I've already got two Kevin Smith films on my Fifty Favorite Movies list, the original Clerks and Dogma, and while I don't think Zack and Miri Make a Porno will quite make the cut - Clerks is there because it was shocking and funny and from out of nowhere; and Dogma is damn smart (and funny) - Smith's latest opus is very, very funny and has a lot of smutty warmth to it.Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) are two slackers (I'm not sure she even has a job and he's a cranky barista at a local coffeeshop) who live together in a crummy apartment and have been friends forever. Their unpaid bills are stacking up and their utilities are being shut off one by one. Clearly in dire straits, they decide that the only way they can make enough money to avoid eviction is to make a homemade porno flick. They enlist Delaney (Craig Robinson), Zack's coworker who actually has some cash, as producer; cast some erstwhile sex-actors (Jason Mewes (f/k/a "Jay"), Traci Lords, Katie Morgan) and crew (Jeff Anderson - f/k/a "Randall," now "the middle aged guy," per Mr. Mouse); and let 'er rip. In between the money shots, however, Zack and Miri realize that friends aren't all they're meant to be.
All of this movie is full of Smith's trademark rapid-fire real-life dialogue, much of it filthy. Most of this movie is laugh-out-loud hilarious, especially during the filming of the porno and extra-especially whenever Justin Long is on the screen as gay porn actor Brandon St. Randy. Where it slows down is during the romantic bits, when Zack and Miri try to figure out their feelings for each other. It's fine, and none of those scenes last that long, but they do drag a bit.
Aside from the plethora of cusswords and the simulated porno-style sex, there's some porn star boobs on display and a full-frontal of Jason Mewes (who is looking better than he ever has - and I don't mean just 'cuz he's nekkid - and actually looks younger than he did in the original Clerks ... that's what clean livin' will do for you, I guess). So, probably not a movie you want to see with your parents or your in-laws. But if you've got some good, unoffendable friends, Zack and Miri Make a Porno is great fun.
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Seth Rogan is as funny as my next door neighbour (Thinks he's funny, but he's not). Kevin Smith however makes it different. Dogma and Clerks are among my favourites as well. And you can't deny that the premise and title just make it a must-see movie.
ReplyDeletePluswhich, I forgot to mention that the soundtrack is fantastic, from Primus's "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver" all the way to "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" by Jermaine Stewart.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny you mention Primus - as soon as I heard that song I knew it'd be a good movie.
ReplyDeleteMewes does look better now that he's kicked the habit and his acting isn't too shabby. Rogen needs to take a few lessons tho, he's starting to grow stale. Maybe he needs to clean up a bit.