Posted by Ethan R at hnw0004.resnet-student.upenn.edu on November 21, 1999 at 03:17:13:
Well, I finally saw Dogma tonight at 10:05. It's only playing in one theatre in Philadelphia (center city), so this info covers a big ol' chunk of one of the larger cities in America. The theatre was about 80% filled with a good mix of people, fairly younger crowd though. Jay monopolized the laughs. The big laughs were for the part black line, the homosexual masturbation fantasies, the forgot the "God bless you," and I can't neglect to mention the platypi.
As far as a review goes...I liked it and so did my friends. We know some people who saw the test screening last year in Philadelphia before most of the cuts were made. They unfortunately hated the movie and wanted to walk out of the theatre. I'm sure that you guys did a superb job editing, and they would probably enjoy the flick in its final state.
The only criticism that I have (if you can really even call it that) is that I wanted to see more scenes with Bartleby and Loki's struggle. But, yeah, it's a comedy at heart I suppose. Those scenes would have slowed down the flow of the movie. I also would've liked to have seen a little bit more of Lee. It's not really criticism because I thought everything was pieced together perfectly, but just that Affleck, Damon, and Lee were so engaging in their roles that one would naturally want to see more of them.
If you want a non-christian perspective... at seems heavy on the christianity at points (Bethany's symbolic baptism, and the end)which I guess is natural. I wasn't put off by it 'cause I dig it when people believe in something. Enough of your message can be thought of as cross-faith so that the message can still get across.
In conclusion, the flick gets high marks in my book. Solid acting, a well-crafted and paced plot, and some hysterical one-liners.
Side-note: Kevin- After seeing Dogma, I think you've got a straight up heavy drama in you that wants to get out. If you ever decide to go that route, I believe you will be successful in that venture.
Satiatedly,
Ethan