Chasing Amy (1997)

Chasing Amy: Directed by Kevin Smith. With Ethan Suplee, Ben Affleck, Scott Mosier, Jason Lee. Holden and Banky are comic book artists. Everything’s going good for them until they meet Alyssa, also a comic book artist. Holden falls for her, but his hopes are crushed when he finds out she’s a lesbian.

“Kevin Smith isnu0026#39;t typically known for mature work – the majority of his films are funny, but crude. u0026quot;Chasing Amy,u0026quot; his follow-up to the 1995 box office failure u0026quot;Mallrats,u0026quot; is certainly the most adult film he has made, in terms of general context. Overall, however, I was left with mixed feelings.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHolden (Ben Affleck) is the co-creator of a popular comic strip named u0026quot;Bluntman and Chronic.u0026quot; One day at a New York City Comicon Convention, a friend of Holdenu0026#39;s introduces him to Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), a free-spirited, adventurous girl whom Holden instantly takes a liking to. As they spend more time together, Holden finds himself falling in love. But thereu0026#39;s just one problem: Alyssa is a lesbian.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHoldenu0026#39;s best friend and co-writer/artist, Banky (Jason Lee), resents Alyssa – both because he is homophobic and afraid of losing Holden. He doesnu0026#39;t trust Alyssa, and digs up dirt on her that extends into her high school days, when, apparently, she was not just into chicks.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; has moments of rare greatness – the dialogue, first of all, is excellent. So is the acting. Joey Lauren Adams has been severely underused since u0026quot;Chasing Amy,u0026quot; starring in undeveloped romantic roles in comedies such as u0026quot;Big Daddy.u0026quot; Her character Alyssa in Smithu0026#39;s film is three-dimensional, and her outburst towards the end of the picture is heartfelt and honest. Jason Lee is hilarious in a very believable way (never stretching Banky into a far-fetched comedic personality) and even Ben Affleck manages to remain tolerable. (Which is always unusual.) I think the problem with u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; is that it simply tries too hard, and lacks a point. Smith attempted to prove to his critics that he was capable of making a realistic, sophisticated and complex motion picture and tackles some very, very touchy subjects in the process, without ever coming to any solid conclusion.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCredit must be given where it is due – Smith is an expert at snappy one-liners and good dialogue. But no matter how clever, insightful and emotionally developed Smithu0026#39;s everyday jargon may very well be, at heart he is still a philistine. One need only listen to five minutes of one of his DVD commentary tracks to realize this. That core immaturity doesnu0026#39;t translate well to the screen in a picture that wants to be taken as something more. Itu0026#39;s like a child trying to imitate an adult – the gestures might be there, but the experience and cultivation is not.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnother major weakness of u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; is that it is too blunt, I think. Example? Itu0026#39;s heavily implied that Banky is a repressed closet homosexual. It makes sense, and a deleted scene from another of Smithu0026#39;s later films confirms it. But I felt it should never have been addressed at all in u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; – great films imply, they donu0026#39;t stress. A character from u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; explains to Holden what weu0026#39;re all thinking – maybe Banky has feelings for Holden that he isnu0026#39;t ready to acknowledge. This is too much. Itu0026#39;s too clear, and not subtle enough. It should have been left up to the audience to use their own perceptions. By the time this u0026quot;explanationu0026quot; occurs in the movie, I had already assumed Banky was gay; Smithu0026#39;s desire to put it into words seemed anti-climactic and ruined the speculation.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThat best sums up the entire film, really — u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; has its good parts, but the finished product is messy and contradictory and just too damned wordy. It tries at every turn to be insightful, honest, mature and even epic. The problem with all this is that Smith lacks a point – he wants to say thereu0026#39;s nothing wrong with being gay, and love is love no matter whether youu0026#39;re male or female, but itu0026#39;s clear that deep inside he is a bit like Banky – homophobic and immature. His decision to turn Alyssa into a u0026quot;mistake,u0026quot; a woman who has been fooled into lesbianism, who is u0026quot;savedu0026quot; by Holden, doesnu0026#39;t make sense. Iu0026#39;m not criticizing the filmu0026#39;s motive – if it had one, Iu0026#39;d judge it based on how well it elucidates it. My own point is that Smith doesnu0026#39;t have one – heu0026#39;s wishy-washy, one moment preaching to his audience about the dangers of homophobia, the next moment turning his lesbian into the very stereotype all lesbians must hate: the woman who is afraid of men and deep down inside her heart is actually is attracted to them. I was left wondering what Smith was trying to get across to his audience.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFor what itu0026#39;s worth, my favorite scene from u0026quot;Chasing Amyu0026quot; is when Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Smith himself) show up. Silent Bobu0026#39;s monologue is honest and tender without coming across as being too showy or gushy. Had the entire film matched this one scene, it would be a great deal better.”