 |
Yes, I love
Kevin Smith (but you know… not in
the Biblical sense…). Even when I
feel that he’s a bit over saturated
in the market… what with his bout
of 5 million roles and cameos in movies
and television. His role in “Live
Free or Die Hard” was a bit of a stretch,
but I still found myself getting a guilty
kick out of it. I also cannot get enough
of his “An Evening with” series
where he travels the country hitting campuses
to tell of his adventures in Hollyweird.
And it is this amazing ability as a storyteller
that always attracts me to his directorial
efforts. Movies like “Clerks”,
“Dogma”, “Chasing Amy”
and even “Clerks II” entertain
me in ways that I can never quite explain.
His films are rude, crude, vulgar, and always
seem like they are made by a bunch of drunken
college frat friends (which in a way…
I guess they are…).
|
Yet for all the vulgarity pop culture references,
Smith’s films have a way of delivering some
very insightful views into human relationships
and how they tick.
There lies my dilemma every time I try to review
a Kevin Smith film. I end up wanting to preach
to the world how the dialogue between Dante and
Becky in “Clerks II” speaks to a lot
real life relationships and should be viewed by
all… yet I understand that many audiences
will never be able to get past the film’s
‘Donkey Show.’
This is the same problem I face with “Zack
and Miri Make a Porno”, Smith’s newest
relationship movie.
As expected, the movie offers up two people whose
friendly relationship and inevitable falling for
each other make for a wonderful little love story.
However, most people (my wife included) will never
be able to get past the fact that the film is
about two cash-strapped roommates who decide to
make a porno film to try and make ends meet. The
requisite dialogue and nudity take the story into
realms that would make most audiences blush…
and in some cases even gag.
So the best I can do is let other Kevin Smith
fans know that they will not be disappointed with
“Zack and Miri Make a Porno.” It is
full of all of the quick witted dialogue one comes
to expect from Smith, full of the aforementioned
pop culture references (Star Wars included) that
make it so entertaining. That’s the other
thing I really should mention about Smith. No
matter how many times the characters drop the
F-word or make blatant sexual innuendos, the dialogue
is king. No one can write like Kevin Smith.
While “Zack and Miri” is not Smith’s
best work, even his best is better that most.
What I found so entertaining here was that he
finally stepped away from most of his ‘usual
suspects’ of actors and employed some star
power that have been making their presences known
through the work of Judd Apatow (another amazing
wordsmith).
Here Smith works with Seth Rogan, who has made
quite the name for himself since starring in the
way too soon cancelled “Freaks and Geeks.”
Rogen has risen in the ranks as an unlikely star
both as an actor and screenwriter. Though his
films are generally only considered good by more
drunken frat boys, even I have found something
refreshingly funny and enjoyable about them all.
Working with Smith seems like a natural progression
and he performs admirably.
Of course, how could he not working alongside
the incredibly funny and lovely Elizabeth Banks?
Rogen and Banks deliver Smith’s prose like
pros, and together they create an achingly improbable
couple (overweight slob – cute girl). But
when the laughs turn to heartache and eventually
to love… it is in a twisted sense…
believable.
Genius Products recently released the film on
both DVD and Blu-ray and I ended up checking out
the Blu-ray version. Generally I only recommend
Blu-ray when it comes to big action film or special
effects blockbusters, but since this is the direction
home entertainment is going you might as well
jump on the bandwagon.
There are a number of special features available
on the Blu-ray edition, including a nearly feature
length making of documentary. Coming in at an
hour and fifteen minutes, “Popcorn Porn”
allows Smith the opportunity to delve into (at
length) most of what it took to get the film made
and eventually into theaters. There are a lot
of cast interviews involved, but admittedly the
best parts of the piece revolve around Smith’s
dealing with the MPAA (re: idiot ratings group)
in trying to get an ‘R’ rating as
opposed to an ‘NC-17.’
You’ll also find one of the longest lists
of deleted scenes I think I’ve ever seen
(though I’d have to check with Guiness Books
to be sure). Would you believe 43 deleted scenes
that together are almost as long as the feature?
It’s a bit much, though you will find a
handful of takes that are a bit funny. The better
feature us a series of ‘webisodes’
where you will find some hilarious fake PSA’s.
The last few features deliver outtakes and bloopers,
a battle of improv skill between Seth Rogan and
Justin Long, and a brief look at the film’s
promo appearance at last year’s Comic-Con.
All of these are worth a look. What really surprised
me however is that amongst all of these special
features, there is no commentary track to be found.
With Smith involved, you can generally expect
one. And unlike most director’s his are
always more than worth listening to. I’ve
gotta wonder why there isn’t one here.
“Zack and Miri Make a Porno” is not
a movie I can recommend to anyone, as I alluded
to at the beginning of this review. But if you
are a hardcore fan of Kevin Smith or Seth Rogen,
you won’t be disappointed.
Directed by: Kevin Smith
Starring: Seth Rogan, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Robinson,
Jason Mewes, Traci Lords
Extras: Popcorn Porn (The Making of Zack and Miri),
Deleted Scenes, Money Shots Webisodes, Comic Con
2008, Outtakes Adlibs and Bloopers, Seth vs. Justin:
Battle for Improvisational Supremacy
Specifications: English 5.1 TrueHD, English Dolby
5.1, French Dolby 5.1
Studio: Genius
Release Date: 2/3/2009
Region 1
MPAA Rating: R (Strong Crude Sexual Content Including
Dialogue, Graphic Nudity and Pervasive Language)
http://www.zackandmiri.com
We'll give Zack and Miri Make a Porno a B.
|
