Jersey Girl the movie will be in theaters March 26th. Being a Jersey guy by transplantation ( I was born elsewhere as was the wife ), I have a special curiosity. The rumors that surround the film are as rampant as are the spoilers. Over ten years ago I saw Clerks on one of the few screens it ran on in NJ theaters, Kevin Smith was in the audience. When he shot Chasing Amy in Red Bank I sold him a bunch a cigarettes in the convenience store I worked in. So we go way back.

Here’s what I do know about Jersey Girl. None of the stars are from Jersey. The guy who wrote and directed it no longer lives in Jersey. They did shoot lots of the film in Paulsboro, New Jersey but only after Ben Affleck agreed to take a paycut, because Miramax wanted it done in Canada to save a million bucks. Imagine that, that it costs a lot to get anything done in New Jersey. There’s a mighty shocker.

The movie had 2 earlier release dates, including the 19th of March. There were several “final cuts” of the film. When Gigli bombed, the film was re cut and rescheduled several more times.

Here’s my bet sight unseen on Jersey Girl.
1) It’s not going to look like a Kevin Smith film. The trailers are a pretty good clue to that.
2) It’s going to be funny in parts. Some parts may be very funny. Some parts are going to outright unfunny.
3) Whether it sinks or swims is going to come down to how much people respond to the notion of Ben Affleck playing a responsible guy with a kid.

Boy, that sounds a lot like another Ben Affleck aw shucks routine to me.

But like they say in Hollywood, no one knows nothing. So prove me wrong Silent Bob! I’m rooting for you to pull a Chasing Amy and surprise everyone. Don’t let this be Mallrats revisted with bigger stars and a slick ad campaign.