The relationship with an artist and a fan can be a strangely tumultuous one, at times. As fans, it's amazing how we react to our heroes' careers. It can range from utter disgust to sheer delight. It's an amusing relationship when you look at it from a distance, but when you're involved, it's very serious stuff.
Filmmakers are no exception.
We expect our filmmakers to entertain us with original content, yet when they make an audacious effort to broaden their horizons, we turn their backs on them. This hidden philosophy is evident in not only film geeks, but critics as well. Look at Martin Scorsese. Although he has directed wonderful films not related to crime, like The Aviator, but the films he is most known doing are his crime epics. When David Fincher showed his ability to stretch in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", fans of his darker work were outraged.
When it comes to Kevin Smith, I don't think anyone imagined him taking any 180 degree turns with his career. From the looks of it, it sounds like he didn't either. However, after "Zack and Miri Make a Porno" was released, he signed on to direct a script entitled "A Couple of Dicks", the first film he directed yet did not write. He stated that he is no longer interested in telling stories of the angry, young man, as Smith is 39, happily married, and has a successful career.
Smith is planning on working on a hockey period film entitled "Hit Somebody", based on the song of the same name by Warren Zevon and Mitch Albom. Unlike the rest of his films, it's mainly a drama, dealing with a hockey player who loves the game but is only used as someone hits the other player.
Also on Smith's plate is a political horror film named "Red State", with a villain being heavily inspired by Westboro Bapist Church minister Fred Phelps.
Clearly, Kevin Smith is taking a very different direction with his career. Am I mad? Not a single bit.
Josh Tyler at cinemablend.com criticized Smith's new direction, lamenting that his new films will not be the personal films he is known for, and referred to "Dicks" as a standard buddy-cop film.
Although it will be tough for "Dicks" to be a personal film, due to the movie being written by someone else, the title alone shows to me that this is not a typical buddy-cop film. "Somebody" sounds like one of the more personal pieces of work he has done in a while.
According to Smith, "Somebody" is a story about someone who has the dream, but not the talent. And this is what he related to most about the song, and instigated his desire to make the movie. If that doesn't sound personal, I'm not sure what it is. It may be not based on his experiences working in a conveince store, or his insecurity with his girlfriend, but it still counts as a personal film. He has a personal drive to tell this story.
I always loved Kevin Smith's work. I enjoyed his characters, dialogue, and observations about society and pop culture. But this new direction only excites me.
Even though I loved "ZAMMAP", it's clearly a film that Smith can do in his sleep. It's what he's known for. Now he's challenging himself and not resting on his laurels. He's taking risks with his work. And if these films work, which is very likely, who knows what other genres he will tackle next?
I am excited not only for the filmmaker in Smith, but for the man himself.
AJP.
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