There are still plenty of laughs, but Kevin Smith's third Clerks movie has a lot to say about middle age friendship.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Dec 11, 2024

So, is Clerks III worth the 16 year wait? It was even better than I, as a longtime fan, could have ever expected

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Jul 29, 2024

The economic anxiety that drove the first movie and remained present in the second is completely absent in the third, and not just because Dante and Randal have become their own bosses.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 20, 2024

So, yes, Clerks III is a bit of an unfunny mess, and it often highlights Smith's weaknesses as a filmmaker, but when it works, it really, really works.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Aug 4, 2023

Smith does succeed in his apparent goal to make us longtime fans feel mournful and old -- but why did he want to make us feel that way?

| Original Score: C- | Dec 27, 2022

I’m honestly not sure I’ve ever seen a sequel that put less effort into expanding on its source material in any meaningful way.

| Original Score: 1/4 | Dec 23, 2022

It initially appears to be even more aimless and pointless than Clerks II, but it grows in appeal as it moseys along.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Dec 12, 2022

I'd be lying if I said "the sad stuff" doesn't work, and I'm not one of those critics who's going to downrate something if the emotions are stronger than the aesthetics when that IS the important part.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Nov 11, 2022

Clerks III might not win Smith many new admirers, but for fans of the original -- and viewers of a certain age -- this will strike enough of a chord to leave you entertained and emotionally satisfied.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 3, 2022

You could call it “meta,” but I feel like that word deserves something more sophisticated than what’s on the screen. And yet, it works.

| Oct 25, 2022

Clerks III puts the hash in rehash. Its lukewarm reminiscences will please the faithful, but beyond that, you’re likely better off watching Smith’s earlier, stronger work.

| Oct 21, 2022

The meta aspects of the story actually serve a greater emphasis on mortality — what it means to lose people, what it means to face your own death, and how that makes you consider what you’ll end up leaving behind.

| Oct 14, 2022

By time Clerks III ends, fans of the series are going to be stunned while wanting to enjoy the entire trilogy again for the first time.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 29, 2022

Kevin Smith's Deeply Personal Goodbye To The Past

| Sep 27, 2022

While the jokes are hit-and-miss, the acting is uniformly solid, and the story is very cleverly written to accommodate, not only the original characters, but footage from the original film.

| Original Score: B | Sep 24, 2022

Smith brings us his most raw and emotional film to date whilst not forgetting his comedy roots. A must see for fans of the franchise. 

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 24, 2022

“Clerks III” is like watching a singalong version of a popular movie musical — you know the songs, it’s more about the experience of singing together.

| Sep 24, 2022

The film plows into the psyche of grief, but there's still plenty of goofiness in word and deed.

| Sep 24, 2022

For ageing Gen-Xers, however, there’s an irresistible sensibility underpinning the enterprise; they can’t call it a midlife crisis if you’ve always been disgruntled and surly.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 23, 2022

A solid idea for a conclusion quickly loses its way as the film becomes less a melancholic look back at a joyous moment for realizing one’s dream through independent filmmaking and more a stale look-at-me grasp of the glory days.

| Original Score: 1.5/4 | Sep 22, 2022