“Hey, have you seen this movie? What did you think about THAT SCENE?!” We have all used that phrase at one point during our discussions of movies with the other person’s eyebrows raising, “Oh yea, THAT SCENE!” You go on to pick that memorable scene apart by listing what you loved or didn’t like, how it made you feel and the impression it left on you.
In this series, we will do just that. We will take a scene from a movie and discuss its impact on us. Some of these scenes may be frightening, weird, iconic, controversial, hilarious, and everything in between. Let us know your impression of the scene and the impact it left on you the first time you watched it down below in the comments. Enjoy!
*Warning: May Contain Spoilers*
Movie: Chasing Amy (1997)
Scene: ‘Star Wars’ aka What’s a Nubian? / Gentrification / Black Rage
THE PLAYERS
Director: Kevin Smith
Characters: Hooper X (Dwight Ewell), Ben Affleck (Holden McNeil), Jason Lee (Banky Edwards) and Joey Lauren Adams (Alyssa Jones)
THE SETUP
Comic book artists and lifelong best friends Holden McNeil and Banky Edwards meet fellow comic book artist Alyssa Jones at a comic book convention, where they are promoting their comic Bluntman and Chronic. After doing some promotional signings, the two attend a panel discussion of smaller run comics where they meet Alyssa Jones. She is a struggling comic book writer whom is friends with the African-American comic book writer and activist Hooper X who puts on this militant image to hide his flamboyantly gay personality. Alyssa really has nothing to do with this scene for the most part but her reaction at the end of this is more than enough.
THAT SCENE
THE EXECUTION
Kevin Smith now is by no means the Kevin Smith of the early 90s. And some may say that this film has really dated itself, but I still think the first 45 minutes of this are some of the best stuff Smith’s ever written. It’s a simple two (?) camera set up, but it’s all about the deliveries of the actors. Jason Lee is at his absolute best here. I don’t know if I’ve actually seen Dwight Ewell in anything else but this, but damn is he good in this scene.
What do you think of this scene? Did you find it intense and well done?
