Amy is Being Chased

Guest post by Jerry Vogelsang
I think I figured out blogging. Anyways, I wrote this for my um... well of one my many English Classes.

Read it. Love it.

In an age of he said/ she said, love triangles, and adolescents in trying to find themselves; Chasing Amy is a romantic comedy that mustn’t be overlooked.

Chasing Amy is the story of a comic book writer named Holden who falls for Alyssa, a woman in the same trade. Unfortunately, for Holden; he later discovers Alyssa is a lesbian. Eventually, Alyssa begins to date Holden, although Holden goes on to find that his dream girl’s past makes her far from perfect.

Cult director Kevin Smith is popular amongst teenagers and the twenty somethings of today as his films feature vulgar language, pop culture references, and witty dialogue as well as some low brow “dick jokes.” Smith’s Chasing Amy is no exception to this rule, but it is more than the sum of its parts. The film would be great to teach to as it’s Kevin’s most personal, romantic, dramatic, and least seen film.

Along with a big star like Ben Affleck in the lead role, Chasing Amy features the iconic duo of Jay and Silent Bob, the beloved foul mouthed drug dealers with heart, that appeared in all of Smith’s films since his down to earth debut film Clerks. I have seen these characters on posters in a number of dorm rooms, so I have no doubt they would intrigue an audience who wouldn’t normally go for romantic comedies with gay characters.

Chasing Amy has a little something for everyone. The average teenage girl would swoon over a romantic movie. Chasing Amy contains one of the most beautiful and honest speeches I’ve ever heard in a film. However, movies with romance and feelings being expressed through words rather than bullets tend to turn off male viewers. Chasing Amy has plenty to offer those with y chromosomes. It has plenty of vulgar humor, comic book references that will most likely go over their girlfriend’s head, and even a great hockey scene.

The movie is also quite relatable in how real the characters and their New Jersey tongues are. There’s probably a cuss word in every sentence, and if anyone has heard a conversation between teenagers nowadays, would surely agree that seems about right. Any comic book or movie enthusiast would agree that they’ve had similar conversations to those in the movie. Conversations about topics as silly and unimportant yet gripping as Archie and Jughead’s sex life or who should play Batman, are conversations not far from what a teenage male would discuss. A conversation near the end of the film has the ironically named Silent Bob give a big speech about who Amy is and why she is being chased. The gist of Bob’s speech is that there shall always be the girl who got away, and even if you think you move on with your life; you will spend every day chasing your Amy. Change the name and perhaps gender, and this speech could apply to many heart broken teens.

In terms of the story being relatable, Holden deals with his homophobic roommate, Banky, who disapproves of Holden’s friendship/relationship with Alyssa. Banky also gets jealous that Holden is paying as much attention to him as he used to. Many college students have had problems they’ve had to deal with their roommates. I’ve known plenty of people who have had issues with their roommate’s not spending enough time with them.

Chasing Amy is movie that works hard toward tolerance and breaking social norms. A humorous scene at the beginning of the film features a speech on racism in comics from a character named Hooper X. Hooper is essentially the Malcolm X of comic book writers; he is a proud and angry black man. This is merely a guise of his true self, a mellow homosexual man who only exploits his image to help sell his comics.

Chasing Amy focuses on gender roles and sexuality. When Alyssa was a lesbian, Holden has no problem with the fact that Alyssa has slept with dozens of women. Holden later finds out that early on that she used to sleep with men, and a lot of men at that. This raises the issue of whether if someone, man or woman, sleeps with a lot of women, that’s fine. Yet, for some reason, sleeping with men, transforms one into a whore. There is also a lot of gay subtext between Holden and his roommate Banky. Banky could be much like Hooper and needs to pretend to be something he’s not, for he fears that society would not accept his true self.

The movie’s subject matter may turn a lot of people off. I only believe that to be a greater reason to view the movie. If people have negative views on the gay community, then perhaps this movie could enlighten them. Comfort zones must be left at some point in life. Even homosexuality aside, the vulgarity and the in depth discussions about sex may also turn people off. Again, this is how people talk in real life. At a college level, one must accept these kinds of conversations.

All things considered, Chasing Amy is a hilarious romantic comedy with deep social issues that should be embraced by all.

written by Jerry Vogelsang, 2010, all rights reserved