Kevin Smith is returning to his roots with Red State, a grindhouse horror bonanza about a cadre of religious zealots led by a preacher (Kill Bill's Michael Parks) who are murdering for Jesus. As with his 1997 debut, Clerks, Smith shot the film in a month for less than $4 million. The director publicly shunned the studios by buying his own project at Sundance for $20, then took it out for a nationwide tour last spring prior to its theatrical release (it will also be on video on demand starting Sept. 1). ''Marketing is something I can do,'' says Smith. ''I come from Quick Stop. Before we made Clerks, I was a clerk, so I know how to sell something.'' —Keith Staskiewicz
