The longer the film goes on, the less funny it gets. Some filmmakers never seem to understand when enough is enough.
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Religious satire can be tricky. Ask Monty Python after "Life of Brian." So maybe it's no coincidence that writer-director Kevin Smith ("Clerks," "Chasing Amy") referenced the Pythons any number of times in his new film, "Dogma."
The movie opens with a disclaimer: "...this film is--from start to finish--a work of comedic fantasy, not to be taken seriously. To insist that any of what follows is incendiary or inflammatory is to miss our intentions and pass undue judgment; and passing judgment is reserved for God and God alone." This is followed by another disclaimer suggesting that God, too, has a sense of humor--look at the platypus. Then, in the best Monty Python tradition, the filmmakers include a further apology to any platypus enthusiasts who may have taken offense at their suggestion that platypuses are stupid animals. It sets a tone for the kind of silliness to come. But the humor slackens as the story progresses, and in the end we are left wondering what all the fuss was about.
The comedy is well constructed and well executed in the film's first half but slows to a grinding halt about midway through. When I try to explain the plot, maybe you'll get the idea. It begins with the mugging of a homeless old man in Ashbury Park, New Jersey. Then it moves to a scene of Catholic Cardinal Glick (George Carlin) announcing some of the Church's modern, innovative approaches to worship, like the crucifix being replaced by the "Buddy Christ" and people being granted eternal redemption by passing through a particular church doorway.
It is this latter decree that is critical to the story. You see, a pair of fallen angels named Bartleby and Loki (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) hear about the new edict and decide that all they have to do to get back home to Heaven is take human form and walk through the door. It's a loophole in dogmatic law--if the Church says it's so, God has to hold to it. But there's a drawback. Existence is dependent upon God's infallibility. If two banished angels are allowed to reenter Heaven through a loophole, everything will end. The world will come to a close. Or so say the filmmakers.
From here on, things get more complicated. A woman named Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) is recruited by Metatron, the Voice of God (Alan Rickman), to save the planet (or the universe or whatever) by stopping the two dark angels. Metatron appears in a pillar of flame, put out by Bethany with a fire extinguisher that ruins his new clothes. He tells her he is the Voice of God because for a mortal to hear God's own voice would be instant death. "We went through five Adams before we figured that one out," he explains.
Anyway, Bethany is to get help from a couple of prophets, Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith), plus a thirteenth apostle, Rufus (Chris Rock), a Muse with writer's block, Serendipity (Salma Hayek), and a close friend (Janeane Garofalo). Together, they all but Garofalo head for New Jersey and the infamous door. Working against them is one of Lucifer's most potent demons, Azrael (Jason Lee), his henchmen--three teenage thugs on Rollerblades, and a monster made entirely of feces. Bud Cort and singer Alanis Morissette play God.
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[release]4251[/release]