Video > DVD > Genres > Comedy > General

	buying more than one thing? add to bookbag(uses Multi-Item Price Optimization™) ...or intereact!

Dogma (Special Edition)
Actors: Betty Aberlin, Ben Affleck, Nancy Bach, Lesley Braden, and George Carlin
Rated: R (Restricted)
Retail Price (not our price): $19.94
Release Date: 2001-06-26
Theatrical Release Date: 1999-11-12
Studio: Sony Pictures
Run Time: 128 minutes
Format: Array
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Discs: 2


Editorial Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):

1) Amazon.com
Kevin Smith is a conundrum of a filmmaker: he's a writer with brilliant, clever ideas who can't set up a simple shot to save his life. It was fine back when Smith was making low-budget films like Clerks and Chasing Amy, both of which had an amiable, grungy feel to them, but now that he's a rising director who's attracting top talent and tackling bigger themes, it might behoove him to polish his filmmaking. That's the main problem with Dogma--it's an ambitious, funny, aggressively intelligent film about modern-day religion, but while Smith's writing has matured significantly (anyone who thinks he's not topnotch should take a look at Chasing Amy), his direction hasn't. It's too bad, because Dogma is ripe for near-classic status in its theological satire, which is hardly as blasphemous as the protests that greeted the movie would lead you to believe. Two banished angels (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) have discovered a loophole that would allow them back into heaven; problem is, they'd destroy civilization in the process by proving God fallible. It's up to Bethany (Linda Fiorentino), a lapsed Catholic who works in an abortion clinic, to save the day, with some help from two so-called prophets (Smith and Jason Mewes, as their perennial characters Jay and Silent Bob), the heretofore unknown 13th apostle (Chris Rock), and a sexy, heavenly muse (the sublime Salma Hayek, who almost single-handedly steals the film). In some ways Dogma is a shaggy dog of a road movie--which hits a comic peak when Affleck and Fiorentino banter drunkenly on a train to New Jersey, not realizing they're mortal enemies--and segues into a comedy-action flick as the vengeful angels (who have a taste for blood) try to make their way into heaven. Smith's cast is exceptional--with Fiorentino lending a sardonic gravity to the proceedings, and Jason Lee smirking evilly as the horned devil Azrael--and the film shuffles good-naturedly to its climax (featuring Alanis Morissette as a beatifically silent God), but it just looks so unrelentingly... subpar. Credit Smith with being a daring writer but a less-than-stellar director. --Mark Englehart

Customer Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5

1) This is Serious Religious Satire? (DOGMA)   [Rating: 1 out of 5]
I found DOGMA to be such a monumental waste of time that it set a real precedent in my life. As someone who can enjoy almost any well-intentioned movie this film was a total waste of time, energy and resources. Since I am a lifelong confirmed horror and sci-fi fan I am not the least "high brow", nor do I hold any strong opinions regarding organized religion. (How could I? Every film I claim to like is either banned or condemned by many formal religious groups and organizations). I also would not consider myself to be prudish in any way and irreverence towards organized religion has never bothered me enough to spoil a good film.When I went to the theater to see DOGMA I was on vacation with my wife and a trusted friend who recommended we see this film which, he insisted, would not be a waste of our time. The party in question shall remain nameless, but after seeing this movie I questioned his sincerity and certainly his advice from that day on. By the way, recommending a film to a party of four individuals who had other first choices for the evening is a responsibility that I take very seriously.I am also dismayed at the number of approving votes this film received. It would appear that the producer, director or some of the actors must be members of a large "family" (or some organization) who have a vested interest in this film. I simply can't believe the outcome of the Amazon statistics. Someone has been stuffing the ballot box!

2) DVD Dogma   [Rating: 4 out of 5]
This was a very difficult item to get in New Zealand. Getting it on Amazon was very easy and was the perfect gift for a big fan of the movie.It turned up within the international shipping time and was a very reasonable price.

3) A truly original comedy   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
This is my favorite comedy ever. Its ingenious and utterly hilarious, even if what we're all laughing at is completely immoral or innapropriate. Jay and Silent Bob alone are worth watching it. I cant even pinpoint one part of this film that isn't funny. And by funny, I don't mean your standard pornographic/vulgar type humour-this is a smart comedy that you actually have to listen to to truly understand its brilliance. There have been alot of objections to this film. I know people that will not watch it because of the subject matter. Those people are missing out-big time.

4) Hard topics in 10 seconds   [Rating: 4 out of 5]
Anyone having to write about philosophy knows that the hard part is do it with few words. Twain's "sorry i wrote a long letter, i hadn't time to write a short one" applies like a glove.The true achievement of this movie is to be able to combine audio and video to express intense and charged concepts in a matter of seconds.Agreeing with then or not, it's not the question. The question is whether or not from an artistic perspective, you are able to get "something" from your time. The answer is yes.This is not a philosophic thesis or and artistic master piece and hence it can only be judge for a piece of great entertainment.You may want to also see Monty Python's Life Of Brian - The Immaculate Edition

5) Dogma is one of the GREATS!!!!   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
I am a HUGE fan of British Comedies (ex. the Vicar of Dibley) and yet I never thought an American Director could do such a classic job of creating a film that put such a comedic spin on religion in general. This film is VERY well thought out and brilliantly directed. I, myself, and well studied in theology, religions, and philosophy. I just can't get over how well thought out this film was and how funny it was. I HIGHLY recommend this film to anyone who enjoys religious/anti-religious comedy. Whether you are a theist, agnostic, or atheist there is something in this film for everyone!!!! I give this film a 5 star rating.