Zack and Miri Make a Porno

I kind of suspect that the making of a Kevin Smith movie is a lot like the film within a film of Zack and Miri Make a Porno. First you got the whole production lead by a lovably schlubby slacker, then you've got the goofy "Hey, let's make a movie!" vibe, then there's the assembly of assorted friends and cohorts (see stalwart Smith alums Jason Mewes and Jeff Anderson making yet another appearance) and lastly you've the low-budget, envelope-pushing indie spirit that's evident in almost all of Smith's productions.

With the schlubby slacker hero in this case played by the king of the schlubby slacker heroes, Seth Rogen as Zack, paired with way out of his league pretty blonde (Elizabeth Banks as Miri), you've sort of got a Knocked Up vibe going on. The set-up is as flimsy as the excuse of the cable guy showing up to screw the lusty customer who no longer cares that she's missing her soap opera: Zack and Miri are long-time platonic friends and roommates who are down on their luck and facing eviction.

So they decide to make a porno to raise money.

Okay--it's a bit of a twist on the Andy Hardy "Let's Put on a Show!": think Knocked Up meets Boogie Nights and you've got some idea of how it all plays out. But underneath all the silliness, raunchiness and bouncing boobies, there's a pretty sweet romantic comedy about a boy who's been carrying a torch for girl and what happens to their platonic relationship when they "hook up" under the guise of making a porno.

The love scene between Rogen and Banks is full of depth and intimacy--in stark contrast to the porn-making antics that precede and follow it. Of course the would-be lovers deal with the awkwardness that follows by miscommunications and misunderstandings, break-ups and broken hearts, and the inevitable romantic reconciliation and happy ending. Stripped of the juvenile hijinks, it really is a chick flick for guys.

Or perhaps a "dick flick" for girls...

Rogen and Banks have some excellent chemistry together and Craig Robinson is solid as Delaney, Zack's co-worker turned porno producer. But for my money, Justin Long's gay porn star and Tisha Campbell-Martin as Delaney's ball-busting wife were the stand-out performances of the film. Long is beyond hysterical with his dead-pan delivery and Martin's screeching shrew is sheer genius.

Jason Mewes and Traci Lords (who no doubt gave the project "porn industry cred") sadly look a bit worse for wear. Listen and learn kids: this is what hard living does to a body. Lords, 40 and Mewes, 34 look years older than their birth certificates.

Stick around for the end credits for more hilarity featuring Justin Long.