106 - Clerks (1994)

DVD Box
Clerks tells the story of Dante, a lazy shop assistant, during a single working day.

After Dante is called into work on his day off and finds that the front shutter doors to his shop will not open, it becomes apparent that this will be one of Dante's more adventurous days.

As if dealing with rude customers, an anti-cigarette preacher and the usual dope-peddling chain smokers, Dante is forced to face certain facts regarding his love life, an impending hockey game and at least one funeral.

Still, it'll be OK as Randal, his equally lazy layabout colleague from the video store next door, is on hand to offer his expert advice.

Theatrical Poster
Source: Wikipedia
Clerks is a member of a rare breed. Anyone can pick up a camera and start filming their friends and family doing bizarre things, but it takes truly intuitive visionary to cast them in equally bizarre roles - never mind with such an amusing result.

The success of Clerks is that it follows a group of people who nobody really wants to be. Despite this, none of the characters are stupid, and Dante's girlfriend Veronica frequently laments his laziness by telling him to return to school to get his qualifications. In the same breath, the characters are so easy to relate to that they frequently stumble upon subjects that are so pointless they could crop up in everyday conversations between two friends.

The fact that Clerks was shot by Kevin Smith (who also plays the role of Silent Bob), who worked in the store at the time, is just another fantastic feat. As mentioned, he enlisted the help of many of his close friends and doubled up their roles which only became apparent as the closing credits roled with a distinct lack of variation in actors names.

Despite the somewhat implication in the film that only wasters work at convenience stores, Smith proves that inside everyone is a little creativity - if only they have the tenacity to stake everything they own on it.

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