Dogma

Poor Kevin Smith had a hard time in the late 90s. Best friends Ben Affleck and Matt Damonslandered him in pubs all along the West Coast, saying he didn't pay them and how he would explain that charity to the taxman. Kevin Smith decided to respond to this undeserved criticism by making a hit with the support of a major studio, resulting in a movie that had an impressive set design and cast. This unjust accusation dates back to then, claiming that Smith could be bought and Dogma is a mainstream studio comedy that lacks the typical Smith traits and provocative nature. None of this is true because making a film in America with a religious theme that so disrespectfully deals with all religious dogmas, from portraying God as a woman to a secret black apostle, and simultaneously being so disrespectful to official religious authorities, is an extremely daring thing, so it's probably Smith's most daring endeavor in his career. The film is full of ideas, comedic situations, and elements of absurdity, but at the same time, it is, like most of Smith's films, somewhat uneven and unpolished. To fully appreciate all the nuances, it is really good to know a little more about Christian beliefs and the social situation in the United States. I particularly enjoyed the scenes where Affleck and Damon try to moralize the board of directors of a company and use hellish methods to do so. The casting was unconventional, but it paid off, including Alanis as the boss of the heavens. Overall impression: 80%. (2008.01.15)

Do you know what a celestial angel and a Ken doll from Mattel's collection have in common? Ask Kevin Smith. The outcry from the leaders of the Catholic Church in the US shortly after the film's premiere did not wait long. Kevin Smith not only made a funny film, but also a controversial and smart one. Sure, the presence of Jay and Silent Bob may not make it seem so to some, but a lot of the dialogue is really intelligent, hitting on church statements and doctrine, not in an offensive way, but in a clever and witty way. Moreover, I definitely don't think it's a mainstream film. Kevin Smith remained his own and the cast is already "tribal": Matt and Ben as the bastard angels have a lot of charm, and there is also the well-known duo of the director himself, aka Silent Bob, and his skinny partner Jay, who once again spouts one sexually tinged line after another and is again comically incomprehensible. Azrael's killer sidekicks with hockey sticks are cool, and even for the first time in my life, I didn't mind Chris Rock as the 13th Apostle. That's my stuff... Smart Kevin, good movie. (2004.03.14)

Just slightly above average entertainment that isn't afraid to poke fun at God himself (He's a woman!!) or Jesus (a black man with siblings). Some of the ideas were really great and I laughed a lot, but the conclusion of the story was bland and quite boring at best. I was going to give it 3*, but for "Silent" Bob and especially for Alan Rickman..... still 3* :-D (2012.01.27)

My first, funniest, and dearest Smith film of its time hasn't lost any of its comedic cadence with the passage of time. However, my perspective is a little different given the rest of the director's films. Smith pushed aside his personal views on pop culture and took on church dogmas, whose frequent inflexibility to the current state of society is blatant. It violates them all, makes outrageous fun of them with the help of the most tasteless humor, and yet it is so purely its own, absolutely funny, straightforwardly accurate, never for a moment stooping to awkward variations (hello The Da Vinci Code). This makes Smith’s most mainstream (not counting Jersey Girl) film into a damn polished flick that, while its edge is not as perfectly honed as the rest (neither in terms of humor nor sarcasm), is still supremely entertaining. (2007.08.19)

Damon is simply great and Affleck landed perhaps the best role. Smith admirably mixed a religious movie with a comedy about junkies without it being at all disruptive. Even though the movie is over two hours long, it flies by quickly and never a boring moment. Thumbs up, but not right up to the skies. (2010.12.28)