Jersey Girl, Super High Me, How to Draw a Bunny

Jersey Girl (2004)

It’s probably not the best way to start a review of a movie from a director / writer you admire, but this movie didn’t suck. Kevin Smith has helped to push the envelope of comedy to new places. His stye speaks to a lot of people. This is not a prototypical Kevin Smith film. It’s really a very straight forward film about relationships. I know that part of the inspiration was the loss of his own father and probing the family unit with an adult eye.

Affleck was his typical good self. And of course, there was the appearance by Matt Damon. Will Smith also made an interesting cameo. George Carlin was convincing as Ollie’s dad. And for all the hype, Jennifer Lopez’s role was actually too small. Raquel Castro is a very talented actress, hopefully, she will avoid the trappings of so many other child actors.

The story tended toward the melodramatic, which is unusual for Smith. At times, it descended into the sappy. Yet, Smith managed to retain a lot of his humor and made it an enjoyable time. It’s certainly not Jay and Silent Bob. I enjoyed watching it fairly well. It wasn’t the best thing Smith has done, but not as bad as the fanboys imagined it to be, just different.

Super High Me (2007)

Comedian Doug Benson made this documentary to explore the effect of marijuana smoking. For 30 days, he abstained form smoking pot and drinking alcohol. He was tested at various stages to set a baseline. He then embarked on getting high pretty much most of the waking time for the next 30 days.

This was hardly meant to be a scientific exploration. For instance, Benson’s well documented drug use does not make him the ideal candidate for a real exploration of pot use. His ’sober’ period is not a baseline for a non-smoker. And his ability to maintain while ’stoned’ shouldn’t be a surprise either. There are some funny scenes but probably the biggest effect was the exposure of medical marijuana debate on California. The tension between state and local authorities with the federal government is front and center. It’s a really interesting debate.

How to Draw a Bunny (2002)

I enjoy documentaries about artists, but this one missed the mark for me. Maybe it was the subject or maybe it was the pretentious black and white while trying to match the eclectic style of Ray Johnson. Art is one of those things that people will argue about as long as it is present. Some of Johnson’s work talks to me, but a lot of it just falls flat. As a photographer, I realize that careful editing is essential. Now, some will say that putting your body of work out there is more ‘organic’, but when one does that, they need to be open to criticism.

Most of the people that are interviewed seem to be trying to convince themselves that they are ‘hip’ enough to be clued into Ray Johnson. So much of the art world has “the emperor’s clothing” syndrome. And from watching the film, I have come to the conclusion that Johnson worked within this premise. He was obviously a capitalist and was able to manipulate people to maximize his return. There are multiple stories of people making an agreement to pay x amount for a work of art, then he decided that he needed x+y for it.

So maybe my issues are probably more with those around him than with Ray Johnson. Hey, artists have all kinds of styles. Some of it is universal and some of it is very strange. A lot of artists have that “I could have done that” vibe as well. It’s the people that surround the artist that seems to determine if they are viable or not. I have crossed paths with several people that were very similar to Johnson. Why are they anonymous and Johnson is known.

I can appreciate his work for what it is. Craziness, probably; intentionally manipulative, almost definitely. Will he be seen as a Picasso or Warhol, time will tell. If he talks to you, great, but if he doesn’t, that’s fine too.