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Film / Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

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This page contains unmarked spoilers for Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. You Have Been Warned.

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Nooch.

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (yes, that's the actual title) is the 2019 sequel to 2001's Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, written and directed by Kevin Smith and distributed by Saban Films. It's both the second sequel to a film in and the first installment of The View Askewniverse after Clerks II.

In 2001, two stoneheaded best friends, potty-mouthed Jay (Jason Mewes) and the aptly named Silent Bob (Smith) found out a comic book based on themselves, Bluntman and Chronic, was getting a movie. But because of that movie, they were getting trolled by the Internet, so the two went off to Hollywood to stop the production.

The movie got made, but Jay and Silent Bob were compensated for their troubles with the money from the royalties they were owed anyway... which was plenty for them to buy enough plane tickets to go door-to-door and literally pound the shit out of all the internet trolls.

18 years later, comic book movies have come back with a vengeance. So when Jay and Silent Bob find out Bluntman and Chronic is getting the reboot treatment, and Saban Films tricked them into giving the rights to their names away, the older and wiser (but mostly older) duo must embark on another quest to Hollywood. Hilarity Ensues yet again as they must contend with more abnormalities like a brand-new bad girl gang and the news of one of them being a father!

Watch the red-band trailer here. The film was released on October 15, 2019, for the first of two nationwide Fathom Events screenings, preceding a touring presentation by Smith and Mewes.


This film reboots examples of:

