Dogma

I watched this movie with some expectations in the comedy department and I am glad to say that I am satisfied. This movie can make you laugh and think at the same time. The performance given by Alan Rickman and Chris Rock stands out. The director made sure that the concept wasn't overburdening to the viewers and also that it didn't hurt religious feelings of the viewers. This is one of the best executed comedy movies of all time,not just because of the acting, but also because of the scenario and story. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck does justice to their roles of the rogue angles. Damon was at his usual best,while Affleck did best to keep up and i can safely say that he succeeded.

Hats off,to the cast and crew.

Not enough can be said to praise the brilliance of Kevin Smith. This movie is just plain and simple genius! I loved it! Off the wall characters, dirty language, a little bit of religion, and Alanis Morisette as God! What more could you ask for in a Kevin Smith film.

I took this movie in as a whole. Absorbing every scene, every piece of dialoge. Brilliant! I must say, the "shit demon" was my least favorite part of the whole movie...but in Kevin Smith fashion...it was brilliant and disturbing. You gotta love it!

10 out of 10

Dogma has plenty of funny religion-themed gags, but I was entertained by it mainly because I liked just about all of the characters and I enjoyed most of their dialogue.

There's not a lot of substance behind what they're saying, unlike in, say, Tarantino's films, but the fact that it's all fairly low-brow and goofy is what makes it good. Jay and Bob are fantastic with their little stoner quips.

The plot is fairly weak, but it's not supposed to be brilliant. It's easy to tell that Kevin Smith just enjoys playing around with Catholicism by poking and prodding at it.

Also, George Carlin is what was his usual comedic self in his cameo.

"Dogma" isn't the kind of comedy that most people will find themselves holding onto their guts during. It's more the second-long "ha!" kind of comedy.

That simply means Kevin Smith's writing is clever enough to the point where you will be pleasantly shocked by some of the conversations and events of the film and think it all rather amusing and humorous. It's not hilarious, it's just clever and a bit funny.

The premise is rather interesting and surprisingly from a more fantasy-esquire genre than Smith traditionally dabbles with. Loki (Matt Damon) and Bartleby (Ben Affleck) are more or less fallen angels that have found a way back into heaven. They must be stopped or the world will come to a screeching halt, so a seemingly random protagonist named Bethany gets charged by God to stop them. Simple, but the slick, nonchalant approach to religion keeps the satire rampant.

The film does spend a lot of its time explaining itself, which isn't too bad considering Smith keeps the explanations to-the-point and allows the characters to stay interesting in the process. Chris Rock, who plays an apostle, and Alan Rickman, who plays God's messenger/ voice are two of these characters that are both good in the film and Smith has allowed to maintain their character's edge despite lines upon lines of explanation.

Getting from point A to point B and so on is not the film's strength. The physical events that take place are ultimately boring and unexciting. It's the moments along the way, the conversations and the philosophy that come about, that make it successful. Affleck's character raises a lot of interesting religious questions about humanity and his conversation with the protagonist on the train is rather insightful. In general, Smith has used Bethany as a way to keep the viewers skepticism of the plot active in the film. She keeps it from getting preposterous. In general, the whole cast is very talented and their characters well written, which keeps the film interesting.

It's not the funniest or most interesting comedy in terms of plot and the sequence of events, but "Dogma" is a smart concept that ultimately results in a sharp satire and some great thoughts that scrutinize religion in a way that never seems too out of line.

...provided that people care about it.

Only Kevin Smith knows what his real intentions were when he penned the script for "Dogma". I read somewhere that this is a thinly veiled propaganda for catholic church, or Christianity in general.

I don't see it that way at all. First of all, the surface is not thin at all. There are layers and layers of clever gags, dark humor and satire in this ride of pursuit.

The main premise is relatively simple - two rogue (or rejected or whatever) angels live on through present day, still doing what they've been doing throughout the Bible and trying to get back to heaven. Their only way to do it is through a loophole in catholic dogma, which, if exploited, would prove that god is fallible. For that they must be stopped and an earthly creature is recruited for the task. There is little time and thus the pursuit begins. During it various biblical elements come into play through their present-day form.

To some "Dogma" was eternal biblical struggle relived and modernized to better adjust to modern viewers. There are some argument in favor of that view. I'd say that the sheer fact that it's a satire (some poignant moments notwithstanding) and the campiness of realization actually tell the opposite tale. They show how this stuff the legends are made from (and still worshiped) fares when viewed through a prism of real life.

The two archetypal angels may have been prosecutors of evil in the Bible, but in real life they are just two self-righteous angry mass murderers. A biblical monster is in real life just a pile of crap, a dangerous one but crap nevertheless. God may be an infallible, omnipresent, omnipowerful creature in the Bible, but in reality its set of values, rules and powers are more becoming of a pop star than of a being that supposedly created everything. In fact you have to wonder about the power of "god" that has to follow rules.

Other various gags and skits, such as the black apostle (13th one at that), play on a virgin working in an abortion clinic and the other ones only reinforce the sense of unsubtle ridicule. In that regard "Dogma" did and will repel many a religious viewers and stir certain controversy. But its subtle message that the whole story is ultimately meaningless might finally make some people question their beliefs at last.