Pass the Popcorn review

Rating: 8/10 (16 November 2013)

Don Jon is young actor's Joseph Gordon-Levitt's feature debut as a director and a writer. I always admired Gordon-Levitt as an actor (in addition to writing and directing Don Jon, he also plays the title role) and I was eager to see how he would handle the director's/writer's chair. And I must say, Gordon-Levitt didn't disappoint: Don Jon is a rather sweet and entertaining movie that deals with the sensitive subject of pornography – a subject you'll won't see frequently tackled in mainstream movies. I wouldn't go as far as to call Don Jon a revolutionary movie, but it definitely is a fresh movie that deserves to be watched.
The movie is about Jon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), called The Don because of his success with the ladies, who enjoys several things in his life – his friends, his family, training in the gym, going to church and, of course, the ladies. Bust most of all, Jon likes pornography, he even explains how he prefers porn to real sex; he watches it daily and is, what you might call, a porn addict. One night, at a club, he meets the beautiful Barbara (Scarlett Johansson), whom he describes as a 'dime', and soon starts a relationship with. The problem with Barbara is that she dislikes men who watch porn. Jon has no choice but to simultaneously maintain his relationship and his porn watching habits, because he doesn't want to give up either.
The thing I like the most about Don Jon is how it deals with "taboos" in a genuine, intelligent way – and because of that it somewhat reminds me of Kevin Smith's 1997 classic Chasing Amy. Like it or not, porn plays a role in almost every man's life and will – sooner or later – be the topic of a discussion in a relationship. Don Jon deals with this topic in a very mature way. It shows that too much porn can cause the developing of unrealistic expectations in a young man, as well as other things (like romantic movies) which, if consumed in excessive amounts, can lead to unrealistic expectations. The movie deals with this topic in a very subtle and appealing way, and it may be considered a relationship study. However, due to the nature of its topic, the movie is written exclusively from a man's perspective, and it might not be as entertaining for the female audience as it is for the male audience.
Overall, it seems to me that Joseph Gordon-Levitt was able to achieve the hat-trick of movie making with Don Jon. His screenplay is fresh and intriguing, his acting is top-notch and even his directing style is interesting and captivating. The rest of the cast – especially the female leads Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore – are charming as ever, and Tony Danza is great as the, arguably, funniest character in the movie – Jon's dad, also called Jon. In spite of not being a full blown comedy, Don Jon is a movie that will definitely put a smile on your face. With directing and writing Don Jon, Joseph Gordon-Levitt showed he is not just a talented actor, and I can't wait for him to direct more movies.
Rating: 8/10 Read more at http://passpopcorn.com/