History Film / Mallrats

* KickTheSonOfABitch: Brodie convinces the cops who are arresting Shannon to let him punch the guy.

Though it is now considered just as much a cult classic as ''Clerks'', at its time of theatrical release it significantly underperformed the earlier film on a '''much''' higher budget (grossing less than $2.5 million of its $6 million budget) and, together with Creator/MichaelMoore's ''Film/CanadianBacon'' (which came out a month earlier and [[BoxOfficeBomb recouped less than $179,000 of its $11 million budget]]) c,ame close to bankrupting distributor Creator/GramercyPictures.

* ThirdPartyPeacekeeper: T.S. and his girlfriend Brandi break up after a fight about her replacing a contestant on her father's ripoff of The Dating Game, after the original contestant died [[note]]She died after being told by [[Film/{{Clerks}} Dante Hicks]] that the camera adds twenty pounds, and she was FormerlyFat with a neurosis about appearing that way again, and worked herself into a brain embolism at the local pool[[/note]]. Brody tells Brandi, after he and T.S. have gotten themselves on the show, that T.S. has done nothing but pine for her all day, and encourages the two of them to get back together, which they do.

* FollowTheLeader: Svenning's game show is a shameless ripoff of ''Series/TheDatingGame.''

* ContinuityNod: Explains the circumstances surrounding the death of Julie Dwyer, the girl whose funeral Dante and Randal crash in ''Film/{{Clerks}}''.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: The "dirt mall" that Brodie and T.S. go to was the US 1 Flea Market. It's now a multiplex.

** In ''Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back'' Brodie has a Variety on the wall of his comic shop which headlines him leaving the ''Tonight Show''.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Brodie is pretty selfish when it comes to René's needs, but is far more likable than either of the above, and ultimately goes out of his way to prove his love for René (with a little help from T.S. and Stan the Man).

* BreakingTheFourthWall: Brodie gives a side glance to the camera after Stink Palming Mr. Svenning.

* TakeThat: In the scene at the dirt mall, T.S. tries on a cap before throwing it away in disgust. The cap has ''Film/{{Clerks}}'' written on it.
** That was a cap made during the filming of ''Clerks''.

* UncannyFamilyResemblance: The guy going against Brodie and TS in the game show is Gil Hicks, played by Brian O'Halloran. This is the same actor who starred in ''Film/{{Clerks}}'', and the two characters share a last name. WordOfGod is they're cousins, along with two other characters played by O'Halloran in the View Askewniverse sharing the same last name.

* SeinfeldianConversation: T.S. and Brodie's conversation at the cookie stand about whether or not Lois Lane could carry {{Superman}}'s baby to term, and their follow-up debate over the limits of what qualifies as being part of the food court.

* AmbiguousDisorder: Willam, given his single-minded obsession with the Magic Eye poster. Brodie might count too, given his general lack of social tact, unkempt appearance, and obsession with comic books, among other factors.

Though it is now considered just as much a cult classic as ''Clerks'', at its time of theatrical release it significantly underperformed the earlier film on a '''much''' higher budget (grossing less than $2.5 million of its $6 million budget) and, together with Creator/MichaelMoore's ''Film/CanadianBacon'' (which [[BoxOfficeBomb recouped less than $179,000 of its $11 million budget]]) came close to bankrupting distributor Creator/GramercyPictures.

Though it is now considered just as much a cult classic as ''Clerks'', at its time of theatrical release it significantly underperformed the earlier film on a '''much''' higher budget (grossing less than $2.5 million of its $6 million budget) and helped come close to bankrupting distributor Creator/GramercyPictures (though Creator/MichaelMoore's ''Film/CanadianBacon'', which released a month earlier, [[BoxOfficeBomb did even worse, recouping less than $179,000 of its own $11 million budget]]).

20 years after the film was released, a sequel was [[http://www.slashfilm.com/kevin-smith-mallrats-2-2015/ unexpectedly announced]] by Smith, titled ''Mallbrats''; almost all of the cast (with the exception of Creator/BenAffleck) was confirmed to return, with filming originally scheduled to begin at the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exton_Square_Mall Exton Square Mall]] in the Philadelphia suburbs in 2016. Acccording to [[http://www.denofgeek.us/movies/mallrats-2/249676/mallrats-2-kevin-smith-drops-new-details this article,]] the plot was to be "''Film/DieHard'' in a mall", but with a "Save the Clock Tower" element -- specifically having Brodie try to save the mall by organizing a Comic-Con, only to have terrorists invade. Ralph Garman (the host of ''Series/TheJoeSchmoShow'' and one of Smith's more recent media partners) would portray the terrorist leader, and Creator/BruceCampbell was cast in an unknown role. [[http://consequenceofsound.net/2016/06/kevin-smith-confirms-mallrats-2-will-be-a-10-episode-series/ More recently]], Smith revealed that, due to being bogged down with legal issues between him and Creator/{{Universal}} (a partner in Gramercy), the sequel would be reconfigured into a 10-episode TV series instead; however, this plan was pitched with no success and the project is now on the backburner.

* AccidentalPervert: SilentBob turns into one of these: each time a ZanyScheme backfires, he ends up in a women's dressing room, where he sees a girl in the process of trying on clothes. And it's always the same girl. The girl in question, Gwen, is later seen changing in semi-public while talking to Brodie and TS, claiming that it saves her the effort.

