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Dogma
Special Edition
review by Zach B.
Rated R
Studio: Columbia/Tri-Star
Running Time: 128 minutes
Starring Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Linda Fiorentino,
Salma Hayek, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Alan Rickman, Chris
Rock
Written and Directed by Kevin Smith
Retail Price: $29.95
Features:
Disc 1 - Audio Commentary with Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, Ben
Affleck, Jason Lee, Scott Mosier and Vincent Pereira with
optional Video Portions, Audio Commentary with Kevin
Smith, Scott Mosier and Vincent Pereiera, "My
Opinion" by Mrs. Harriest Wise
Disc 2 - 100 Minutes Of Deleted Scenes and Extended
Scenes, Outtakes, Storyboards, Saints and Sinners, Jay and
Silent Bob Secret Stash Spot, Theatrical Trailer
Specs: 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, English Dolby
Digital 5.1, English Dolby Surround, French Dolby Surround,
Spanish Dolby Surround, English Closed Captions, English
Subtitles, French Subtitles, Spanish Subtitles, Scene
Selections (28 Chapters)
Released: June 26th, 2001
"Dogma" is not an easy movie to talk about since there's
so much history behind it, but I'll do my best talking about
it. I'm a big Kevin Smith fan, and I loved every minute of
Dogma. While it's not my favorite Kevin Smith film of all
time, it's pretty damn good (I love every single one of his
projects). Besides a very good story, "Dogma" also shows how
much Smith has grown as a filmmaker and how he keeps
evolving.
The story of "Dogma" is pretty simple: Two renegade
angels named Loki and Bartleby (Matt Damon and Ben Affleck)
have found a loophole to get them back into heaven.
Unfortuantley, by going through it'd wipe out the universe.
That's where Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) comes in along.
Along with Rufus the 13th Apostle (Chris Rock), a muse
(Salma Hayek) and Jay and Silent Bob, they're out to save
the world.
People are familiar that "Dogma" caused quite a stir upon
it's original theatrical release. This being Smith's fourth
film, well before it came out people started to go nuts
about it how it offends religons and whatnot. Miramax was
going to release the film and "bought it from themselves for
ten million dollars" (What the f***?), but they soon dropped
it and Lions Gate gave it theatrical distribution during
November 1999. The film was Smith's most successful yet, and
Columbia/Tri-Star distributed it on DVD and video.
So is "Dogma" as bad as they say it is? Not really. This
is America of course, and in America people will complain
and sue over any little thing. A lot of Americans always
have to put the blame on others, and even before the movie
came out people started to show their discomfort. While I'm
not of the Christian faith (I'm Jewish), I didn't find
anything so offensive within the film. People who have major
faith really shouldn't get so upset about this film. It's
really nothing terrible, though I can see people getting
offended at some portions... though they really shouldn't.
Sometimes I think people should just relax and chill out,
enjoy themselves and whatnot. Smith does have a lot of
religous references, and even says himself in his excellent
essay included with the DVD that the "only wrong thing with
Christianity is Christians". This movie has a lot to say and
says it very well.
Smith has put together quite an ensemble here and they
all work really well together. Damon and Affleck, who go way
back as we know, have great chemistry as the two angels.
Jason Lee, another Smith alumni, is great as the evil
Azrael. Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith) are
always great, while Fiorentino does a great job as Bethany.
Chris Rock is hilarious and Rufus and Salma Hayek does a
pretty good job with her character. Even though Alan Rickman
has a smaller role, I liked watching him.
This is Smith's first foray in really widescreen
terrority, and while he discusses on one of the commentaries
people blasting him for it, I think it works really well.
The film features some nice editing and a lot of great
camera shots. This film is surprisingly technical and
actually works well that way. Smith was always a strong
writer, but I think with each outing he becomes even more of
a great director. I look forward to seeing what he does
next. "Dogma" is really well shot film.
Smith once again delivers a fine film complete with funny
lines, pop culture references and great acting. Though the
whole religon deal will be a turn off to some, it shouldn't
be. Sit back and enjoy "Dogma".
"Dogma" is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, and
it ranks as one of Columbia/Tri-Star's best transfers ever.
