Clerks III (2022)

Clerks III (2022)

 

6/10

 

Starring

Brian O'Halloran

Jeff Anderson

Trevor Fehrman

Austin Zajur

 

Directed by Kevin Smith

 

I will say it was heartwarming to see the crew again, even though I feel this movie, at one point, lost its thrill earlier than I expected. It swamped itself by daydreaming about the glory days when the first Clerks (1994) was a masterful independent film. It gently wraps up the trilogy of Clerks, and fans of the franchise will enjoy it. However, like me, they might feel the movie relies too heavily on nostalgia for the black-and-white glory days.

The story continues fifteen years after Clerks II (2006). We have a new setting, but it’s still the same old shop. I feel that Kevin Smith has, in a way, made a mess of his View Askew universe and should focus on other projects for now. While I’ve enjoyed the characters that emerged from this world (and many made cameos in this movie), seeing their older faces reminded me that this franchise has run its course.

If this movie never existed, you wouldn’t miss much. It’s unlike Clerks II, where new characters brought a fresh dimension of comedy. Here, it’s just the same old guys telling us goodbye. The movie had little to no impact on the larger world, and killing off characters to end a franchise feels lazy to me.

Also, by the time the characters reach their moments of awakening, you’ve already reached the limit of smiles you can muster. The good thing is that the movie knows when to end. By the time you hit that limit, the curtains close. For that reason, I give it a 6/10—it knew when to stop.

The movie begins with an update on what’s been happening in the lives of Dante and Randal, who are still running the Quick Stop. Jay and Silent Bob now own the store next door, which has become a legal weed shop, though the duo still operate like it’s the old days.

During a heated conversation with Elias and Blockchain, Randal suffers a heart attack. While in the hospital, he has a revelation: he’s wasted his life. Determined to leave a mark, he decides to make a movie about his life, using the people around him as actors and extras to save on costs.

The filmmaking process takes a back seat and turns into something akin to the making of the first Clerks (1994). The movie gives us some cool callbacks to moments from that original film, but ultimately, it leans too much on nostalgia.

Watching this movie is a choice, and it’s really something only fans of the franchise will enjoy. It doesn’t work well as a standalone movie worth recommending to others.