JAY & SILENT BOB REBOOT: A ‘Return To Form’ That Kevin Smith Never Really Lost To Begin With

[Published at Film Inquiry] There are a population of critics, fans, and casual View Askewniverse frequenters that may refer to Kevin Smith‘s latest film, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, in which he and his real-life best friend, Jason Mewes, return to their stoner, alter ego roots, as a “comeback,” a “new act of his career,” a “welcomed return to form,” or something along those lines, if one were speaking in cliché, journalistic lingo. And that’s entirely fair. His films aren’t for everyone. Yet, the writer, director, actor, producer, comedian, and cannabis entrepreneur made more daring films when he began traversing genres with Red State, Tusk, and Yoga Hosers in the 2010s. These films further isolated Smith from the “mainstream,” if you will. Regardless of the critical backlash of some of his latest efforts, Smith remains ever-the-optimist. A firm argument can be made that these films, marking the beginning of the second act (cliché, journalistic lingo alert) of Smith‘s career, were audacious, singular works of art misunderstood as a result of a disconnect between an audience expecting dick jokes and a filmmaker seamlessly expanding his filmmaking palate into horror, easing into the genre from thriller to the bizarrely macabre and darkly comedic.

Either way Smith‘s recent work has been and will be received in time, the moment he suffered his massive heart attack before the standup special that would become known as Kevin Smith: Silent But Deadly in 2018, during which the Renaissance man was certain, beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was dying, he instantly regretted not making another Jay and Silent Bob film. When one has a near-death experience, it truly allows them to realize the most important things in life: friends, family, and Jay and Silent Bob. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, both a sequel and a reboot, successfully makes fun of both of those, often creatively void and recycled, Hollywood moneymaking machines, and, by transitive property, cheekily makes fun of itself and Smith‘s past films, while infusing more mature subject matter that gives Mewes and Harley Quinn Smith (in a star-making performance), a chance to shine.

The New & Improved Jay & Silent Bob

Oftentimes, as overused as the phrase is, art imitates life. Smith lost over 50 pounds by becoming a vegan and maintaining regular exercise after his heart attack. Virtually everything in Smith‘s post-heart attack recover is included in Silent Bob’s new backstory. Now, instead of “Lunchbox,” Jay’s signature, off-color-yet-endearing nickname for Silent Bob, Jay uses “Snackbox.” It would be otherwise difficult and inauthentic to fake the old stature of Silent Bob. Physical change also reflects, inner change. In Smith‘s case: maturity, the expanding of his emotional intelligence transposed onto screen. Silent Bob has always been the more mature one. The wise bystander, quietly observing. And that dynamic is perfect for this chapter, which is, by all accounts, Jay’s movie.

JAY & SILENT BOB REBOOT: A 'Return To Form' That Kevin Smith Never Really Lost To Begin With — source: Saban Films

If Silent Bob’s change is sizable between this film and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, then Jay’s transformation is nothing short of drastic. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Mewes‘s performance is the fact that Reboot seemingly begins with the same old Jay, but we slowly see Mewes polish 25 years of wisecracking, profanity-spewing, blunt-smoking character work over the course of the film, smoothing Jay’s rough edges as he prepares for fatherhood, shedding the less-flattering aspects leftover from the somewhat amoral young man he once was without sacrificing the wisecracking, profanity-spewing essence of who he is. Mewes is a certified, bonafide thespian. He’s the real deal. He displays such an impressive range of emotions, that if you told one of the 12 members of the audience viewing Clerks for the first time in January of 1994 that the kid with the long hair next to the chubbier kid in the overcoat was a talent to watch out for, they likely would have laughed in your face. Viewers may want to bring a box of tissues, because Mewes‘s scene work with Harley Quinn Smith produces onscreen magic.

The Importance Of Being Family

In a sense, the original, recurring members of the View Aksewniverse are extended family to Smith and Mewes. Rightfully so, Brian O’Halloran (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II, Jay and Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie, the upcoming Clerks III) Jason Lee (Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II), Joey Lauren Adams (Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), Ben Affleck (Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II), and Matt Damon (Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), all of who have cameos in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, joining other surprise actors reprising their roles from previous films, in some form or another. These friends have remained within arms reach, always returning to the comfort of the homelike setting of a Kevin Smith set, for nearly three decades, spawning iconic works of comedy in the process. You know what they say: “A family that makes movies together, stays together.”

