ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO(R)
**** (out of 5)
October 31 2008
STARRING
Seth Rogan as ZACK
Elizabeth Banks as MIRI
Craig Robinson as DELANEY
Jason Mewes as LESTER
Jeff Anderson as DEACON
Katie Morgan as STACEY
Traci Lords as BUBBLES
Studio: The Weinstein Company
Directed by: Kevin Smith
BY KEVIN CARR
Listen to Kevin’s radio review…
Not too long ago, Kevin Smith tried to stretch his directing wings. The result was “Jersey Girl,” a quite charming movie that did okay at the box office. Ironically, Smith was his biggest critic of this movie, which is probably part of the reasons it’s not remembered as his best work and never symbolized a turning point in his career.
After only doing moderately well with a more grown-up comedy, Smith went back to the convenience store to give us Clerks 2, which I rather enjoyed. Even though I think Smith is mature enough to manage more mainstream faire, I must admit that his flair for the obscene is quite hilarious.
Even though Clerks 2 didn’t break any records, Smith stayed in the gutter (although he moved the overall setting to Pittsburgh). The result is the new film “Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” which is causing quite a stir around the country. Everyone from conservative newspapers to the owner of the Utah Jazz has taken up against this movie, barring advertisement as well as the film itself from theaters.
I’m sure Smith is eating up this controversy, as it will serve only to heighten awareness for this movie.
And is it worth it? Sure it is, granted you know what you’re getting yourself into.
And who doesn’t? Kevin Smith is famous for raunchiness. He’s responsible for single-handedly introducing (or reintroducing) pop culture sexual slang like “snowball” and “donkey show” back into the mainstream lexicon. This is what Kevin Smith does best.
Then there’s the title of the film… “Zack and Miri Make a Porno.” There’s no surprise here. But if you look at the trailers, you’ll recognize adult film cameos and see a blue storyline bubbling through.
“Zack and Miri Make a Porno” is made for Kevin Smith’s fans… not necessarily the Jersey Girl camp, but rather those that fell in love with his work when that little black-and-white film “Clerks” was snatched up by Miramax in the mid-90s.
The strength of the film comes from the actors and their delivery of the Kevin Smith brand of dialogue. Seth Rogan delivers the goods, as he has in his Judd Apatow films. And Smith’s long-time friend and cohort Jason Mewes also turns out a pretty funny, and impressively non-Jay performance, as a would-be porno star. “Clerks” alum Jeff Anderson also makes the grade, although he is give probably the most unfortunate scene in the film (and maybe even the history of cinema).
The only soft spot in the film is with Elizabeth Banks, who stumbles over Smith’s dialogue, although she’s not nearly as bad as Shannon Doherty in “Mallrats.” Banks, who is a darling of the industry for some reason, isn’t given much to work with and lends credence to the theory that Smith just can’t write for women.
Even on the cameo front, there’s some great moments. Justin Long steals the show as a gay porno star who sparks the idea in the mind of Zack (Seth Rogan). Add Brandon Routh as his hunky boyfriend, and you have a hilarious casting moment that seems to telegraph Smith’s true feelings about “Superman Returns.”
The weakest Smith film in my opinion is Chasing Amy, although I am in the minority with that opinion. In some ways, the love story woven into “Zack and Miri” reminds me of “Chasing Amy,” only that it’s not as integral to the plot. Still, when Banks is featured in the scene, I just seemed to lose interest.
Overall, if you’re seeing “Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” you should know what you’re getting into, and if you know this, you’re probably a Kevin Smith fan. So count yourself lucky because this film was made with you in mind.
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