  • Aborted Arc: The plotline with Jay and Silent Bob losing the right to their own names, originally written to be the central plot of the movie, becomes forgotten as soon as they meet the girls. It is sent off with a throwaway phrase where Jay says he no longer cares about being named "Jay" because he now has a new name, "dad" and seems to have ultimately got no impact on their lives.
  • Actor Allusion:
  • Actually Pretty Funny: The bailiff remains serious while reading out the charges against Jay and Silent Bob up until he reaches the name of their fake shop ("Cock Smoker") and starts laughing. The judge is amused too.
  • Adam Westing:
  • Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: After Shan Yu reveals herself as a spy, she taunts the girls by noting that she easily gained their trust and mocks them for almost being murdered by her brother (Jihad), being deaf (Soapy), and moaning her lack of father despite a privileged lifestyle (Milly).
  • Aside Glance: Holden when he notes that he's forgotten the name of Bruce Wayne's mom.
  • Before My Time: The teenaged Milly and Jihad discuss what era Jay and Silent Bob met Justice in, bringing up The '90s, Jihad wondering if that was before the internet and Milly objects saying "that was before the pyramids were built" all to the elder duo's consternation.
  • Biting-the-Hand Humor: The distributor of Reboot, Saban Films, is depicted as a skeevish company who steal Jay and Silent Bob's names through Read the Fine Print shenanigans, setting off the plot.
  • Borrowed Catchphrase: Brodie uses Jay's catchphrase "Snoogans" during his conversation with the main duo.
  • Brick Joke: Serendipitously, The Stinger delivers a punchline that was set up 25 years previously in Clerks.
  • The Cameo: So many...
  • Canon Welding: Zack and Miri Make a Porno retroactively becomes part of The View Askewniverse with the character of Brandon (Justin Long) appearing in this film.
  • Cassandra Truth: When Jay mentions God's resemblance to Alanis Morissette, Milly shrugs it off. Jay, of course, knows it for a fact.
  • Celeb Crush: Milly and Jihad go on at length about what they'd like to do to Chris Hemsworth to Jay's disgust.
  • Celebrity Resemblance:
    • Obviously, Kevin Smith and Silent Bob look like each other, but most characters don't pick up on it. Jay, of all people, doesn't seem to see the resemblance at all.
    • While God from Dogma doesn't appear in the movie, her resemblance to Alanis Morissette is mentioned twice.
  • Chaos Architecture: For the first time in Kevin Smith's filmography, scenes set in front the Quick Stop aren't shot on location. While the fake Quick Stop and RST Video buildings are almost spot-on, the visibly taller windows, the much bigger parking lot and a completely different street give it away.
  • Character Development: Despite the Snap Back in Jay's characterization, he matures significantly after meeting his daughter.
  • Chekhov's Gun: Soapy's deafness allows her to withstand Shan Yu's sonic disruptor and knock her out, saving the day.
  • Chocolate Baby: Brought up when Justice introduces Jay to "their lovechild", but Milly's black girlfriend Soapy answers the door first. Jay mentions that he's gonna request a Daddy DNA Test before the confusion is cleared up.
  • Continuity Nod: Lots!
  • Continuity Reboot: The film revolves around an in-universe reboot for Bluntman and Chronic. The movie itself is a sequel.
  • Critical Dissonance/Cult Classic: In-Universe, Bluntman and Chronic is considered to be a horrible movie, so much so that rights for it are sold on Craigslist for a ridiculously small amount. All the while, it has a cult following, with a fanbase large and dedicated enough to spawn the very popular "Chronic Cons".
  • The Cuckoolander Was Right: Jay's immediate suspicion of Shan Yu turns out to be correct.
  • Deliberately Monochrome: Jay and Silent Bob burst into a panel of the original Clerks cast at Chronic-Con, who are all in black and white. When this spreads to them as well, they panic and flee.
  • Did Not Get the Girl/Ship Sinking: While Strike Back ended with Justice headed for prison and Jay promising to wait for her, in this movie Justice is married to another woman and, despite Jay being her daughter's father, considers him to not be dad material. It doesn't help that he never even bothered to catch up with her in over 18 years.
  • Disappeared Dad: Milly and her friends met online in a support group for teen girls without fathers, with that fact really affecting Milly emotionaly.
  • Double-Meaning Title: Despite the title appearing to be very straightforward, a line by Holden McNeil gives it a whole new meaning: "Kids are like our reboots, another chance to tell a brand-new version of the same old story."
  • Evil Wears Black: After Shan Yu reveals herself as a Russian spy, she tears away her wig and clothes to reveal a black catsuit. Her pink lipstick and nail polish also "magically" turn black at the same time.
  • Five-Second Foreshadowing: When Shan Yu activates her sonic disrupter, the camera pointed on the three other girls quickly zooms in on Milly and Jihad who fall down in pain, but if one pays attention, Soapy remains standing, unaffected. Sure enough, she is the one who knocks Shan Yu out and saves the day.
  • Fluffy the Terrible: One of the klansmen is named Legree.
  • Funny Background Event: At the Chronic Con, when Milly and Jay comment on everyone being dressed like Jay and Silent Bob, Silent Bob has a similar, but wordless, exchange with Soapy.
  • Gender Flip:
    • In-universe example: Chronic in the Bluntman and Chronic reboot is now female, played by a fictional version of Melissa Benoist.
    • Milly and Soapy are also the female version of Jay and Silent Bob.
  • Generation Xerox: Like Jay, Milly is into weed and has a silent sidekick. And just like Silent Bob, Soapy also gets her own "one phrase per movie" moment. They even cosplay as Jay and Silent Bob at the con.
  • Literal Split Personality: At the Chronic Con, there's a Walt Flanagan at the Comic Book Men panel and a Walt Flanagan 2 at the Clerks panel seen immediately afterwards.
  • Make the Bear Angry Again: Russia is apparently committed to destroying American pop culture conventions with terrorist attacks. Obviously Played for Laughs. Also, Shan Yu is actually a Russian spy.
  • Mirror Routine: Silent Bob does this on Kevin Smith.
  • More Diverse Sequel: Used with the new girl gang and discussed at least twice.
  • Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Downplayed with the mostly friendly Jihad, who still carries a frickin' scimitar.
  • No Bisexuals: Justice had sex with Jay and never indicated that she doesn’t like men sexually, but she’s still referred to as a “lesbian” for being married to a woman.
    • Alyssa is also still referred to as a gay woman, even after we learned she was bisexual in Chasing Amy
  • Non-Indicative Name: The film itself is a sequel instead of a reboot.
