I remember when Clerks came to VHS. I was working at a video store and it resonated with everyone of us. It was like someone had taken our lives and put it on the screen. We as a crew identified so much with the film that we’d printed up labels with our names on it and put them on the characters on the poster that we most identified with.

It now only launched Kevin Smith’s film career, it also launched my love for his work. Something we haven’t talked about tons on this blog, but we may have to fix over the next few weeks or so. To date I’ve only talked about Dogma and Red State, I really need to fix that.

This small indie darling of a film follows two retail clerks, Dante (Brian O’Halloran) – who isn’t even supposed to be here today – and Randal (Jeff Anderson), his snarky co-worker. Called in to work at the One Stop, Dante has a typical retail day as he tries to balance his life and his job.

Dante is stuck in his job. His girlfriend Veronica (Marilyn Ghigliotti) wants more for him, maybe some college, but he’s also talking to an ex, Caitlin (Lisa Spoonauer) who has come back into his life – so he’s got a real problem, and he’s not all good, because he treats both of them like crap.

As he and Randal wax philosophical about The Return of the Jedi, milk maids, cigarettes, video stores, and Dante’s love life, anyone who has worked retail recognize themselves in everything that is happening. They can see these events taken to the extreme because they have lived them.

Shot in black and white, surely a budgetary choice as much as an artistic one, the film has a gritty documentary feel, something that allows it to hit home even stronger. And it’s damned funny. Then there’s the iconic characters of Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) – from the off, they are very much breakout characters.

Sure some of the dialogue doesn’t work anymore – times have changed – but the heart of it is still very true to the experience.

It’s filled with things retail workers have always wanted to say to customers, who more often than not don’t respect those behind the counter.

Clerks is crisp, funny, occasionally crass, but feels real. Sure, there are some rough moments when the performances aren’t up to snuff, and a line of dialogue falls flat, or an actor struggles, but overall it’s raw, real and funny.

As much as Spielberg and Lucas inspired me as a kid. Smith and Tarantino are as much responsible for me writing about film and television as they are. And sure, not all of my writing is great, but it is filled with the passion that they have inspired.

Man this one brings back so many memories. I’m going to have to chase down more Smith films soon.