rom the same man who brought you Clerks, comes another cynical comedy about life and apathy in the '90s. Mallrats continues Bob Hatchett's vulgar storytelling tradition of great and vile tales. The film opens with Brody, an angst-filled teen who frequents malls and topless fortune tellers, narrating the story of his cousin's repetetive run-ins with kittens, proctologists, and a gerbil, while scenes of cheesy New Jersey stores flash across the screen. The rest of the movie basically progresses in the following manner: Brody (Jason Lee) and his best friend T.S. (Jeramy London) are ever so conveniently, simultaneously dumped by their girlfriends Renee (suprisingly well portrayed by Shannon Doherty, a.k.a. "Brenda") and some actress who really sucked, so I didn't bother to remember her name. The hopeless duo spent the remainder of the hour and a half desperately attempting to win back their lovers. Despite the pathetic back drop, the characters are believeable, multifaceted individuals whose interactions and dialogues provide for the real genius of the film. Bob Hatchett's screen writing talent has, once again, proven to be in touch with those tail-end members of Generation X who seek comfort in mundane 80's trivia, comic book heroes, reproductive organs, and finding the hidden picture in those fucking hologram things. The mall generation has been defined. They awake in the morning, throw down some Pepsi, and go to the mall where mindless conversations, shallow relationships, and secret underwear sales await.
The highlight of Mallrats is not in the culmination of T.S.'s romantic entanglements or Brody's friutless searches for meaning, and not even in the frightening realization of the similarites between these characters' lives and our own. Rather, it is found in the recurrent kamikaze-metalhead characters, Silent Bob and Jay. These two characters truly are the linchpin to the success of Hatchett's portrayal of challenged (mentally, that is) youths functioning in the '90's. Throughout the film, it is the goal of these two drugged out, social misfits to defeat the evil mall cop in order to save T.S. and Brody's love life. The local "mall" lingo, vast amounts of Star Wars trivia, and levitational abilities that these characters deliver, places Mallrats in the class of superior films of this decade.
If you have a quick, witty sense of humor and a thirst for insight into social realities, struggling generations, and wild sex in the elevator of your local mall; I highly suggest seeing this movie. Otherwise, pop in a copy of The Joy Luck Club, avaliable at your local video store; it's probably more up your alley.
