The Criterion Closet may seem like it’s just another opportunity for celebrities to get a bag full of free goodies, but for many, it’s a space that allows artists to reflect on their influences and pay homage to those who’ve shaped them. Kevin Smith, the filmmaker behind “Clerks,” “Chasing Amy,” and “The 4:30 Movie” used his time inside the closet to do just that as he selected films ranging from Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” to Barbara Streisand’s “The Prince of Tides.”
“This movie made me build my boat because I remember, like — Number one, this is a legit fucking brilliant, funny movie, with fantastic acting in it and stuff,” said Smith of the effect Robert Townsend’s 1987 satire “Hollywood Shuffle” had on him. “And he talked about using credit cards to pay for the movie, partially the budget. And I remember listening to that interview — and this was long before I ever thought about filmmaking — but that information stayed with me because I was like, ‘You could do that? That’s interesting.’ Years later, I would use that information. So, I’ve never met Robert Townsend, but he’s one of my absolute heroes.”
Another hero of Smith’s proved to be actor-turned-director Bill Duke. In discussing Duke’s ’90s neo-noir “Deep Cover,” Smith, a filmmaker known for occasionally stepping in front of the camera, explained why actors have a particular skill for directing.
“Actors make great directors, kids. You know why? Because they sit behind fucking a zillion directors over the course of a career, and they can slowly aggregate a style without ever shooting a frame of film,” Smith said. “So when it becomes their time to step up to the plate, oh, they can knock it out the park. Bill Duke did that with ‘Deep Cover.’”
For his last selection, Smith also credited Richard Linklater and his 1990 film “Slacker” with pushing him towards the belief that he too could make movies. He said of the film, “I’ve talked about viewing ‘Slacker’ with a mixture of awe and arrogance. Awe because I’d never seen anything like it before. And I watched a lot of movies, kids. But arrogance because, when I finished watching this, one of the first thoughts I had was, ‘If that counts as a movie, I think I could make a movie.’ This movie changed my life. If I don’t see ‘Slacker,’ I never think that I could do a thing. You got to see it before you can be it. So once again, if you’re just like, ‘I fucking hate Kevin Smith. 30 years of terrible movies. I can’t believe Criterion gave him a Chasing Amy,’ blame Richard Linklater.”
Watch Kevin Smith’s full Criterion Closet visit below.
