I have a confession to make - I am a complete and utter Kevin Smith superfan. I'm also a teenage boy, trapped in the body of a 23-year-old chick, but that's slightly more obvious than my first admission.
I have unashamedly loved Kevin Smith's work since I was about 15, and first discovered the amazingness of Jay and Silent Bob, Dante and Randall, and all of the characters played by the once great (not so great anymore) Jason Lee. I count Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks and Clerks 2 among some of my all-time favourite movies. They contain some of the laugh-out-loud funniest lines, most ridiculous dialogue, and realistic characters I have ever had the joy of experiencing - and I quote these films constantly. Hell, my beloved best friend and partner in crime, Randall, is so called because a mutual friend compared us lovingly to the eternal friends of the View Askew universe, Dante and Randall. My young life has been undoubtedly influenced by Smith's dry wit, sharp dialogue and colourful array of characters - without his films, I'm sure my life would be much less bright.
So, when it emerged that Kevin Smith intended upon releasing a horror film which is, let's face it, so far outside of his comfort zone that he may as well have announced his intention to quit film and become an Olympic athlete, I was shocked, intrigued but, above all else, excited. Although his latest release, Cop Out, was absolutely dreadful (a self-reviewing title, if ever I've seen one), the film before that, Zack And Miri Make A Porno was a wonderfully filthy, heart-warming romp that I really rather enjoyed, and still happily watch every now and again (and quote, of course). While some people have written Smith off as of late (his self-obsession and ridiculous public dramas, such as the fight with Southwest Airlines, really aren't helping his case), I remain loyal and open-minded about Red State, his first foray into my favourite, dark little world.
It hasn't been plain-sailing with this release, of course. There was the somewhat false auction, in which Smith claimed his film was up for grabs, before buying it himself. There was the national tour of the film, and the subsequent problems with actually releasing it to the mainstream. In fact, I was worried it wouldn't even get a release date over here, and when it was pushed back to November, I gave a hearty sigh. So, imagine my elation upon seeing the above poster dotted all over my fair city, signalling that the film would be released nationwide, and, more importantly, earlier than expected, on September 30th (just a week from now - eep!).
Now, my good friend Rich has already seen it, and I could do the same if I so wished, since it's freely available online. But there's something about waiting, and seeing it in the cinema, without spoilers or anything else (all I know about it is that it's about the Bible Belt, and religious fundamentalists), that is really getting me excited - more excited than I have been for a film since Scream 4, and the last Harry Potter movie. So I'm going to wait, excitedly and impatiently, for another week, until Randall and I can go and feast our eyes upon what is sure to be, probably not a horror masterpiece, but hopefully a great Kevin Smith film, on the big screen, which is something I haven't had a chance to do since Clerks 2 (the first film of his that I was old enough to see in the cinema, funnily enough).
Therefore, despite everything that's happened this past year, and despite Kevin Smith's ever-changing public persona, I still remain excited for Red State. And even more excited to be front and centre when he and Jason Mewes bring their "Jay and Silent Bob Get Old" show to Dublin next February.
In other news..... Lots of films seem to be being re-released in the cinema these days. First, it was Back To The Future, then The Lion King (in 3D, snore). And now, this weekend, it's the fantastic, never-gets-old Jurassic Park, which still scares me a little bit, I must admit. Then, some time soon (hopefully within the next five minutes), one of my favourite films of all time, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is coming back to the cinema, remastered and maybe even extra awesome, which means fishnets, corsets and doing the "Time Warp" in the aisles - possibly even some audience participation, if we're lucky!
I haven't heard anything about why these films are being re-released, but hopefully this trend of bringing classics back to the cinema lasts at least a little while longer, because it has the potential to be really good fun. And, if nothing more, it lets us relive our childhoods, eat copious amounts of junk food, and dance around in full costume (even more than we usually do).
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