Posted by Cal Trask at 208-39-151-131.isp.comcastbusiness.net on June 14, 2002 at 10:24:00:
Good Christ, if I was lucky enough to have a film career that I worked my ass off on and had a web board where i could personally connect with my fans and ended up with this shit, i would lose it. To me, if people are flipping out because Jersey Girl is PG-13 and won't say Cockknocker 15 times, I think they're totally missing a huge piece of Kevin Smith's films. The thing I always like about Kevin's stuff is that even though he has a public persona of being a foul mouthed bastard when he wants, there seems to be so much more going on behind the guy. His films are VERY personal (one of my favorite points is in Chasing Amy when Holden talks about how he had been doing something really personal but got away from it and was now getting back to it with his Chasing Amy comic - and it paralleled Kevin's career up to that point). I mean Dogma is a hugely personal film. I was wondering lately if the foul mouthed dialog was actually holding Kevin back - that it was sort of a trademark thing that he could easily get stuck in but that could also distract from the story. I think Kevin knows what he's doing here. And it can't be an easy thing either. I mean such a huge part of his fan base is rooted in the Askewniverse and, unfortunately, don't see much past the four lettered dialog into what is really going on. So, to depart form that, to do something new, is a brave thing to do at this point in his career and a real growth as a filmmaker, I think. Sometimes it seems like Kevin Smith doesn't have a huge amount of self confidence, and it has to be scary to make such a departure. How about everyone acts like real fucking fans and actually support the guy for taking another step in his career and telling the stories HE wants to tell rather than putting the word cunt in a flick to sell more tickets to a supposed 'fan' base.
I'm also psyched that the guys chose Philly for the bulk of the film's production. Sharon Pinkerton is working hard to get more talent into the city and is doing a great job. Hope you guys have a killer time here. You cna bet your ass that I'll be checking the film office site for a crew call.