Like a hirsute, yet delightfully overweight, male burlesque dancer, director Kevin Smith raised our temperatures about Zack and Miri Make a Porno without revealing too much in his latest interview with News Askew fans.
Despite Neil punching me in the shoulder every five minutes to rhetorically ask me how cool Kevin Smith is, I’ve had some time to process the interview and came to a few conclusions.
Conclusion One: Smith is successfully leaving the View Askewniverse behind. At least for now. He’s rejected any connection that Zack and Miri might be folded into the throng of movies birthed from Clerks, and he’s admitted that his next project, assumed to be Red State, will be even further away from that interconnected web of characters. With this progression, Smith is proving he’s not just a one-themed wonder, and the future looks bright.
Conclusion Two: Smith places a lot of faith in Jason Mewes. When asked how he felt about Jay’s progression from Clerks to Clerks II, Smith said he felt, “like a proud parent.” He added about Mewes in Zack and Miri that, “he’s a real, live actor now ,” which is great, but it’s pretty surprising considering the guy has only ever played Jay – save for a few indie flicks where he expands his range to play a stoner. Call me a skeptic, and flame on, but it will be interesting to see whether Mewes can handle stepping outside his normal persona for Smith.
Conclusion Three: This movie is going to be fantastic. Smith has found a balance of working with the vulgar and the heartfelt on this one. If the sugar coating of Jersey Girl left a bad taste in your mouth, imagine when Smith delivers a love story that focuses on a basement snuff film production. Keeping in mind that it has gorgeous, actual porn star Katie Morgan in it alongside porn-star-cum-legitimate-actress Traci Lords, and it’s a fair bet that Smith will deliver on the R-rated comedy front.
The entire question and answer series can be found at News Askew here and here.
Smith raves about Elizabeth Banks and Seth Rogen, claims he’s got the run-time down to just over two hours, but doesn’t reveal much in the way of plots or gags. If I can extend the exotic dancing metaphor, and I can, he’s done a great job of fanning the flames of cinematic interest without exposing the nether regions of production details.
Bonus Conclusion: If Kevin Smith were actually an exotic dancer, his name would be, of course, Pillow Pants.
Related Topics: Kevin Smith
