Clerks 10th Anniversary Edition - DVD Review

It was in 1991 that a young man from a small town in New Jersey had an idea, and thirteen years later, that idea is now beloved by millions around the world.

This year marks the tenth anniversary of Clerks, Kevin Smith’s film debut as a writer, director, and actor, an anniversary that has been marked with a new, three disc, DVD set.

Originally shot on a shoestring budget, Clerks tells the story of Dante Hicks, a convenience store worker, who is called in to work on his day off. We follow Dante and his friends throughout the day, as he has to contend with his slacker best friend, Randall, his current girlfriend Veronica, his ex-girlfriend Caitlin, a parade of unique and unusual customers, and two certain stoners by the name of Jay & Silent Bob.

Clerks is basically a simple story, shot in a simple way, in which the characters talk how people really talk, and because of this relative simplicity, it’s a beautiful piece of work.

Having worked in a retail environment for a number of years, I sympathised a great deal with some of the characters and the situations, it really is that true to life. In that respect, Kevin Smith is like Ricky Gervais, in as much as he has captured his former working environment perfectly.

Of course, this three disc special edition comes with a ton of extras. Along with the usual directors and actors commentaries, there’s also the chance to see the film in it’s original form, with it’s original ending - which I won’t spoil for you in case you haven’t seen it yet. There’s also a ninety minute documentary which chronicles the development of the film, which in itself is an interesting story.

When Kevin Smith first came up with the idea for Clerks, he probably had no idea just how successful the film would become. He is regarded as a visionary, a master of modern-day film making, and rightfully so. Clerks was where it all began for him, and with Clerks 2 currently in the pipeline, it looks like we’ll all be making a return journey to the Quick Stop soon. It certainly will be a trip worth taking.