In \Jersey Girl,"" writer/director Kevin Smith dives into more serious territory after producing such films as ""Clerks"" and ""Mallrats."" ""Jersey Girl"" is not truly a serious movie, but it is much more serious than his earlier films in terms of character, plot and emotion. Although his decision to move forward is admirable, ""Jersey Girl"" itself is far from being an admirable film, most of which is because of Smith's unfamiliarity directing more serious material.
Ben Affleck plays Ollie Trinke, a New York music publicist who falls in love with Gertrude, surprisingly well-acted by Jennifer Lopez. Soon after they marry she becomes pregnant, but Ollie's life is shattered when Gertrude dies from an aneurism giving birth. Unable to maintain his busy work schedule as a single parent, Ollie and his daughter, named after Gertrude, move back in with his father (George Carlin) who works as a street sweeper in New Jersey.
Due to an incident in which Ollie snapped at work and slandered his client, Ollie is blacklisted from the entertainment industry and forced to work as a street sweeper like his father, abandoning the posh life he once loved for a blue collar existence in New Jersey. The remainder of the film deals with Ollie's relationship with his daughter (Raquel Castro), and his attempt to rebuild his life, including his relationship with a video store clerk named Maya (Liv Tyler).
Many directors do not seem to know when to move beyond a certain genre or style. Truth be told, it was more than time for Kevin Smith to move on. His repertoire??is composed mainly of sex jokes and ""Star Wars"" references that are only funny for so long before one starts to wonder if there is anything to him other than punch-lines. Jay and Silent Bob were dangerously close to shifting from cult anti-heroes into clich??d gimmicks.??It is a shame then that ""Jersey Girl"" is such a poor effort as Smith's first serious movie.
The film's biggest failure is the performances, although that is not to say it is the fault of the actors. Affleck and Tyler do all they can with the roles, but Smith has written a relatively juvenile script and seems to not really know what he is trying to get out of his actors. Smith's script is inherently flawed, relying intensely on clich??s and predictable plot points that are practically groan-inducing. Smith even throws in some of the staples of his other films, such as jokes about bodily functions and pornography, to try and add originality to a bland script. Almost all attempts fail. The most enjoyable aspect of the film comes from George Carlin, who gives an in-depth performance as the only character that does not seem predictable or unrealistic.
Following the release of ""Gigli"" and the break up of Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, Kevin Smith stated that he feared ""Jersey Girl"" would suffer at the box office. If ""Jersey Girl"" does tank at the box office, it is possible powers beyond Smith's control may have played a part. But it may have helped out if Smith had made a movie that had more credibility or originality. It is easy to play the Bennifer card-hopefully Smith will realize his own shortcomings and create a better movie next time. There is no doubt he has it in him.
