Monday , March 18 2024
Funny, offensive, scatological and an all around great time and a long way from getting old.

DVD Review: Jay And Silent Bob Get Irish – The Swearing O’ The Green

When we use the expression “never gets old” it’s usually in the context of a joke or prank, meaning it’s something we’re always going to find funny. Of course if you drop the “never” so it’s just “gets old”, that, of course, means the joke has worn thin and is no longer funny.

You’d think if you repeated the same joke over and over again, or the same routine, it would eventually get old. You’d think after almost three decades, who knows how many movies and concert films, a couple of books and saturating the Internet with podcasts and Internet television, the duo of Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes, and their barely pubescent humour would have gotten old.

Heck, they even admit as much with the title of their podcasts, Jay And Silent Bob Get Old. The show’s subtitle, “No Trench Coats, No Hair Extensions, Bound For The Grave”, is a not-so-subtle hint, despite the use of their on-screen personae’s names in the title, that whatever the show is about, it won’t feature their drug-dealing alter egos. However, judging by the DVD set, Jay and Silent Bob Get Irish: The Swearing O’ The Green from SModcast Pictures and Industrial Entertainment, made during two live broadcasts of the “Get Old” show in Ireland, that doesn’t meant it won’t feature the irreverent humour that has made them the poster boys for slackers and stoners the world over.

The premise of the show, Smith and Mewes sitting and talking, doesn’t sound like the makings of great video. Even recorded live in front of an audience in a bar in Dublin Ireland, it’s hard to see how two guys yakking at each other are going to be able to grab, let alone hold, the attention of the attention-deficit disordered hordes who buy DVDs. And who knows? Maybe it won’t, but don’t be put off by the apparently static format, as our dynamic duo turn chat about Pancake (Shrove) Tuesday into something close to grounds for excommunication. That they happen to be in very Catholic Ireland just adds extra spice to the conversation.

Of course if you thought them talking about Shrove Tuesday was skirting close to the edge, wait until the second show when they cover Ash Wednesday, Easter, the consecration of the Eucharist, and Smith talking about the days when he was an altar boy. (cannibalism and zombies feature heavily) Listening to them talk about this in front of what you know is a predominately Catholic audience has part of your mind wondering how this is going over with the crowd, and another part being amazed at their audacity. What’s even more astounding is almost the whole crowd is laughing along with them. For in spite of the fact what comes out of their mouths might sound offensive, there is a kind of innocence about them which makes it almost impossible to be insulted by what they say.

There’s no other explanation for people to find it hysterical watching Mewes acting out, in incredibly graphic detail, how his attempts to have sex in the front seat of a Cooper Mini resulted in him having to have major dental surgery. The majority of time this is the type of thing I’d find crude and completely lacking in humour. Yet, unlike most people, when either Smith or Mewes do something along those lines we are either laughing at them or the circumstances. They never say or do anything which can be construed as hurtful towards anyone else. They make themselves and their actions the objects of ridicule.

By talking so blatantly about sex they take it out of the realm of being dirty or pornographic and make it something we can talk about everyday. By not making a big deal about it, by making it seem perfectly normal and ordinary to explain how giving oral sex in the front seat of a Mini Cooper can result in broken bridge work, they remove any taint of evil or nastiness people usually hang on sexual activity.

Of course it’s also bloody hilarious to watch Mewes contort himself into the various positions necessary for two people to have sex in the front seat of a Mini. For let’s be real, we can make all the philosophical comments we like about the demystification of sex, but the reality is Smith and Mewes are funny. I laugh more watching the two of them sitting and talking than I do watching most of what passes for comedy on either television or in movies. I could search for some sort of intellectual justification about what makes them funny, but the reality is I’m much happier just sitting back and laughing my ass off at them.

However, there is a thread of seriousness underlying what they’re doing. At one point, and I can’t remember if it’s in the first or second show, Smith brings up the subject of why they began doing this pod cast in particular in the first place. It was designed as a project to give Mewes the means to stay sober and drug free. What’s amazing is the fact they treat this subject as irreverently as they do everything else. There’s no preaching or self-flagellation – you’re not going to get any “Oprah” moments with Smith and Mewes, which makes it all the more honest and real. You also begin to realize the depth of the bond between the two men and the amazing friendship underlying the silliness and banter.

Aside from the two shows recorded live in Ireland they’ve also included a second disc, which contains a recording of the podcast in Las Vegas featuring a visit from “adult film stars” Kathy Morgan and Cassie Young. That’s best left to your imaginations until you’ve watched it yourself. They’ve also included an extra ten minutes of the game they play with audience members at the end of each show called “LETUSF@CK”. This involves individuals from the audience having theme inspired “air” sex with Jason Mewes. Examples taken from the Irish shows, “Lord Of The Pants” and “When Irish Brown Eyes Are Smiling” should be enough to give you the general idea.

Jay And Silent Bob Get Irish: The Swearing O’ The Green is everything you’d expect from a collaborative effort between Smith and Mewes. It’s side splittingly funny, offensive, scatological and an all around great time. It’s also a very long way from getting old.

About Richard Marcus

Richard Marcus is the author of three books commissioned by Ulysses Press, "What Will Happen In Eragon IV?" (2009) and "The Unofficial Heroes Of Olympus Companion" and "Introduction to Greek Mythology For Kids". Aside from Blogcritics he contributes to Qantara.de and his work has appeared in the German edition of Rolling Stone Magazine and has been translated into numerous languages in multiple publications.

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