend made us late stopping for more cancer sticks and we barely even found seats.
People laughed out loud all through the movie and long time devotees had obviously brought their friends 'cause I could hear people explaining the inside references. People even clapped at the end, which I always find surreal. Big ups to y'all at the Ithaca show, I know some of you read this board or follow shit pretty closely b/c I saw about a dozen of you sit through the credits and inexplicably, cheer and clap for the gay-language PSA (are you glad Kevin likes gay people? me too). I was the chick in pigtails, glasses and a butterfly shirt and you guys were freaking me out with your hardcore-ness. Yes I was also the only person who laughed out loud at the "Banky revelation" (the delight of which almost makes up for any possible PC trangression).
I don't want to spoil anything but I will say that there are moments of sheer brilliance. There were some things that were unnecessary but we need not go into them, let's just say the gay jokes didn't add to the film and actually detracted from it after a while. People just stopped responding, there was laughter through the whole thing except just dead air after a while at every gay comment. Even my oblivious adolescent male friend who isn't a regular fan and doesn't know anything about the controversy pointed it out (no prompting from me) and said it made him uncomfortable.
Regardless, everyone must see this movie, see it three times, buy twenty extra tickets to hang over your bed and kiss every night, for it is an enigma that bears study. Either it is the biggest sell-out or the biggest fuck-you I've ever seen, and either way it is fascinating.
So pour your 40 on the sidewalk to Jay and Silent Bob's memory, tell your friends to check it out. Get them high, and tell them the chick from American Pie shows flesh. And if you just hate the movie, walk out and give the 14 year old teen boys a chance to sneak in. They're carding like a nun getting head on this one.
In other news Kevin's coming to Ithaca but I'm not giving any of you bitches details yet. Nah nah nah boo boo.
-- i
Ban! Ban! Ban! Ban! Ban!