Film Review: Jay And Silent Bob Super Groovy Cartoon Movie

Spoilers Below

Jay and Silent Bob movies often reach a level of absurdity that goes beyond the other movies in Kevin Smith’s universe and this animated portrayal of the two is no different. The comic book-driven mind of Kevin Smith combined with the seemingly endless possibilities in the cartoon world provide a unique opportunity to go a bit further passed the deep-end than usual. And obviously, this well executed parody of superhero movies hits all the classic Jay and Silent Bob jokes and then some.

After a cartoony opening credit sequence that shows how recent this Jay and Silent Bob movie is with its dubstep background music, the film starts with the classic scene of Jay and Silent Bob posted up outside the Quick Stop. We are almost immediately treated to a classic line (“Hey girl you ever had your asshole licked by a fat man in an overcoat?”) with a classic response (the woman in question storming off).

The boys begin wandering around town for a myriad of reasons, like having to pee or finding free drugs, and start encountering some strange occurrences, from radioactive spiders to alien world-protectors with special rings. For those interested in comic books and superheroes, which given your interest in Kevin Smith is implied, you almost immediately begin noticing the many classic opportunities Jay and Silent Bob pass up to avoid becoming superheroes. Be it an ooze mutating a group of turtles or a super soldier serum that can make them stronger, Jay and Silent Bob do not seem interested.

Then the storyline picks up when Silent Bob wins 10 million dollars from a scratch-off lottery ticket and the guys decide to use the money to, you guessed it, become superheroes! And while this long introduction seemed a bit drawn out, the realization laugh is a hearty one. Jay and Silent Bob go through the classic superhero montage of finding a secret lair (underneath the Quick Stop), making the perfect car (the Bluntmobile), and building the right gadgets (the blunt saber). And if you’re familiar with the Kevin Smith universe you already know the names: Bluntman and Chronic!

The superheroes immediately get distracted while “fighting crime,” and instead start watching people have sex through their bedroom windows. The movie had a few instances of true parody genius and that were often immediately followed by gross descriptions of sexual acts. And those were often followed by cutaways of Kevin Smith in cartoon form salvaging the likeability of Jay with some self-criticism. Definitely a bit out there.

Like any good superhero movie, there has to be a villain… or, in this case, five. As a group of inmates begin telling origin stories of their terrible pasts, they realize they all have something in common (besides their identical origin stories): they hate Bluntman and Chronic. Lead by the woman accosted by Jay in the opening scene, dubbed the Lipstick Lesbian, the League of Shitters lures Jay and Silent Bob into a trap. Again in typical superhero form, they leave Bluntman and Chronic to die at the hands of their elaborate death machine (a giant bong filling with water), to disrupt the parade being held in their honor.

In even more typical superhero movie form, Bluntman and Chronic are saved at the last moment by their trusty butler, Albert. Bluntman and Chronic rush to the city’s aid, defeating the League of Shitters in similarly gross and hilarious ways. The final showdown between the High-namic Duo and the Lipstick Lesbian culminates in the appearance of a third unheard of super-heroine, Blunt Girl, who saves the guys at the last moment and has a thing for Bluntman. The movie ends happily ever after with all three of them in their secret lair engaging in some less-than savory sexual activity and a final quip about Ben Affleck’s inability to play the Marvel superhero Daredevil. Sounds about right.

While fans of comic books and superheroes may enjoy the great parody of the classic movie style thanks to the seemingly countless references, the cartoonish sexual vulgarity went a little too far on a few occasions and distracted a bit from the story line. It was, however, very characteristic of a Kevin Smith movie and I think fans of the franchise will also enjoy it. And in the very least, who wouldn’t love to see a weed smoking superhero?