Don Jon

With the ever-prevalent rise and availability of internet porn, more and more men are experiencing erectile dysfunction, relationship dysfunction, and the consequences of addiction far worse and far younger than ever before. Don Jon confronts the realities of porn addiction on the young male mind. While it does not delve into the more severe side effects of porn addiction (like PIED), it does have an important message to convey and does it quite well.

Joseph Gordon Levitt plays Don Jon (and directs), a deplorable man living in New Jersey. Don Jon has the cringeworthy qualities of modern day pick-up artists: he is unchaste, disrespectful of the women he watches and meets in real life, and views sex as a wholly selfish endeavor (expects oral, does not like to give it). His friend group refers to women as numbers (she's an 8), "things" (using words like "it"), or disrespectful nicknames ("ponytail"). When Jon meets Barbara (Scarlett Johansson), he falls in love with what he calls "the most beautiful 'thing' I've ever seen." Barbara expects more of her men: she expects to be wooed, doesn't sleep with him right away, and flips out when she catches him watching porn. Barbara herself is not without her flaws; most of all, she is certainly naive, expecting a selfish dude-bro like Jon to respect monogamy being one mind-boggling assumption she makes.

Don Jon explores more than just porn addiction; it also explores nature v. Nurture. Jon himself claims his addiction is normal for men (obviously believing it to be in his nature), but we see glimpses of his home life (where his father continuously disrespects women in front of his wife) and friend circle (where his friends are incapable of treating women like people rather than objects to be conquered). Don Jon also hints at Barbara being conditioned to want the "perfect" relationship based on her obsession with romance movies, which few men (but in particular someone like Jon) could hope to compete with. When Esther (Julianne Moore) character comes into the focus of the story, the movie's once unlikable protagonist finally begins to see hope. Esther is arguably the most important character of all, helping Jon to realize his porn addiction is the main source of his poor sexual performance, and helping him mature from a porn-sick little boy into a man with some amount of promise.

While Don Jon covers a lot of territory and themes that most movies wouldn't dare touch, it doesn't quite make any daring or definitive conclusions. It also manages to be triggering to the same audience it is trying to reach. I am a former porn addict myself, and there are enough flashes of what appears to be actual porn in the film that could threaten the sobriety of any current or former addict. Be warned! Otherwise, Don Jon is a fairly good drama (I would not call it romantic or a comedy by any stretch of the imagination given its serious and bleak themes) about the addiction that is the least spoken about in modern society, and I recommend it to current addicts or the victims of addicts.

I like this film. Not ignoring its sins . seeing it as a honest, precise work of a good actor, interesting director, illustration of a simple and touching story, using taboo themes in inspired manner, offering realistic portrait of family, addiction, love and loneliness and self definition. Gordon - Levitt gives a beautiful demonstration of exploration of near reality in its sensitive and basic aspects in wise and convincing manner. This is the best thing in this case. And, of course, the splendid job of actors , especially Tony Danza and Scarlett Johanson and surprising embroidery of character from Julianne Moore.

Don Jon was very well-received in its regional premiere at the Paramount Theatre during Austin's SXSW Film Festival. The film was written, directed and starred Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He did a really fine job for his writing and directorial debut, but he may have been trying to do too much. The acting by Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore, Tony Danza, Glenne Headly, and Brie Larson is quite good. I think it is Gordon-Levitt's script that leaves something to be desired. His character Jon is a very successful ladies' man who is also heavily addicted to masturbating to internet porn – numerous times daily. Many people will find the film to be quite funny and enjoyable. However, the graphic use of porn will not be to everybody's taste and may be off-putting to viewers – particularly female viewers. I'm also wondering whether the extensive use of porn will lead to the MPAA giving it the kiss-of-death NC-17 rather than an R rating.

JGL's script is well-intentioned and he is trying to make the point that many people become so self-absorbed that they lose the ability to interact with others on a human level. Jon is deadened to real romance by his reliance on porn. His girlfriend has an overly romanticized view of relationships based on watching too many romantic movies. They are both so self-absorbed and selfish that they can't really build a real relationship. Still, it was often difficult to figure out what JGL's point was and in many ways became clearer listening to him during the Q&A after the film. JGL is attempting to raise profound issues about human relationships in the modern era, but he hasn't quite figured out how to do that as a writer and director. I expect that he is going to become as fine a director and writer as he already is an actor. He has a fine future ahead of him.

"Don Jon" (formerly known as "Don Jon's Addiction") is the feature directorial debut of the talented and ridiculously charismatic Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He also wrote the script and plays the title character, a young man from New Jersey who's developed: a) an unhealthy addiction to porn; and b) such unrealistic expectations about sex and love (and sex) that not even a "10" like Barbara (a hilarious Scarlett Johansson, in what is easily her best work since "Vicky Cristina Barcelona") can satisfy him in real life.

