The CLERK story follows the first-time director from before he takes the world by surprise at the Sundance Film Festival with his seminal indie comedy sensation ‘Clerks’ and follows his life and cinematic output since. Like his films, the documentary examines Kevin’s affinity for countless juicy topics from male relationships and sexuality to religious fanaticism and comic book culture.

Using interviews, clips, testimonials, and never-before-seen archival footage, “CLERK” is a colorful oral history of one of the entertainment industry’s most incredible journeys, as told by his friends, his collaborators, industry professionals, and the Not So Silent Bob himself, Kevin Smith.

For in-depth thoughts on Clerk, please see my colleague Mike Vaughn’s review from its original theatrical release here.

Video Quality

Clerk comes to Blu-Ray in its original aspect ratio from a rock-solid high-definition master. The 2021 film was last released on DVD in the waning days of that year, but thankfully director Malcolm Ingram has founded Mercantile Instinct and given fans craving a Blu-Ray the release they deserve. The transfer appears to have a decent amount of room to breathe as there are no issues with major compression artifacts, banding, or other digital nuisances. Black levels are deep and do not showcase any egregious crush. The colors on display are wonderful as they provide a nice bit of visual flair.

The documentary consists of a combination of newer interviews with excerpts from various archival sources interspersed for additional insight into the main man. The new interview footage looks as crisp and controlled as you would hope modern cameras to achieve in a stable location. Interview segments deliver natural skin tones and detailed facial features in front of various backgrounds. The older material is inconsistent, yet it seems to be in the best condition you could ask for from this particular footage, especially that which is derived from a VHS source. Mercantile Instinct has made a good first impression with this healthy upgrade for fans.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray comes with both a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 track that presents the material well enough without the benefit of a full lossless experience. Dialogue is the focus here, and it is never drowned out by competing elements. The score is unexpectedly effective at establishing a wistful tone to the journey which lands well. The archival material has a few weak spots, but for the most part, the track never falters when it comes to clarity. The audio track is somewhat limited by the lossy format, but it is not a major disappointment by any means. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided for the feature.

Special Features

Audio Commentary #1: Kevin Smith and director Malcolm Ingram provide a new, unhinged commentary track in which you truly get to just hear two friends screwing around while lightly touching on the making of the documentary. Tune in to hear about pre-pandemic sex fests, the famous parent of the commentary track producer, Kevin singing snippets of ‘90s songs, ditching Madonna to go to a Degrassi party, and much more that true fans of Smith will eat up.

Audio Commentary #2: A commentary track with the Stanley Brothers – Sean Stanley (Clerk Editor) and his brother Warren (teaser poster designer) – who discuss going from Kevin Smith fans to working on this project, their experiences with the movie, trying to assemble a fresh movie for a man who has shared his life story at length, and much more that is pretty entertaining and not quite as rowdy as the first track.

Alternate Ending – The Kids: A nearly four-minute alternate ending that shows Kevin helping out the next generation of burgeoning filmmakers.

Extended Intro – Kevin Smith VHS Tape: A 12-minute look at the VHS tape that opens up the film with Kevin talking directly to the camera in his youth.

Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.

Uncut Interviews: A terrific assortment of full-length interviews that gives you more insights into these creatives, their relationship with Smith and more.

- Ralph Garman (32:41)

- Stan Lee (2:58)

- Judd Nelson (6:38)

- Jason Reitman (13:49)

- Richard Linklater (15:02)

- Joe Manganiello (19:42)

Final Thoughts

Clerk is an extensive and deeply emotional look into the life of Kevin Smith, a man often unfairly dismissed due to his mythic fandom. He indeed has a substantial amount of loyal followers, but the man has earned that loyalty through not only his point of view but how he conducts himself as a (more than) decent human being. The structure is standard, but the insights from the interview subjects and Smith himself are a pure delight, often reminding you why he is beloved in the first place. Mercantile Instinct has released a new Blu-Ray that features a great A/V presentation and some very desirable special features. Unless you simply hate Kevin Smith for some reason, this is a great viewing experience. Recommended

Clerk is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and VHS exclusively at Mercantile Instinct.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Mercantile Instinct has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.