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Directed By
Kevin Smith
Written By:
Kevin Smith
Cast:
Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Traci Lords, Jason Mewes, Craig Robinson, Jeff Anderson, Tom Savini, Tyler Labine, Jim Norton, Eric Hollenbeck, Ivan Kraljevic, Mattt Potter, George Drennen, Mike O'Toole, Brenna Roth, Jennifer Schwalbach Smith, Ricky Mabe, Annie Kitral, Kyle Quinn, Stephen Mast, David Dale McCue, Mark Tierno, Katie Morgan, Gerry Bednob, Carl Clemons, Betty Aberlin, Anne Wade, Kenny Hotz, Rose Leininger, Carl Clemons
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Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)
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Movie Review by Corbid
January 3rd, 2009
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Jay and Silent Bob Strike Out
Kevin Smith has been thumbing his nose at Hollywood for years, successfully and from within the system. That is part of why we love him and part of why he's been so successful. With "Zack and Miri" however, it seems like Hollywood caught Jay and Silent Bob egging its house in the middle of the night and is forcing them to work off the damages through formulaic screenwriting.
What, you ask, could be formulaic about such a novel plot? How many movies are there about two best friends falling in love while making a porno movie to pay the rent? Okay, the premise itself is original, but that is where the novelty ends. The porno humour is a pale imitation of the underappreciated Trey Parker/Matt Stone comedy, Orgazmo. The rest is "Harry Met Sally" dumbed down for the slacker generation. The plot points are so transparent they could have been written for a Disney tween sitcom if it weren't for all the porn.
I spent my New Year's Eve enduring this disappointment of a film, but I have to say came away with something from the experience all the same: a deep and abiding appreciation for the Kevin Smith of yore. Everything that is mising from this movie is everything I love about Kevin Smith movies. In most of Smith's movies, particularly the View Askewniverse ones, timing is everything. There is a rapid fire assault of razor sharp wit and "smart jokes" and over the top scatolgical homour and stoner humour and sex jokes and dialogue that both offends and defends about any group imaginable and somewhere underneath that all you realize there was a solid buddy movie ("Clerks, "Jay & Silent Bob") or romantic comedy ("Mallrats," "Chasing Amy") and Silent Bob speaks his piece and everyone goes home happy.
Zack and Miri had no timing to speak of. The porno scenes were long enough that they ceased being funny and started to just be uncomfortable. The "falling in love" scenes were schmaltzy and painfully long, complete with "meaningful" soundtrack cues from the "Dawson's Creek"/"Grey's Anatomy" school of indie rock emotional soundtrack manipulation. In the final scenes, Elizabeth Banks just seems to quit acting altogether and just channels Julia Roberts ala "Pretty Woman." Which is ironic, as "Pretty Woman" is used to make a point about filmaking earlier in the movie. A point that they chose not to take to heart, I might add.
You kind of get the feeling, watching this movie, that it used to be much better and much funnier. You can see hints of that other movie beneath the surface. I would love to watch a director's cut, in fact, because this movie seems entirely out of character for Smith and his cohorts and even for Seth Rogen, who usually can carry a film on his own if need be. As it stands, however, "Zack and Miri" seems dumbed down and heavy handed. It hits you over the head repeatedly with a fying pan trying to convince you that it is hilarious and touchingly romantic, but only succeeds in beating itself to death.
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