Clerks II

It’s been 12 years since Kevin Smith became one of the last upstart filmmakers to squeak through the door of the Tarantino era of "independent" cinema with his hugely overrated comedy "Clerks." Smith revisits his New Jersey mini-mart clerks Dante and Randal (Brian O’Halleron and Jeff Anderson) who return one morning to discover that their beloved Quick Stop has burned down. The geeky middle-aged best friends take jobs at a fast-food burger joint where their sexy manager Becky (Rosario Dawson) unintentionally tempts Dante away from his betrothed fiancée Emma (Jennifer Schwalbach Smith). Notably dubbed as the "gayest film ever" when it premiered at the 2006 Cannes film festival, "Clerks II" is nonetheless a slight improvement on Smith’s original film, even if it is chock full of not-so-subtle homo-erotic subtext. Special features include three commentary tracks. The first includes director Kevin Smith, producer Scott Mosier and director of photography David Klein). The second commentary comes from Mosier, Smith and actors Jeff Anderson, Trevor Fehrman, Jason Mewes, Brian O'Halloran and Jennifer Schwalbach; and a third podcast commentary with Anderson, Mosier and Smith. Bonus features also include a blooper reel, full-length documentary, video production diaries, and two making-of featurettes. Aspect ratio is 1.78:1 (enhanced for widescreen), with sound processed in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. (Movie – One Star, DVD features – Three Stars) Rated R, 97 mins. (Weinstein Company)