Dogma: A Screenplay [Paperback]

Kevin Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 16, 1999

One of the major hits of the 1999 Cannes Film Festival, a film that proved too hot for Disney to handle, Kevin Smith's ribald, revolutionary new film Dogma is a comic theological fantasy that is sure to be one of this fall's most provocative offerings. Two fallen angels (Matt Damon and Ben Affleck), sentenced to eternal exile in Wisconsin, are trying to get back into heaven. A renegade cardinal in New Jersey (George Carlin), as part of his "Catholicism Wow!" campaign, has opened a loophole in Catholic doctrine that would give them their opportunity-and, in proving God's judgment wrong, destroy the universe. An abortion clinic counselor (Linda Fiorentino) who may or may not be of holy bloodlines is tapped as the very reluctant savior-and, accompanied by the thirteenth apostle (Chris Rock), a wayward muse (Salma Hayek), and two very questionable prophets (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, AKA Jay and Silent Bob), she sets off on a mission to save the world.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press; 1st edition (November 16, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802136796
• ISBN-13: 978-0802136794
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #480,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful read, provided you can stand gross-out humour., December 30, 1999

By 

D. Mok (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dogma: A Screenplay (Paperback)

I'm in the precarious situation of not having seen the film but having read the screenplay about four times through already. So treat this as a pure book review.

Kevin Smith's writing is entertaining, often very clean (only seldom lapsing into the hyper-verbose ball and chain that many screenwriters like Shane Black fall victim to). Dogma may be one of the few screenplays which a non-film person will be able to read just as a dramatic work. The dialogue sometimes gets to be as dense as in a novel, which leads me to wonder how much of the script ended up on the cutting room floor, but the concepts are intriguing and the characters highly charged. Unfortunately the last portion of the plot is incredibly dense and hard to follow. But as befits a Kevin Smith film/screenplay, once you buy into his sense of humour, Dogma is very entertaining indeed, without the cranial deficiency that so many indie screenplays suffer from.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I wish I could give more than 5 stars! Dogma is EXCELLENT!, December 31, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Dogma (Hardcover)

This is some of Smith's best work. If you like smart, intelligent films (as opposed to jim carrey saying "Allll-righty then" 50 times in one movie), then this is for you! Proposing interesting points about Lewis Carol and the validation of religion through his writings. As well as controversial issues towards the Bible (claiming Moses was a drunk, Jesus could hear Joseph & Mary having sex, the existence of a 13th apostle, and a BLACK Jesus). Don't buy this book if you don't have a sense of humor towards religion! Otherwise, you'll laugh your butt off! I can't wait for the movie to be released in late 1999!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars even better than the movie, July 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Dogma: A Screenplay (Paperback)

This screenplay is the best that I have ever read. Kevin Smith does a masterful job of weaving religous fact and fiction into a story that's both funny and thought provoking. It is my opinion that "Dogma" is Kevin Smith's best work yet. The dialogue is great, and even though a lot of the more dense stuff ended up on the cutting room floor, it still didn't clutter up the screenplay at all. I wish that they would have kept Jay and Silent Bob singing the theme from "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" in though. Oh well, maybe in the special edition DVD. This is a great read for Kevin Smith fans, aspiring screenwriters, or just fans of movies in general. Hats off to Kevin Smith for writing one of the great screenplays of all time.