Despite some blemishes, specks and scratches that appear
here and there, as well as some shimmering and noise,
everything else is perfect. The transfer is pretty sharp,
though at times it can be a tad soft. I didn't notice much
grain, while colors are well saturated and black levels are
dead on. Fleshtones and hues are accurate while detail is
very good. A superb transfer that I was very, very pleased
with.
With a 5.1 Dolby Digital track in English, "Dogma" has
some surprisingly good audio considering the material
involved. The climax sounds great, while the action scenes
such as killings, the poop monster and the train scene bring
the back speakers to life. .1 LFE is pretty good and the
music sounds really nice through the speakers. The dialogue
is clear and crisp and not distorted, while nothing
overpowers it. Overall, a nice mix. English closed captions,
French, Spanish and English subtitles are included, plus
Dolby Surround mixes in English, French and Spanish.
While the original "Dogma" DVD release was purely bare
bones, Columbia/Tri-Star was nice enough to announce another
version, that being a special edition, was on its way. And
after a few setbacks, it's finally arrived. So was it worth
it? I think so. Despite the absence of the documentary
(which Smith still has plans to release), it's still a great
release (and I love the menus for both discs... really
creative and in the style of the film).
So let's begin with the first disc. Besides the film, you
also get two different commentaries. The Audio Commentary
with Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, Ben Affleck, Jason Lee, Scott
Mosier and Vincent Pereira is quite a treat. I've
enjoyed the other Smith crew commentaries as he has his
friends/co-workers join him for a good time. This one is no
exception. It's not always screen specific and they
sometimes ramble on with things that don't deal with the
film at all, but they discuss themselves, aspects of the
film and other stuff. This is just a fun track mostly but
there are good chunks of information featured throughtout
it. Smith fans won't want to miss it, it was one of the
better commentaries I've heard in a long time. Don't miss
it!
This commentary also has a Video Option. An icon
of the Buddy Jesus will appear when you have it turned on
and during the film you can click it to see some video
footage of the commentary, which I liked to see. The men
interact with one another nicely. I always like video based
commentaries so I was glad to see this, even though it's
only for a few parts. Better then nothing. Beware though:
because of this, you can't have subtitles or even change to
turn subtitles on.
The Audio Commentary with Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier
and Vincent Pereiera is the second one on the disc and
is a lot more serious. It's labeled the "technical
commentary" and is actually pretty interesting. They talk
about a lot of the shooting, the sets and how things were
achieved. I really enjoyed it since this is Smith's most
technical film yet, and I really did like hearing how things
were done. This track isn't for everyone, but if you're the
least bit curious about things in the film be sure to check
it out.
Finally on the first disc, you can hear some random and
pretty funny outburts from this woman who introduces a lot
of the menu. Just click and hear... it's called "My
Opinion" by Mrs. Harriest Wise.
Disc two has a ton of great stuff too... 100 Minutes
Of Deleted Scenes and Extended Scenes are included. Yes,
there's a lot to take in here but fans of the movie (such as
myself) are going to be incredibly pleased with what's
offered. The footage is in non-anamorphic widescreen and
seems to be video. There's a ton to enjoy here, and you get
the legendary Fat Albert scene (yes!). Smith makes
introductions with Pereiera, and his baby Harley, his wife
Jennifer and Scott Mosier do pop up. It's practically a
whole other film so enjoy "Dogma" fans...
The Storyboards section has storyboard for three
sequences "Mooby Sequence", "Triplet Attack Sequence" and
"No Man Attack Sequence". The drawings and notes are pretty
cool and I was glad to see how things were planned out.
Saints and Sinners is quite a unique way to offer
Columbia/Tri-Star's usual Talent Files. Set up like baseball
cards, you can see the good guys and bad guys featured in
the film. But you also get Smith and most of the cast's
filmographies and bios. Nicely done.
Rounding the set out is the Theatrical Trailer,
thirteen minutes of fun Outtakes and a hilarious
Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash Spot which everyone
must watch. Also in the keepcase there's a nice essay by
Kevin Smith which I really enjoyed reading and I think fans
will too, plus the packaging is pretty spiffy.
"Dogma" is another fine View Askew effort. This DVD
sports a great presentation, and despite no documentary, the
special edition content is pretty tremendous. Check out, and
don't worry, this movie really isn't offensive.
 (4/5 - NOT included in
final score)
 (4.5/5)
(4/5)
(4/5)
(4/5,
NOT an average)
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