Don Jon

(Rated R)
In Theaters: 9/27/2013
Genre:
Comedy / Drama
Starring:
Joseph Gordon Levitt
Scarlett Johansson
Julianne Moore
Tony Danza
Directed By:
Joseph Gordon Levitt
Written By:
Joseph Gordon Levitt
Setting:
Present Day New Jersey

Plot:
“Don” Jon Martello has a short list of things he truly cares about in life:

His Body,
His Pad,
His Ride,
His Family,
His Church,
His Boys,
His Girls,
and finally…His Porn.

This simple list of cares is put to the test when his quest to “smash” a true “dime” forces him to do things he would never do on his own.

My Take:
The movie opens to a montage of some of the sexiest images of pop culture with a voiceover from a 20 something Jon Martello explaining how porn is superior to real sex. The rationale that he uses is completely chauvinist and self-centered, but also hilarious and thought provoking. The first 5 minutes of semi-awkward facial expressions, pseudo-porn clips and well-written comedic dialogue set the tone for the remainder of the 90 minute runtime.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Jon Martello, a “Jersey Boy” bartender that has made porn and a quest for the perfect night of sex his mission in life. He and his two best friends, Bobby (Rob Brown) and Danny (Jeremy Luc), work the New Jersey nightclub scene on a nightly basis trying to score with the hottest women in the club. In the three guy’s quest, everything always seems to go Jon’s way. He is so good at finding and seducing the women that catch his eye; his friends begin to refer to him “Don Jon” Martello.

While on the hunt for his next conquest, Jon sets his sights on what he considers “The Perfect Dime” played by Scarlett Johansson.  From that point on Jon is constant conflict with his desire to win over this perfect girl while continuing to feed his insatiable hunger for porn.

“Don Jon” is the writing and directorial debut of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who recently had successful supporting-actor roles in “Lincoln” and “The Dark Knight Rises”. I skipped “Looper” and “Premium Rush”, so I have no opinion on those two.

JGL is accompanied in “Don Jon” by Scarlett Johansson who plays the super-hot target of Jon’s affection, albeit with a sometimes awkward accent. Johansson steams up the screen on several occasions in the movie as her character teases and tortures Jon into doing whatever she wants.

The starring cast is rounded out by Julianne Moore who plays Esther, a classmate of Jon’s in night-school and Tony Danza, who plays Jon’s stereotypical New Jersey / Italian father.

Another noteworthy performance belongs to Brie Larson, who supplied some funny scenes all without saying more than 1 sentence.

The story develops consistently with no slow parts or overly rushed pieces. The casting seemed perfect, as no one seemed to be “out-of-place” in their role. And finally, the dialogue seemed natural for the characters as they were portrayed.

Don Jon is a sexy, funny and socially edgy movie to enjoy in the theaters. Had I actually paid something to see it, I would have gotten what I paid for. This is one definitely worth catching in the theater.

(Leave me a comment on this review and I will select one lucky person from the comments to receive a free movie pass.)