There are only a handful of people who can act in, write, and direct a movie and pull it off successfully. Orson Welles, Charlie Chaplin, Ben Affleck, and Ben Stiller are prime examples of people who do it quite well time and time again. Eddie Murphy, Ed Wood, and Tom Green are examples of people who should not be at the helm of a film. This time Joseph Gordon-Levitt fits into the former category.
Don Jon is the story of the titular ladies man/bartender who is renowned for his ability to bed "8 out of 10s" every week without failure. He also has a rather obsessive addiction to pornography. When he meets Barbara Sugarman (Scarlett Johansson) he feels a love that he has never experienced before, but is soon forced to choose between his girl and his porn.
To anyone who glances at the storyline, i'm sure it sounds smutty and would scare off uneasy moviegoers. Yet the film is not simply a romantic comedy inter-spliced with subliminal pictures of women's breasts. Rather it's an exploration of a man's addiction and how it relates to the rest of his life. It explores the effects it can have on others in his life, and it is refreshing to see a film tackle a form of abuse aside from drugs. To be sure, there is some rather racy content, and viewer discretion is advised, but I believe that could be it's greatest strength. It is willing to go in a direction many films are afraid to. It is not afraid to be descriptive of its sexual content, but not for a sense of just trying to arouse the viewer, rather it does so to put you in Jon's head, help you to relate to him, and overall realize the extent of his obsession.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt loses himself in this role. It is rather difficult to focus on your performance when you're also in charge of everyone else on set, but he is able to masterfully pull triple duty on this film. He creates a memorable character whose voice may remind you of Mark Wahlberg, yet possesses his own sense of discovery. He experiences character growth that feels fluid and natural, and never rushed, and is overall successful for this film.
Scarlett Johansson also turns in a first rate performance. She explores a different side to her talent and unlike anything we've seen before from her. She rings true to the normal romanticizing woman we've all seen before whether in a movie or in real life. It feels genuine.
However, Andrew's Standout for this movie is the always terrific Brie Larson. She spends 95% of the film on her cell phone texting, and chewing gum, and only has 2 lines of dialogue. 3 tops. However, she has a presence that doesn't even require talking. She also feels genuine to the character she plays. When I saw her name in the opening credits, I knew she had to be important.
Given the sensitive subject matter, I say see this movie at your own discretion. Its a fantastic film with fine performances and terrific direction. Yet to the wrong person, it may make you uncomfortable.
A
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