John KampfeHome, In the News, New Jersey Movies

Filmmaker Kevin Smith’s latest effort, Yoga Hosers, may be set in Canada but he is bringing it home to Red Bank for a special pre-release preview on August 2 at the historic Count Basie Theatre*. Smith will be on-hand at the Basie to celebrate his 47th birthday and to conduct an hour-long Q&A session after the film’s showing.

Yoga Hosers, scheduled to premiere on September 2, is a spinoff of Smith’s 2014 film Tusk. It is the story of Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie, who love their smartphones and hate their after school job at Manitoban convenience store Eh-2-Zed. But when an ancient evil rises from beneath Canada’s crust and threatens their big invitation to a Grade 12 party, the Colleens join forces with the legendary man-hunter from Montreal named Guy Lapointe to fight for their lives with all seven Chakras, one Warrior Pose at a time.

Reprising their roles as the teen convenience store clerks are Lily-Rose Depp and Harley Quinn Smith, who happen to be the daughters of the actor Johnny Depp and Kevin Smith, respectively. The elder Depp also makes an appearance in the role of Guy LaPointe, which he originated in Tusk. Several other Tusk cast members also reappear in Yoga Hosers, including Michael Parks, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment, Genesis Rodriguez, Ralph Garman and Harley Morenstein.

Preview tickets go on sale tomorrow (Friday, July 8) online, by phone and at the Count Basie Theatre box office. They are priced at $37, $25 and $20. To order online, go to www.countbasietheatre.org. Exclusive Kevin Smith “meet and greet” packages also are available.

The Count Basie Theatre showing is the last stop on a limited nationwide preview tour. The movie also will get early showings in Durham, NC (July 8), San Jose, CA (July 12), San Francisco, CA (July 17), and Louisville, KY (July 30). Go to www.smodcast.com/yogahosers for more information.

Smith was born and raised in Red Bank, and still is a very real presence in the area. His Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash comic shop, named after the characters in several of his productions, is a fixture on in the downtown Red Bank shopping district. Smith’s other movies include his 1994 breakthrough Clerks, which garnered him two awards at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival, as well as Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma and Jersey Girl.

*Full disclosure: I am a former member of the Count Basie Theatre Board of Trustees