Chasing Amy - Kevin Smith writes and directs a film that is often thought of as one of the two movies wherein Ben Affleck woos a lesbian (the other being Gigli), but that is a huge oversimplification. The premise of 'guy falls in love with a lesbian' is a punchline and a dated, somewhat deplorable one at that. No, this is a film that is actually about male sexual insecurity. The criticism this film faces (particularly in recent years) is that it opts for the the least interesting character to center focus the story on (one that Smith would go on to later acknowledge in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot). Alyssa Jones would be a more interesting perspective as she is the lesbian in question that begins to fall for Ben Affleck of all people. Or Banky who it is heavily implied is nursing a loving interest for his best friend Holden. That, too, would make for an interesting perspective about navigating sexual identity. I don't find this criticism to hold much water because, while a film set around the perspectives of Alyssa or Banky would be interesting and something I would like to see, the film was never really about sexual identity, but rather sexual insecurity. Holden is made an interesting main character because it is rare to see a male in a sexually vulnerable position and his reaction to that vulnerability is what causes the movie to play out as it does and carry with it an important message.

Smith had been given great praise for his dialogue and gritty filmmaking aesthetic when he debuted Clerks, but when his first Hollywood film Mallrats bombed there was some question as to his credibility. What this film proves is that Smith can make a fine film and is an excellent writer when he has something personal to say. It is not lost on me that the film's title character is a artist who discovers great and swift fame but is petrified of selling out and thus ditches his 'dick and fart joke' material in favor of writing a personal story about love from a distinctly male perspective. Smith had something to prove with this film and he brought it from a very personal place. He was trying to work out his own inner insecurities both as a filmmaker and personal insecurities in his love life and what comes of it is one incredibly strong screenplay. The film hits its comedic scenes well and the opening bit about the 'tracer' is laugh out loud funny. It is the dramatic scenes that feel incredibly raw and straight up palpable. The performances from Ben Affleck, Jason Lee and Joey Lauren Adams are fantastic and I maintain that the latter two were robbed of Oscar nominations (as was Smith's screenplay for that matter). Just check out this scene and tell me that they are not exceptionally performed and written.