Then, there is Smith‘s actual family, which has grown to include Mewes. There is a sweet theme of the importance of parents and children throughout the film, in general, and, since Smith wrote Reboot, in many ways, for Mewes‘s character, that theme is filtered through a lens of fathers and daughters. Mewes, a recent father to a daughter of his own, is able to bridge that part of his life effortlessly with that of the character of Jay. As most people know, Harley Quinn Smith is Smith‘s daughter. Acting in many of his genre-bending films of the 2010s, Smith has developed both a taste and a talent for the craft. She shows an ability to not only keep up with the mile-a-minute Mewes and land every comedic beat she’s given, but also, to explore the more complex aspects of her emotions. Her empathetic presence softens Jay and Silent Bob in the most unexpected, delightful way possible. Welcome to the View Askewniverse, Ms. Smith.

Surviving The Critics

A heart attack isn’t the only impressive thing that Kevin Smith has survived. He’s endured years of critical abuse. Let’s be honest, negative reviews aren’t the same as they were 30 years ago. They used to still find common ground. The reader would finish the review, even if it was unflattering, with the complete knowledge of whether or not they might enjoy it because the reviewer would make it clear which movie attracted which genre preferences, tastes, interests, and even guilty pleasures. It was the critic’s job to get readers into theaters, even if they didn’t necessarily like the film. It seems many of the critics today unwittingly do the opposite with their writing, subsequently keeping readers from making it to the theaters when a film isn’t for them. Some of Smith‘s recent films have fallen victim to this new, more isolating wave of film criticism that doesn’t appear to champion the industry or its values.

“I was prepared to go,” Smith told Men’s Health. “The only thing that I regretted was that we didn’t make the Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. I was sitting there going, ‘Fuck! The last movie I will have made was Yoga Hosers. Goddammit, I need to go out on something else!’” One gets the sense that Smith is a self-deprecating person. Through that comment, his standup specials, and the essence of Silent Bob’s persona, Smith has consistently shown, throughout his career, that he has no problem making fun of himself. Furthermore, being a filmmaker of irreverent comedies, he’s used to the oversensitive critic, here and there. So, when his audacious break away from Jay and Silent Bob began earlier this decade, perhaps there wasn’t a filmmaker more primed to take the critical beating than Smith did. Smith even makes fun of these films in Reboot. As they say, when one makes fun of themselves, it takes the wind out of everyone else’s sails to do the same.

I predict, that, in time, films such as Red State, Tusk, and Yoga Hosers will be looked upon more favorably among critics and viewers alike, as there are so many artistic risks that go unacknowledged through some of Smith‘s more obscure work that harken back to the infectious charm of Peter Jackson‘s earlier work such as Bad Taste and Dead Alive. Perhaps they will be viewed in the same light as some of Smith‘s finest comedies, to which Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, a supposed “return to form” for the director, firmly belongs. Most importantly, it’s apparent in every frame that Smith has brought with him new filmmaking tools he’s learned over the years, undoubtedly some of which he’s picked up from his adventures in genre-leaping.

Conclusion: A Reboot For The Whole Family…But Leave The Little Ones At Home

Smith has crafted a heartfelt, thoughtful film with Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. You didn’t read that incorrectly. The words “heartfelt,” “thoughtful,” and “Jay and Silent Bob” were just used in the same sentence, if anyone needed further proof that we’re living in a simulation. Though, with this film, Smith proves that satire isn’t dead yet. The film allows viewers an opportunity to go down memory lane, reveling in the nostalgia-soaked, contrasted exuberant humility and drug-infused rebelliousness of the 90s, while looking ahead at what our legacy truly means to us. It’s a family film in that it tells the story of one big, happy family, but, as mature as Jay and Silent Bob have grown in some departments, don’t expect them to be any less raunchy.

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot takes a clever jab at Hollywood’s dwindling originality, while, both a reboot and a sequel, maintaining its own level of originality, offering two impressive performances from Mewes and Harley Quinn Smith.

What did you think of Jay and Silent Bob’s respective character evolutions in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot? Who’s your favorite new addition to the View Askewniverse? Do you hope to see more of Jay and Silent Bob in the future? Let us know in the comments below!

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot premiered theatrically in the U.S. on October 15, 2019 for two nights only. It is currently on a national theatrical tour with Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes titled, “The Jay and Silent Bob Reboot Roadshow.” Click here to find out if it’s coming to your city.