Having debuted with the low-budget, black-and-white comedy Clerks(1994), shot for $27,575 in a New Jersey convenience store, writer-director Kevin Smith returned in 1995 with Mallrats, now backed by Universal Pictures.
Two Gen X slacker buddies – Brodie Bruce (Jason Lee), a Sega and comic book-obsessed college student, and his best friend, hopeless romantic TS Quint (Jeremy London) – are both dumped by their girlfriends on the same day.
To deal with their loss and blow off some steam, they retreat to their local suburban New Jersey shopping mall.
They discover that both of their ex-girlfriends are also at the mall for different reasons.
Quint’s ex, Brandi (Claire Forlani), is forced by her controlling, wealthy father (Michael Rooker) to participate in a live, televised dating game show being filmed centre-stage.
Meanwhile, Brodie’s ex, Rene (Shannen Doherty), has started dating a sleazy clothing store manager named Shannon Hamilton (Ben Affleck).
The two heartbroken slackers formulate an absurd, chaotic plan to sabotage the game show, conquer their rivals, and win back their women – enlisting the help of local mall delinquents and weed dealers Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith).
Jay and Silent Bob launch a series of elaborate, comic-book-inspired schemes to disrupt the mall’s authority figures and ruin the game show.
The film was a critical and commercial flop, grossing just over $2 million.
Thanks to home video, DVD releases, and frequent cable syndication, the movie found a massive second life and is now fiercely celebrated by fans as a quintessential ’90s time capsule, praised for its sharp pop-culture dialogue, comic book references, and colourful slacker subculture.
Kevin Smith returned in 1997 with Chasing Amy, using many of the same cast members and some of the same characters. He named the interconnected world of his movies ‘The View Askewniverse’.
Brodie Bruce Jason Lee T.S. Quint
Jeremy London Rene Mosier
Shannen Doherty Brandi Svenning
Claire Forlani Shannon Hamilton
Ben Affleck Jared Svenning
Michael Rooker Jay
Jason Mewes Silent Bob
Kevin Smith Gwen Turner
Joey Lauren Adams Tricia Jones
Renee Humphrey Willam
Ethan Suplee Ivannah
Priscilla Barnes LaFours
Sven-Ole Thorsen Stan Lee
Himself Game Show Host
Art James Steve Dave
Bryan Johnson Roddy
Scott Mosier Gill
Brian O’Halloran
Director
Kevin Smith
Video
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They discover that both of their ex-girlfriends are also at the mall for different reasons.