"Don Jon" reminded me of a great, half-forgotten French film: Bertrand Blier's "Too Beautiful for You" (1989). In that film, a wealthy car dealer (Gerard Depardieu) who has everything – including a beautiful wife (Carole Bouquet) – falls for his plain, slightly overweight secretary (Josiane Balasko). "Don Jon" is also like Blier's film in the sense that Jon finds his "10," yet he's still unsatisfied. Both films are very different in tone, aesthetics, and geography, but they delicately touch in the realm of our own emotional misconceptions and immaturity. We live in a world where our ever-growing concern about self-image, and the belief that we must abide by unattainable beauty standards in order to find a decent match, have grown so out-of-hand that all we ever do is find obstacles to getting to know anyone who doesn't meet our own ridiculous requirements. We are always waiting for the illusory perfection. Levitt sharply illustrates this issue by way of porn addiction; it might be crude for some, but he manages not to fall into excessive vulgarity or toilet humor.

Also featuring the always wonderful Julianne Moore in an important role, plus Glenne Headly (I've missed her on the big screen), Tony Danza, and Brie Larson as Jon's parents and sister, respectively; "Don Jon" is worth the visit. Here's hoping for more JGL directorial efforts!

As if Joseph Gordon-Levitt couldn't get any better. The former child star has turned into quite the up-and-coming young actor as he's worked to re-brand himself as something more than that kid from 3rd Rock From the Sun. Over the years, he's starred in such films as Brick, The Dark Knight Rises and Looper, and has proved to be the type of actor whom everyone loves - and who actually deserves that love. However, his most impressive performance to date might just be the one he gave behind the camera with Don Jon.

The film marks Levitt's first time writing and directing a feature- length film, and it makes one hell of an impression, especially because he tackles the lead role as well. Don Jon is one of those movies that has plenty of laughs and a few heartfelt moments, and it's certainly entertaining. But it also touches on a few interesting social issues. I think I'll just go ahead and say it, but Joseph Gordon-Levitt gives away a few trade secrets, much to the horror of men everywhere: Don Jon touches on that dreadfully embarrassing fact that every guy is terrified will come out. What secret is that? Well, it's probably best to put it in the words of the protagonist, Jon, himself: "Every guy looks at porn, every day."

Well, that last part might be a bit of an exaggeration, but Don Jon does bring up the point that pornography has become so readily available through the internet and even television that it's just simply within arm's reach at every single second of every single day, and every guy now and then reaches out to take a handful. However, society still treats it as something shameful and embarrassing, rather than a fact of life.

Don Jon doesn't treat the use of pornography as something that should destroy relationships or cause significant others to fly off the handle in fits of jealousy. In fact, the movie seems to indicate, it's a habit that's probably pretty healthy. That isn't to say that Jon has a healthy habit, as he's reduced to having to look at pornography constantly throughout the day, even after sex, but you know, that's an extreme example.

Then again, maybe it isn't. Maybe the film offers a bit of a warning about how a little pornography is perfectly normal, but a lot can create a monster. Too much porn can make it so that it's nearly impossible to connect with someone else on a meaningful level. After all, watching too much sex can create expectations that are as unrealistic as the ones the romantic comedies create.

What really impressed me about Don Jon, though, are the performances that Levitt pulls out of his co-stars. I've honestly never seen Scarlett Johansson give a better performance than she did as Jon's trashy New Jersey girlfriend, Barbra. She's absolutely despicable as she slowly begin to reveal her true intentions and tries to paint Jon as the bad guy when she discovers his addiction. On top of that, Tony Danza gives a side-splitting performance as Jon's hot-headed father who gets into dick-measuring contest with his son every Sunday night (figurative, people, come on).

However, the most impressive of them all is Levitt himself, who has repeatedly proved that he is one hell of an actor and one who has earned my trust as a moviegoer. The role is something so far from what I would have ever pictured him portraying, but he pulls it off beautifully as he plays the scumbag good-guy stereotype.

Now for the hard part. I really enjoyed Don Jon. It strikes as a solid balance between art and entertainment, it's filled with lots of laughs and it touches on a sensitive topic in a way that doesn't seem preachy. The ending is a little weak, but everything up until that is golden. However, I'm not sure if it's what one would call a date movie, since it will probably lead to inquisitive stares during a quiet car ride home afterward. And honestly, that's really too bad. For the people that are willing to embrace the fact that everyone looks at porn, this movie is well worth the price of admission. However, I'm not sure if most of its value comes from the first viewing. It's no Shame, but there's really no shame in that.