The Pornographer (2001)

What makes it different from others?

Please don't spend money on this.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

Le Pornographe can be termed as a decent film directed by Bertrand Bonello as it does not shock any viewer who has self conceived notions about the film's title.It is one of those typical French films in which characters ramble on various life affirming themes.This is the reason why the film's title is an absolutely inappropriate misnomer as the word "Le Pornographe" does not do much justice to this film's central themes.Bertrand Bonello has made effective use of his film's principal character,a famous French director of pornographic films Jacques Laurent to conduct an observational study about various human relationships which include a troubled father son relationship,a pallid husband wife relationship.These relationships are so strongly portrayed that the topic as well as scant depiction of pornography is easily sidelined.Although this film features some famous porn stars like HPG,Ovidie etc,it is through actors like Jean Pierre Léaud, Jérémie Renier,Catherine Mouchet and Dominique Blanc that Bertrand Bonello is able to lead his film to its inscrutable conclusion.

This film , as one previous reviewer has mentioned, is pretentious and boring. The sex scenes are gratuitous and add nothing to the narrative. This film has less of a reason to depict graphic sex than DEEP THROAT did yet it manages to work up to a senseless and oddly boring sexually graphic moment and with even worst actors (imagine that!)than that silly camp film.It is fitting that at the turn of the century sex would be depicted as a silent dirty act by a tired old French director. He blames youth for the impotence in this bogus film and that is not fair. This movie lives in a vacuum of it's own making.The worst of porn was never this bad. As the ads for the French Classic EMMANUELLE once stated, "x was never like this." The BBFC was right! Take ten second out and you have the impotent tragedy this film really is; Leave them in and you have exploitation of the public under false pretences. The director should apologise to us for subjecting us to this . We expect more out of French Cinema.

This film marks the first time I saw a penetration scene on a basic cable channel. It's significant, if not technically or artistically amazing. It was in medium shot, and at first I thought it was more simulated softcore nonsense since the gentleman appeared to be positioned too far away during coitus. Turns out he was just impressively endowed.'Pornographe' turns in good performances from the actors, especially Leaud. He has the kind of homeopathic presence that made Sarah Polley famous. From a distance, the French national character appears understated, and quite reserved. Contrast that with the classic German, who is full of bluster, extroverted positivity, and usually neat as a pin. The English, finally, appear perpetually drunk and flooding the sidewalk with urine.The long meditative shots of trees were meant to convey atmosphere, but kind of made me feel like I was waiting at a bus-stop. A minor complaint - it's worth seeing.

Once upon a time, you grew old and grey working at a menial job for 35 or 40 years, until you received a handshake and a gold pocket watch. You then spent your retirement regretting not having done the things you dreamed of when you were younger, and with any luck, died in a few years. Oh, the good old days. Thanks to a struggling economy, and longer life expectancies, more retirees find themselves rejoining the workforce just to makes ends meet. Depending on your expertise, this can present some challenging situations.Jacques' blissful retirement is rudely interrupted by three little words: non-sufficient funds. Lacking a pension, he has to resume his old calling - directing pornography. For Jacques, the pornography business has changed for the worse (?): nobody is interested in artistic vision anymore or plots, all they want is to film the sex and get it to video as soon as possible. The barbarians! Strangely enough, the work gives him the courage to contact the son he never knew, and think about embarking on a new life.Although the movie revolves around a movie within a movie (the filming of a porn film), the bulk of the film is spent navel gazing, with the main character contemplating his life and place in the universe. Just as Jacques begins to emerge, he turns inward and becomes increasingly withdrawn, severing ties with everyone. While alienation can be used as a tool to entice an audience, neither the characters nor story in "The Pornographer" are strong enough to sustain our interest. The viewer is kept at arms length and never gets the opportunity to connect with the characters - I couldn't even commit to being blasé.What could have been an interesting, gripping story, is ultimately a pointless empty shell of a film. Nuff said.