Seth Rogen is usually good value for Netflix subscribers, with the actor involved in numerous productions that have performed well for the streamer. And now, another great Rogen picture is headed to the online giant next month, namely 2008 comedy Zack and Miri Make a Porno. The Kevin Smith-directed effort has a generally positive critical reputation, and is worth a first watch or revisit when it lands on May 1st.
Rogen co-stars with Elizabeth Banks as roommates and friends who decide to try their hand at homemade porn after experiencing financial problems. As perhaps is to be expected, things don’t go to plan, and a romance develops out of their efforts to get a film off the ground. As well as the leads, the supporting cast includes Smith mainstays such as Jason Mewes, and actors like Brandon Routh playing against type.
Although Zack and Miri ended up underperforming at the box office, Rogen and Banks’ chemistry was identified as a key selling point, and the movie arguably still holds up as one of Smith’s stronger works. At the time, Rogen was in the middle of a particularly prolific run of hits, most notably for Judd Apatow, and made six films alone in 2008. However, adopting the raunchy but sweet style popularized by the likes of Knocked Up and The 40-Year-Old Virgin didn’t deliver the same audiences for Zack and Miri.
While there are a lot of better Seth Rogen and Kevin Smith movies out there, Zack and Miri Make a Porno is certainly strong enough to deserve attention. Indeed, if you look past the title and the marketing, the actual story is fairly heartwarming, something that didn’t translate very clearly when it initially arrived in theaters. Those wanting to catch up on the pic can do so, though, via Netflix from May 1st, with the full list of new titles arriving on the service next month available here.
