Porn Star: The Legend of Ron Jeremy

I'm female, well-educated, mid-40s. I've seen maybe 3 dozen porn movies in my lifetime, and in my opinion, and apparently Ron Jeremy agrees with me, porn does not degrade women. Nor does it degrade men. These actors are well paid for what they do. Some women may do it because they can't get any other kind of work, but you could say the same thing about waiting tables or working fast-food. Anyway, I digress. This movie is a funny, behind-the-scenes peek into the business. Ron is a personable, self-deprecating man, who is driven to be somebody. Anybody. He just wants people to pay attention and to notice him. More than likely this drive resulted from his mother's sudden death when he was 10 years old. What a devastation that must have been to a young boy. So he grew up wanting the attention and adoration he probably didn't get enough of as a child. And he certainly has succeeded. As an actor who has appeared in over 1,500 x-rated films in his lifetime, Ron Jeremy has achieved cult status. His only wish is to make it into mainstream film and leave his past behind. He's had bit parts here and there, but the majority of mainstream Hollywood won't give him a chance because of the stigma he carries. This is his life. Don't watch this movie expecting to see graphic sex scenes because you'll be disappointed. You'll see nudity and even a few glimpses of Ron's 9 3/4" (his measurement, not mine) but that's about it. Mostly what you see is lots of interviews and clips about his life. It's worth a rental, especially if you are a fan of x-rated films or Jeremy himself. If you don't like nudity or porn, then skip this one.

Ron Jeremy was not always the fat, slightly slovenly looking man he is today. When he entered the pornography business in the late 1970s he was reasonably if not uniquely attractive, determined to make a name for himself on stage and screen as a serious actor, and he saw pornography as a way to pay the bills and make contacts in the film industry.

The idea was not quite as far-out as it might seem. At the time, pornography was a big screen venue and films came with plots, dialogue, and reasonable budgets. As it happened, Jeremy had what it took to be a porn star and then some: a nine and three-quarters inch endowment and the amazing ability to control it on cue. But he failed to recognize a well-established show business fact that not even such legendary (and comparatively discreet) performers as Gypsy Rose Lee could overcome. Once a stripper, always a stripper. Once a porn star, always a porn star.

Twenty years after he made his adult film debut Ron Jeremy is still a porn star, only these days he is a chunky, sloppy one who commands a following largely due to his unlikely appearance and quasi-comic persona and who continues the career thanks to that near-inhuman control. And even as he takes a monthly AIDS test, scrambles for extra and bit work in mainstream film, and makes one porn flick after another he continues to dream of a "legitimate" acting career that will never come.

In theory, it is the stuff of both great comedy and great tragedy, but this fairly short documentary is neither; it has a touch of pathos, a touch of humor, but it never goes far enough in its exploration of Jeremy as a human being. I did laugh a little and I did feel a bit sorry for him, but the big questions were never asked and the big issues were never more than indicated. In the end, I feel like I met Jeremy at a party in passing--and when he left the room I knew little more about him than I did when he first came in.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

A documentary looking into the up bringing, family, career and future dreams of porn star Ron Jeremy. It uses old footage, interviews and clips from his films to show a guy who wants to be centre of attention and be talked about.

This documentary is not one of the type I usually like to watch relating to porn. I usually like the ones that are done by people from outside – it tends to be less airbrushed! For example everyone should check out Channel 4's Hardcore (UK) it's an excellent documentary and will make it harder to get turned on next time you're watching porn. However this is more of a human interest story that a documentary – it's like those polished celeb features you see sometimes where a little bit of bad or unfortunate stuff is wheeled out, but not much. So we naturally have lots of porn celebs being interviewed as well as family and lots with Jeremy himself.

However this is all still interesting – after all, how can you not be interested in a man who is one of the most famous males in porn for decades despite looking like a slob! But it does go beyond just the surface – we start with the idea that Jeremy is a pretty nice guy (not anywhere near as arrogant as you'd expect for a guy who gets sex so much!). But during the film little things come out – he is insecure, he wants to be the centre of things and maybe has too much importance put on himself.

I did feel disappointed that it didn't push deeper when Jeremy was vulnerable. At times you can see sadness and hurt just behind his eyes but the director doesn't move at these times – instead the hurt is only really referred to in voiceovers by the narrator or by other people. It felt at times that the film was helping Jeremy to get exposure without actually letting us inside his character.

However overall I enjoyed it. There is some nudity but it doesn't use the porn footage for titillation – instead most of the porn footage is old dialogue scenes. If you hate porn then this will be too glossy for your taste – but if you like it or just leave it alone then you should get something out of this.

Ron Jeremy is the biggest (wink wink, nudge nudge) porn star in the world. With over 1600 adult films to his credit, Jeremy has been working in the adult film business for nearly a quarter of a century. One would expect a documentary about his life to be salacious sleazy stuff and while Porn Star does have elements of baseness (how could it not?) it chooses to focus on Ron Jeremy the man, not the movie stud. We learn that he holds a Master Degree in special education, and was once a teacher. All his friends talk about his legendary cheapness. Jeremy is very open in front of the camera, sometimes almost too much so. He can be a charming guy when he wants to, but there is an air of desperation that bleeds through his well constructed public persona. Director Scott J. Gill humanizes Jeremy and somehow makes you feel pity for a man who says he has slept with over 4000 women.

Imagine the most popular male porn star in the world being lonely and sad and you'll find Ron Jeremy. At least that's what I sense when viewing this film. Underneath all the hedonism and gaiety is a man who's dream of being a legitimate actor in Hollywood, goes unfulfilled. And it shows, too.

I wanted to laugh at this film, I really did, but I just couldn't do it knowing that he seems to be one of the loneliest guys on the planet. And I don't care how many women he's balled.

It seems the nature of the (porn) business doesn't allow for people to have meaningful relationships, and Ron is a perfect example of this. He knows he's getting up there in age. He knows he'll have to leave someday, so at least he has a plan, unlike most of the other victims who had a big time in the industry, only to see it all come crashing down.

It's a well-done documentary that isn't tasteless. It could of been, but it wisely isn't.

7 out of 10