Zack and Miri Make a Porno

With team Apatow turning out a vast array of trifling gross-out comedies, it's easy to dismiss Zack and Miri as yet another silly movie for stoned college kids. Fortunately, this isn't a Judd Apatow film - it's pure Kevin Smith all the way, and fits right in with Clerks, Mallrats, and Chasing Amy as a very unlikely romantic comedy with a lot of lewd humor and a lot of heart.

In the Apatow school of comedy, it seems that any true emotion has been thrown in as an afterthought. But Smith carefully sets up Zack and Miri as real people who care about each other, and because their relationship is so honest, the audience can't help but fall for them, too. Because we care about the characters, the comedy is that much more outrageous, and the repercussions of their agreement for casual on-camera sex is not only hysterical, it's actually emotionally compelling. Elizabeth Banks and Seth Rogen are outstanding, and Justin Long turns in a hysterical cameo as gay porn star Brandon St. Randy. Check it out!