I was lucky and got to see an early screening of Kevin Smiths new film Zack and Miri Make A Porno. "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." That is the description according to IMDB - a description I feel is pretty accurate but it should tack on - "With Hilariousness!" Was the film a revolutionary new comedy - no. But did it serve its purpose - hell yes.

THE AWESOME

Let's just start out with some simple awesome things - Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Justin Long, Superman, and Craig Robinson (who steals the show I might add). The people cast for this film live up to what you would expect, and Seth Rogen, once again, knocks it out of the park. I just can't get enough of this slightly overweight, furry, Jew. He wins.
The film to me feels like a combination (and I hate to do this to films) of Knocked Up and Clerks 2. (This is also going to pop up in the not awesome category). Because of this, the movie has vulgar, offensive humor coming out of every orifice, literally, but also has a bit of heart which is nice every now and again. The "love story" isn't quite as played out as in Knocked Up, but it is there enough to give the film a little more soul. There isn't really much to say in terms of the awesome, which isn't a bad thing. The film delivers on everything you would expect from a Kevin Smith film - raunchy, sexy, dirty, funny, foul, offensive, etc. If you like his previous films, you'll surely like this one. If you like Seth Rogen, you'll like this one. Hell, if you like Judd Apatow, I'd venture to guess, you'd still like this one.
The key here is the dialogue, and it works its magic as much, if not more than some of Smith's last efforts.

THE NOT SO AWESOME

The movie looses steam in the 3rd act. The setup is great, the rise to the peak is great, but the 3rd act, complete with resolution, leaves you wanting just a bit more.
As I mentioned before, I hate to do film comparisons, but I did. I chose Knocked Up and Clerks 2 and then stated that it is also a problem. The problem is just that. The film is foul enough to remind me of Clerks 2, and emotional enough to remind me of Knocked Up. But if a film is reminding me of two other films and not being completely itself, it takes me out of the picture a bit. This isn't meant to be a harsh criticism, but with all the connections going on here (Kevin Smiths world tied together with Apatows crew) we get exactly what is expected a combination of a Kevin Smith film and a Judd Apatow film. I also thought the Jason Mewes and Jeff Anderson of ViewAskewniverse fame were a little bit on the lame side over all (Although it was nice to see Jay play someone other than a burnout). They both kinda felt a little like tacked on characters.

OVERALL

Overall I think the film delivered on everything I expected, maybe even a bit more. As a fan of Kevin Smiths previous work (ALMOST all of it actually - NO, NOT JERSEY GIRL) and a fan of pretty much everything Seth Rogen or anyone else from his crew touches - this film delivers both. My complaints are small, but large enough to make it not the best comedy I've seen over the past couple years. But it keeps it's pace and steps right up to join the ranks of recent comedy kings. Overall, I give this film a 7 out of 10.