  • O.O.C. Is Serious Business: The scene with the Klansmen, where Silent Bob distracts them with an improvised speech and Jay discreetly sneaks behind to detach the girls seems really out of character for both: one could bet that if one of the girls wasn't Jay's daughter, Jay and Silent Bob's roles would have been reversed.
  • Pædo Hunt: Played for laughs. Milly and her friends hatched a plan called "Operation Predator Editor" where Milly tries to lure pedophiles to pick her up in their van, all for her and the girls to steal it, Jay beating up the guy also fit in with the plan.
  • Parental Sexuality Squick: As a bid to buy time for Silent Bob to help save them and to fight Shan Yu and her henchmen, Jay inserts in his speech to Milly that he broke his promise not to cum in her mom, grossing the young woman out but he apologizes for he purpose of stalling. Inverted earlier when Jay (not having revealed he is Milly's father) gets an earful of Milly and Jihad discussing every sexual thing they'd like to do to Chris Hemsworth.
  • Punny Name: Judge Jerry N. Executioner.
  • Reboot Snark: The film throws out a lot of reboot jokes, as the in-universe franchise of Bluntman and Chronic is being rebooted. Bob and Jay have lost the rights to their identities, and it features an "Iron Bob" suit, in a Take That! of superhero movies of the 2010s. (The film itself is not a reboot but a similar sequel).
  • The Reveal: Turns out it was Jay and Silent Bob who’ve been putting gum into the Quick Stop’s locks for shits and giggles. Also doubles as probably the longest payoff for a Brick Joke ever.
  • Running Gag:
    • Silent Bob hitting keys on his phone like he’s writing a big message when it’s always just an oversized emoji.
    • Jay mistaking Kevin Smith for Kevin James
    • Nobody in the movie seems to be able to say any variation of "(name) V (name)" without making the V sign.
    • Regular offhand comments on Jay aging poorly compared to Silent Bob, to which Jay often reacts defensively.
  • Self-Deprecation: Smith pulls no punches against himself and his works. Of note, Cop Out, Tusk, Jersey Girl, and Yoga Hosers get mocked repeatedly, and even Milly (played by Smith’s own daughter) takes shots at him.
  • Silent Bob: Four in this movie, each one for a different reason: (one of them also uses this trope to mask a heavy Russian accent)
    • The Trope Namer, who consciously chooses to speak as little as possible.
    • Soapy, who is deaf and mostly communicates with either ASL or basic gestures.
    • Shan Yu, who does not speak English.
    • Val Kilmer, who portrays a character based on the Trope Namer and only appears in the movie as the character.
  • Shout-Out:
    • Jay's daughter's name, Milly, is short for Millennium Falcon.
    • The Bluntman and Chronic reboot is titled Bluntman v Chronic.
    • Shan Yu's name is a hilarious shout out to the villain of Mulan. Doubles as Meaningful Name, given The Reveal that she's not actually Chinese (like how Mulan wasn't actually a man) but is really a Russian spy trying to sabotage Bluntman v Chronic (i.e. the villain).
    • Jay and Silent Bob stealing an unpleasant jerk named Underhill's credit card is taken directly from Fletch.
    • Silent Bob's line this time around is a Glengarry Glen Ross-inspired speech, which he does to distract the Klansmen while Jay comes to the rescue.
    • Tommy Chong as Alfred says the reboot went Up in Smoke.
  • Snap Back: Jay starts out the movie as a slightly sharper version of how he was in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, his faith, sobriety, and self-awareness from Clerks II long gone.
  • Splash of Color: Inverted when the duo come across the Clerks panel at the convention: All the panelists are in Black-and-White... and so are Jay and Silent Bob!
  • Spy Catsuit: invoked Jay and Silent Bob speculate that, just like Justice and her gang previously, Milly and her friends must be wearing these beneath their clothes. Shan Yu actually is, provoking an I Knew It! reaction from Jay.
  • Surprisingly Realistic Outcome:
    • Thanks to the rise of Redbox and streaming, nobody rents from video stores anymore. RST Video has closed up shop and a Redbox booth now stands in front of it. Come Clerks III, even the booth is gone.
    • The Mall from Mallrats is also dying, hence why Brodie moved his comic shop in there for the cheaper rent.
    • Smoking weed recreationally is still very illegal in several states. Jay and Silent Bob’s driver is taken in by the police as soon as they see him smoking a joint the two gave him.
    • As Jay learns when he meets Justice eighteen years later, having been madly in love doesn't mean a couple can't drift apart, and a partner who might have seemed like a perfect match a couple of decades prior can become not much more than a funny story to tell if the other party has a change in priorities in the meantime.
  • Take That, Audience!: Jay and Brodie muse over who would be dumb enough to pay for a rehash of Jay and Silent Bob. They then turn to the viewers with cheeky grins and Jay flipping them off.
  • The Tape Knew You Would Say That: After Jihad shows Jay the blueprints for the operation "Predator Editor" and reads the first three phases of the plan out loud, Jay immediately runs to the van the girls are stealing, pulls the driver out of his seat and beats him up. After he does so, the girls show him the blueprint again, where the fourth phase shows Jay doing exactly that.
  • Technologically Blind Elders: Silent Bob not knowing what the eggplant emoji means almost gets him in trouble (and inadvertently laid).
  • Took a Level in Badass: While they were pretty badass in Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob were very much less so in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, where they spent the movie's big fight/shootout scene covering behind some scenery, talking with Banky. Here however, they are back in shape during the brawl against the Cock-knockers, with Jay leading the charge and Silent Bob using the Iron Bob costume to fight as a bulletproof one-man army.
  • Unexplained Recovery:
    • Grant Hicks is alive and well after the events of Dogma. Presumably, he (and everybody else) was resurrected when God cleaned up the street after Bartleby and Loki's rampage.
    • Averted with Loki, who explained at length why he was still hanging around Earth after Bartleby supposedly killed him.
  • Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Despite the in-universe audience apparently knowing what Jay and Silent Bob look like, as evidenced by the "Snootchie Bootchies and Equality" t-shirt with a realistic drawing of the pair, nobody at the Chronic Con bats an eye when they show up in person. Justified, as people seem to think they are cosplayers.
  • "Where? Where?": When Jay sees Jihad for the first time, his first reflex is to shout "Oh shit, a terrorist!", prompting this reaction from her (and a Dope Slap from Milly).
  • White Hair, Black Heart: Shan Yu's real hair, revealed at the end of the movie, is gray. While this is never outright stated, this might mean she is much older than what she pretends to be.

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