** Actually picked up on in the ''Chasing Dogma'' series of comics that has, as the name suggests, the movies ''Chasing Amy'' and ''Dogma'' as bookends. The series explains how Jay and Silent Bob end up in the same town as Bethany -- They're searching for Shermer, Illinois (the site of many a John Hughes movie, and naturally, nonexistent), and along the way, end up rescuing a chimp which is hunted, in a hilarious ''Fugitive'' spoof, by a Creator/{{Tommy Lee Jones}} lookalike. Presumably needing some narrative for ''Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack'', Smith recycled this with Will Ferrell in the Jones role.
** In an effort to destroy the stage, Silent Bob dresses up in a Batman mask, swings past a critical pin (missing his chance to grab it), and crashes through a dressing room wall with Gwen inside. This (and their other antics) form the basis for the Bluntman and Chronic comic that forms parts of the plot of ''Film/ChasingAmy'' and ''Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack''. Additionally, Jay can be overheard telling this story to Loki and Bartleby in ''Film/{{Dogma}}''.

** Jay and Silent Bob's misadventures with a monkey were elaborated on in the interquel comic ''[[AllThereInTheManual Chasing Dogma]]'' - [[RecycledScript which was partially reused for the same subplot in]] ''Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack''.

* ZanyScheme: Jay cooks up a couple of these in order to incapacitate La[=Fours=], complete with old-school-cartoon-style blueprints. (A book was released in the 2010s featuring more blueprints drawn up by Jay, ''Jay and Silent Bob's Blueprints for Destroying Everything''.)

Though it is now considered just as much a cult classic as ''Clerks'', at its time of theatrical release it significantly underperformed the earlier film on a '''much''' higher budget (grossing less than $2.5 million of its $6 million budget) and helped come close to bankrupting distributor Creator/GramercyPictures (though Creator/MichaelMoore's ''Film/CanadianBacon'' [[BoxOfficeBomb did even worse, recouping less than $179,000 of its own $11 million budget]]).

* ThirdPartyPeacekeeper: T.S. and his girlfriend Brandi break up after a fight about her replacing a contestant on her father's ripoff of The Dating Game, after the original contestant died [[note]]She died after being told by [[Film/{{Clerks}} Dante Hicks]] that the camera adds twenty pounds, and she was FormerlyFat with a neurosis about appearing that way again, and worked herself into a heart attack at the local pool[[/note]]. Brody tells Brandi, after he and T.S. have gotten themselves on the show, that T.S. has done nothing but pine for her all day, and encourages the two of them to get back together, which they do.

* ZanyScheme: Jay cooks up a couple of these in order to incapacitate La[=Fours=], complete with old-school-cartoon-style blueprints. (A book was released in the 2010s featuring more blueprints drawn up by Jay, ''Jay and Silent Bob's Guide to Destroying Everything''.)

* ZanyScheme: Jay cooks up a couple of these in order to incapacitate La[=Fours=], complete with old-school-cartoon-style blueprints.

-->'''Jay:''' ''[[FamousLastWords Good. For a minute there, I thought we were in trouble.]]''

* OnceDoneNeverForgotten: In the [[ReCut Director's Cut]], Brandi dumping T.S. is triggered by him accidentally shooting a senator with a prop musket from a play he was in at an event hosted by her father. Throughout the director's cut, people would bring up the incident. One particular example was the guy T.S. randomly beat up in the parking lot for asking him about Brandi in the final cut.In the director's cut, he asked him about the musket incident, and T.S. was finally sick of people bringing it up.

* ProductPlacement: Sbarro's the only real restaurant in the food court. The only other real shop glimpsed is a B. Dalton (which has been gone since 2010). They did not show any of the real anchor stores (given that Carson Pirie Scott (whose' location at the real mall is now Von Maur) and Target were mainly, and in Carson's case, still is, Midwestern chains, though Target did start expanding to the Northeast and other areas in the late 90's, though.), except for a brief glimpse of the left side of the Target "Bullseye" when Brodie and TS return from the dirt mall to the real mall; a trimmed portion just before TS and Brodie enter the mall, as they walk through the parking lot, shows the Kohls, though.

** It's noted in the epilogue TS andBrandi tied the knot during the ''Jaws'' ride at [[ThemePark/UniversalStudios Universal Studios Florida]].

A 1995 film by Creator/KevinSmith, and part of Film/TheViewAskewniverse. It is the second entry into this series, although chronologically set before ''Film/{{Clerks}}''.

T.S. and Brodie are comic-book loving slackers who have both recently broken up with their respective girlfriends. Seeking solace at the local mall, they find ways to sabotage their exes' plans and to try and woo them back- all while dealing with a host of crazy and colorful people, both good and evil. Like all Smith films, this film has quite a bit of VulgarHumor. It was filmed in Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, which at the time was a tired and dying mall with low traffic. (It has since been extensively renovated.)

* ZettaiRyouiki: René's flowered dress is paired with long socks that fall somewhere between Grade A and B.

-> "They're not there to shop. They're not there to work. [[TheSlacker They're just there]].

** It's noted in the epilogue TS andBrandi tied the knot during the ''JAws'' ride at [[ThemePark/UniversalStudios Universal Studios Florida]].

-> "They're not there to shop. They're not there to work. They're just there.