Zack and Miri Make a Porno: An autobiographical (of director Kevin Smith) tale, in part

Yes, this review is way late. I’m aware. The opportunity to discuss a Halloween movie on Halloween was too good to pass out. So here’s thoughts on Zack and Miri Make a Porno.
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There was serious concern among many fans when Kevin Smith closed the book on his Askewniverse a second time with Clerks II. His previous venture outside those characters, Jersey Girl, was critically derided and made very little money at the box office, though some fans of his were more receptive than the mass audience (myself included).

So this latest venture certainly carries some concern for the veteran director, but this latest venture is far from those PG-13 laughs and family values in Jersey Girl. Zack and Miri Make a Porno sees Smith get back to his raunchy roots, but doesn’t lose his charm in that process.

There are a slew of in-jokes to Smith’s film-making history and the Pittsburgh film history (the film takes place and was shot there). The plot revolves around Zack and Miri, high school friends who live together, making a porno to scrap together cash. They end up shooting the movie where they work (Clerks. was shot in the convenience store where Smith worked) and they use a hockey stick to hold up the boom microphone, used to record dialogue (ditto Clerks.).

The Pittsburgh suburb Monroeville is where George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead is set, and Smith uses the same mall for one his scenes. He also names the men’s league hockey team Zack plays on the Monroeville Zombies, with jerseys showing a zombie horde. Make-up guru, director and actor Tom Savini (who worked with Romero and is friends with the director) also has a small appearance.



The biggest issue with the movie is its lack of quotable lines and scenes. While it’s really funny from beginning to end, it doesn’t come from quick snappy lines that you walk out of the theater yelling at each other. It’s a shame, because the movie is sharply written and quick moving, but there’s no quick hit lines that stick in your mind.