Zack and Miri Make a Porno

The Internet generation’s blasé attitude about porn is sort of the point here. The title characters, played by Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks, are best friends who decide to have sex on camera to help pay their bills. But are they just friends? And is sex something they can turn into an acting job? Zack and Miri has all the markings of a Kevin Smith film, from witty (but filthy) banter, to roles by regulars Jason Mewes and Jeff Anderson, to Star Wars references (the movie they make is called Star Whores). And it’s so filthy, in fact, that Smith narrowly avoided getting an NC-17 rating. At times the jokes go too far, though, aiming purely at shock value. Rogen plays the perfect dorky nice guy, utterly unsexy but funny and cute enough to grow on you. It’s Zack’s reaction to the whole porn-making business that gives meaning—as much as there might be here—to the film. Banks’ Miri is also a loveable loser, a beauty with nicknames like “Stinky” and “Granny Panties.” Tinseltown. Rated R