Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot is a lighthearted and entertaining flick that appeals to fans of the original Jay and Silent Bob franchise. The film offers plenty of laughs, nostalgic references, and a sprinkle of heart. However, the movie's humor can be hit or miss, and the storyline feels a bit repetitive compared to the previous films in the series. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot is a fun romp for fans of the franchise, but may not have much appeal for those unfamiliar with the characters.

18 years after Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, Kevin Smith brings the stoner duo back for one more adventure as Jay & Silent Bob Reboot sees the titular characters travel once again to Hollywood, this time to try and stop a reboot of the Bluntman & Chronic franchise from being made. After stealing the show in Kevin Smith's first film Clerks, Jay and Silent Bob went on to pop up in several other View Askew productions including Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma. Eventually, they got their own feature and it was exactly the kind of fun, very silly, cameo-filled road movie it needed to be. The film didn't take itself seriously for a second and it was all over the place but it worked thanks to a funny script, some well paced direction and a lively supporting cast. Fears that the stoners could only work as characters in small doses were officially dispelled and yet it took almost 20 years for Jay and Silent Bob to come back for a sequel/reboot, despite appearing in Clerks II and being set to return in Smith's Yoga Hosers sequel Moose Jaws. Jay & Silent Bob Reboot begins with the duo being arrested for growing weed in the old video store next to their beloved Quick Stop before going to trial where they lose the rights to their own names. Upon learning that their comic-book aliases Bluntman & Chronic are about to undergo the movie reboot treatment, they travel to Hollywood, meeting all sorts of colorful characters along the way including a cab driving entrepreneur who cooks tater tots in his car and a teen girl gang. Jay (Jason Mewes) finds out from old flame Justice (Shannon Elizabeth) that he has a daughter, Millennium Faulken (Harley Quinn Smith), and the latter decides to follow Jay and Silent Bob with a group of friends to Chronic Con, despite not knowing about being related to Jay. A lot has happened both in the "Askewniverse" and Kevin Smith's own career since Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back so this new movie was bound to include even more in-jokes and references. Indeed, everything from Smith's podcasts to his True North trilogy, Jersey Girl and Cop Out gets a mention and the film is packed to the brim with cameos, some of which work, some of which are exhausting. The Ben Affleck appearance is dragged out to include a mini Chasing Amy reunion with Joey Lauren Adams and countless Batman V Superman references when, really, less is more with cameos: the Stan Lee mid-credits one is genuinely sweet, the Chris Hemsworth and Ralph Garman cameos are just right, as is the How High hallucination scene and Jason Lee effortlessly jumps back into his old character as if he'd never even left that comic-book store. One of the best things about Strike Back was Will Ferrell's bumbling cop and, while Fred Armisen is entertaining enough as the off-beat cab driver, this movie desperately needed a character like Ferrell's to make the film feel more like a mainstream comedy, keeping the laughs coming and the plot moving. As it stands, there's little to hang onto here narrative-wise so you mostly just sit and wait for the next cameo. That said, the real meat of the story, Jay's relationship with his daughter, would have definitely worked if not for how heavy-handed the way in which those scenes are approached with piano music unironically popping up suddenly whenever there's an emotional moment. This feels like a lack of trust in the actors' abilities to pull off those scenes when, in fact, both Jason Mewes and Harley Quinn Smith do a pretty good job overall. I could go on but, to sum up, I'd say there's a good film in there somewhere. Jay & Silent Bob Reboot had everything it needed to be a worthy sequel to Strike Back but it's way too messy, reference-heavy and oddly paced to quite get there. The jokes are much weaker also, which doesn't help. The film has its heart in the right place and it means well, never striving for more than a fun ride for those viewers who get all the in-jokes, but there was potential there for a genuinely good, funny comedy and hopefully Kevin Smith can tap into that a lot more next time because, as it stands, fans (such as me) will find a handful of things to enjoy here but, ultimately, it'll still feel like a bit of a disappointment. Reboots, amirite?

Kevin Smith has always had a thing for meta-comedy, and this latest venture absolutely requires you to know all the previous films, otherwise the 4th-wall breaks and references are just meaningless. However, in attempting to poke fun at Hollywood's whole reboot / remake thing with woke characters and dull plots, he actually achieves something far worse - a non-Hollywood reboot / remake thing with woke characters and a dull plot. I couldn't have cared less about Jays daughter and her "journey", although finding a Muslim girl who was the spitting image of Elisa Duskhu was impressive. And as for the black deaf girl ... couldn't Smith have made her a lesbian also for the identity trifecta? The cameos were predictable and yet unpredictable at the same time, I thought I could anticipate the lines they were going to say before they said them, and yet only half of them did. "Dude, you fucked a pie". Again Smith trying to be far more clever than he actually is, subverting expectations by disappointing everyone. I'm just surprised they didn't get Mark Hamill back as Cock-Knocker, but presumably he's too busy threatening to leave Twitter (for the 7th time this week). All in all, not funny, and not a patch on the original. It's a film designed for Gen-Z, while constantly referencing Millennial and Gen-X scenarios and tropes that we enjoyed 20 odd years ago. And in that respect, I'm sure NO generation actually enjoyed it.

Not as good as the previous Jay and Silent Bob film, but a solid entry into the series.

Why? It's all I could think of while watching this movie. A couple of funny moments but these two iconic characters look to have run their last race.

It was funny at some parts some of the actor like Shannon elizabeth Jason mewes Kevin smith Justin long and harley Quin smith did good to and i like when they go a conversation that was a good last 25 or 30 minutes and the first 30 minutes was good and last good thing about it is that the one scene in the middle that the some of jay lines said was funny but some of the acting was not petty besides the one scene in the middle the last 25 or 30 minutes and the first 30 minute but besides that this not best some people like it but people don't but i think this halfway descent.

It's really stupid and meta and although the "Askewniverse" was doing its thing back in the 1990s — and it wasn't as hack back in 2019, granted — I'm so tired of "multi-verse" content (yes, this is content) that I can't imagine even the most loyal fans enjoyed this movie. On this account, I'm wrong, given the (93) audience RT score as I write this. It's cameo-heavy with a superficial father/daughter story concerning Jay (Jay Mewes) and Millie (Harley Quinn Smith, Kevin Smith's real-life daughter). Besides a handful of one-liners from Jay, who I will always love, this movie just isn't funny. The KKK scene feels like it should be straight out of 2004 and the ending is ludicrous. Overall, I'm a fan of the "Askewniverse" and love Clerks, and really enjoy Clerks II and Dogma, but this was a waste of time. I got the references and still didn't find it charming or enjoyable. No one needs to see this. Not even the most ardent fans. Still excited for Clerks III though.

How in the world does this have a 93% audience score. This movie was so painfully unfunny and cringe.

I Love the story line in this movie and seen it tons of times!

I don't want to remember this experience ever again. It was cringe meta humor/boomer generation is cool humor. The movie gets worse as it goes along. The cameos are not fun because it just further shows no fucking fun storyline. If there was a storyline the 2000s would want it back. Storyline roast: we have to get somewhere to stop them from doing this! uh doy oh no i have a daughter too!? durrrrr. I really don't care about lessons about being middle aged and regrets. lol. This movie tried to have a message about family. Just stfu and never make a movie again.