Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)

Lifelong platonic friends Zack and Miri look to solve their respective cash-flow problems by making an adult film together. As the cameras roll, however, the duo begin to sense that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously thought.

Director:

Kevin Smith

Writer:

Kevin Smith

Stars:

Elizabeth Banks, Seth Rogen, Craig Robinson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elizabeth Banks	...	Miri
Seth Rogen	...	Zack
Craig Robinson	...	Delaney
Gerry Bednob	...	Mr. Surya
Edward Janda	...	Customer
Nicholas Lombardi	...	Teen #1
Chris Milan	...	Teen #2
Jennifer Schwalbach Smith	...	Betsy (as Jennifer Schwalbach)
Kenny Hotz	...	Zack II
Brandon Routh	...	Bobby Long
Anne Wade	...	Roxanne
Justin Long	...	Brandon
Tom Savini	...	Jenkins
Jeff Anderson	...	Deacon
Jim Norton	...	Auditioner (as Jimmy Norton)

Storyline

Zack and Miri are two lifelong platonic friends who make an adult film to pay the rent of their apartment. With their friend Delaney, the couple set out for auditionees for their porn film, but in the process of filming, they realize they feel more for each other than they had before.

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Plot Keywords:

friend | actor | reunion | coffee | coffee shop | 

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Taglines:

A poster for everyone who finds our movie title hard to swallow.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R on appeal for strong crude sexual content including dialogue, graphic nudity and pervasive language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 October 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Kevin Smith Minnesota Project

Filming Locations:

Monroeville Mall - Business Route 22, Monroeville, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£798,205 (UK) (14 November 2008)

Gross:

$31,452,765 (USA) (23 January 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Blue Askew, Weinstein Company, The, View Askew Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kevin Smith wrote the role of Zack with Seth Rogen in mind. In fact, Smith has stated that if Rogen turned down the role, the film would not have been made.

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Goofs

The shots of the auditions were actually set in a playhouse that was originally a much longer scene that was meant for the full feature film. Due to time restraints the scene was cut out and just used as an internet trailer.

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Quotes

Miriam Linky: [after hitting on Bobby and meeting his boyfriend] You're gay?
Bobby Long: Yeah.
Miriam Linky: [to Brandon] And I'm on the internet wearing... a diaper?
Brandon: Who knew you'd come to Pittsburgh and meet a celebrity? Ha ha!
Miriam Linky: [to Zack] I'm gonna binge-drink now until I pass out.
Zack Brown: Okay. She'll be fine. So you guys suck each other's cocks, huh?
Brandon: Oh, like crazy.

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Crazy Credits

An infomercial for "Zack and Miri Make YOUR Porno" interrupts the closing credits.

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Connections

References MacGyver (1985)

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Soundtracks

"I Love You"
Written by Derek Holt
Performed by Climax Blues Band
Courtesy of CBB Music

User Reviews

Deceptive. Absolutely sweet while still being dirty as you can get.

I love deceptive marketing campaigns. Usually, they make movies hit-or-misses financially, but deceptive marketing shows a lot of faith in a film, which is what every viewer should have in this one. Have faith in the fact that this film, despite being controversial and borderline wrong in some parts, is one of the funniest and sweetest romantic comedies of the decade. What happens when you mix Kevin Smith's witty and snappy dialog with the outrageous humor of a guy like Seth Rogen? Pure brilliance, that's what.

Z&M is a movie of depth and emotion. Yes, I'm talking about the movie with the extremely blunt title. What I like about both of our 'names', Smith and Rogen, is that no matter how raunchy they get, no matter how much they cross the line, they have a habit of making their films have real heart. It's the same here, and it looks like everyone involved had fun making the film...in every sense of the word...

What makes the movie work so well is the amazing platonic and romantic chemistry of the two leads, Rogen and Elizabeth Banks (who is quickly becoming one of my favorites). I can't think of two performers who have skyrocketed more in terms of fame over the last three years, and to see them together again after The 40 Year Old Virgin was a good treat. They work so well together that I found myself smiling at them in pretty much every scene they share (or, 80% of the movie), and it makes the experience so much better. They really make you feel comfortable and warm inside (I can hear the sex jokes coming already).

It's not just our wonderful leads that make the movie great, it's performers like Jason Mewes (playing a variant of his usual 'Jay' character), Jeff Anderson, and Craig Robinson that really help, because any scene without Banks & Rogen together has Robinson or Mewes, who form a type of foundation for the great performances of Banks & Rogen. Of course, the film features a few porn stars and a few cameos as well, the best coming from Justin Long and Brandon Routh. I was dying.

Of course, not only do you get heart with Rogen and Smith, but you get surefire jaw dropping jokes that will make you say, "did they really just do that?". One of the jokes I'm speaking of comes at Jeff Anderson's expense. The vulgarity of Rogen's comic style, mixed with Smith's wicked fast writing is the perfect compliment and a great recipe for laughter. Z&M certainly won't deliver as many laughs as films like Superbad or Knocked Up, but that's mostly because the film is more serious, desperate, and shorter (but of course, still very light hearted).

I guess the only thing I didn't like was the lack of resolution with the subplot of the actual porno, but that's just wishful thinking, as the end is more than satisfying (as well as clever and hilarious). People are obviously going to be hesitant about seeing this movie because of the blunt title and risqué plot, which in of itself is hilarious, but these reluctant people need to realize that the sex is outweighed by the love, and the raunch outweighed by the righteousness. Zack & Miri Make A Porno is one of the best romantic comedies of the decade, as well as of the year. It's a fun, sweet, heartfelt raunchfest that will leave you laughing your ass off and having a good time. It's the perfect date movie if the person you're taking is receptive to the idea of seeing a movie like this.