I am a big fan of Kevin Smith, the person. In the early-mid 90's his underdog comedies were perfect to me. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back was a perfect blend of everything he had made up until that point. Then he started doing his speaking tours. The first Evening with Kevin Smith was hilarious! I watched the second one, and while not nearly as good as the first, it was still entertaining. Then Clerks 2 came out, and I heard a whole bit that he already did, almost verbatim, as an argument from one of the characters. Also, Jason Mewes getting sober, was a major plot point for his character as well.
I have heard Kevin talk about his heart attack, quite thoroughly. So it was kind of disappointing when his story played out almost exactly how it happened, in what was supposed to be something I hadn't seen. Also, most of the stories that went in to the movie, were also written almost verbatim, how he mentioned they happened when making Clerks, which he talked about in 2004's An Evening With Kevin Smith. It feels like Kevin is creatively bankrupt these days. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy hearing him talk about things. It just means that everything he talks about usually ends up in his next movie. Kevin is a humble, likable, friendly, intelligent guy. It just seems like if you've listened to his stories he's personally told on his, or other people's podcasts, you have heard everything he has to say, and seeing his latest movie will only be a rehash of what he has already said. It's hard to be critical of someone I like and respect, but his movies nowadays, are mostly autobiographical parts of his life, put in to his old IP. Sorry Kevin :(
