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Long before writer/director/producer Judd Apatow collected praise for his mixture of filth and heart in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, writer/director/”actor” Kevin Smith made his mark on the subgenre with his signature blend of foul-mouthed soliloquies and bleeding-heart morals. It almost makes sense, then, that Seth Rogen, current king of the Apatow universe, would make a movie with Smith. The surprising part is how little the resultant work – Zack and Miri Make a Porno – feels like a stunt.
Zack and Miri, at its core, strays very little from Smith’s major themes: slackers Zack and Miri (Rogen and Elizabeth Banks), friends since the first grade work minimum-wage jobs and barely get by. When their money runs out and their utilities are turned off, the roommates are forced to consider, ahem, alternative ways of collecting cash. When a spy video of Miri in her underwear becomes an Internet sensation, the idea hits: porn. While filming their skin flick, the pair realizes that their two-decade friendship may be something else entirely.
Rogen and Banks are fine as the leads, which is no shock. They’re already stars. But the treat of this movie is the supporting cast, a mix of Apatow’s pals, Smith’s mainstays, and adult performers. Craig Robinson is especially effective as Zack’s married coworker and the porn’s eager producer, and Justin Long excels in his brief stint as the lover of one of Zack and Miri’s high school classmates.
This being a Kevin Smith movie, it’s worth noting how great it all looks. There’s one scene that pulls down a hallway while keeping focus on one subject that, from anyone else, would seem mundane. But because it’s been unexpected from the director until now, it’s quite effective.
Those familiar with Smith’s work know what they will find in Zack and Miri: sharp writing, dirty language, and sappy romance. It’s the method of delivery here that counts. If you can’t get over the fact that the title suggests a level of adult material that you’re not comfortable with, none of Smith’s writing will help that. But if you don’t mind a little over-the-top nudity as a side dish to your comedy, you’ll be fine. It’s not one of his best offerings, but it’s good to have new Kevin Smith material indeed.
Rating: * * * of 5
Dear Jeff thanks a lot I was just starting to get used to the heat down here and then you go and update the website. You will be hearing from my lawyers.
Definitely agree…….. not Smith’s best work! I like the site though!