Don Jon - Trailer Review

Don Jon's Addiction is the directorial debut from one of the most popular actors around Hollywood in recent times, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Before any footage, trailers or screenings had been shown for this film, I had a certain minimal interest in it. This was mainly because I wanted to see how Joseph Gordon-Levitt handled both being behind the camera and on screen. The film gained mixed reviews when it screened at Sundance Film Festival and this only increased my anticipation for the first theatrical trailer to be released. Now after watching it, I have some mixed feelings but there are definitely positives I can take from it.

Starting off with the plot. Now it isn't necessarily something innovative that Don Jon will bring to the table but I certainly haven't seen it before. It is a strange one because it is definitely something that you would associate a indie filmmaker to produce rather than someone who is highly regarded within the industry and will be creating it for a much wider audience. It feels like it could be something that would feature within a TV series as I would definitely associate this type of narrative with a situation comedy. I am fairly skeptical about the direction that will be taken by Joseph Gordon-Levitt with what he has to work with as it could slip too deep into the romantic elements of the film.

Which leads me to a slight problem that the trailer made for me, situated around half way through. As soon as Scarlett Johansson's character was introduced, it suddenly disinterested me as it felt like such a generic character arc that Levitt's character was going to take; almost made me spark up a prediction for where the film was going to head. I of course am only speculating but I feel that it will delve deep into romantic aspects which can undoubtedly be handled well if the right approach is taken like in another Levitt film for example, 50/50. Never did the relationships or love interests feel forced in that film because the plot and characters had development and heart to them which made it interesting and somewhat grounded. I have faith however that Joseph Gordon-Levitt will not stray on this factor too much and in the slightly more drawn out scenes between the couple, comedic elements will come into play; making it somewhat bearable and not too romantically based.

The stylistic presentation of the trailer had me hooked from the opening although. It opens with Joseph Gordon-Levitt's voiceover, giving a brief background to his character and setting up the journey that he will experience. It is presented in a gripping manner which uses cuts of different segments of his life, interests that he has and the most important elements that he feels strongly about. It then ends up quick cutting through these once we have seen and heard them a couple of times until they almost become flashes. I think it did a very good job of setting up what to expect from the film, as well as some information and a nice touch of helping to draw you into the trailer itself. Then it stops and focuses on Scarlett Johansson, whom he refers to as 'the girl'. This is where I immediately become somewhat disorientated and less interested that initially. After the more cheesier sequences were included, I felt it picked back up again and carried this momentum all the way to the end once the actual porn factor and Johansson's character catching him came into play. I honestly believe that the trailer will give a basic implication of how the film will play out structurally. The first quatre will be gripping and giving us all the necessary information and development necessary to grab people's attention. The second quatre will be much more panned out, slowing the pacing down and really setting up this relationship between the two. Then the third act will be twisting this 'perfect couple' scenario the two believe they've found and adding this addiction Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character has, probably providing the most entertaining and comedic moments of the film. While the fourth and final quatre will provide all the necessary tie-ups and conclusions to the story and character's experiences that will hopefully end with a satisfying film.

This concern I have with this particular aspect could be due to my lack of interest in romantic comedies but I believe that this is somewhat different to the normal films we are getting within this genre. With Joseph Gordon-Levitt both writing and directing I honestly believe he can produce something that is both smart and funny, giving a little something for everyone to be pleased by this movie.

Something that I can pick up however, loosely based on the final sequence used in the trailer, is that Joseph Gordon-Levitt will do a fine job of handling the balance of both romance and comedy. As well as this, I believe he will be able to implement comedy into more serious, straight up scenes which will certainly make for good viewing. The scene I am referring to is the final sequence in which Marky Mark's - Good Vibrations is playing both over the images and in the car, while Levitt's character listens to it. He is singing along and is immediately met by a couple in a nearby car, staring at him profusely. It seems like a very relatable and cleverly executed moment in which I am expecting we will be greeted with plenty more of those.

Mainly my main problem is that it will fixate on the romance too much but of course it is necessary because it is the driving force for the narrative of the film. I just hope it has enough comic relief and funny moments to have me invested enough to go with the flow and enjoy the film as well as balancing between the two, offering enough for both sets of demographics who will be going to watch the film.

Overall, I am both impressed and disheartened with what I am seeing but I am definitely expecting Joseph Gordon-Levitt to be able to overcome the gripes that I may have and deliver on each and every front. The rest of the cast that are included with such names as Julianne Moore and Tony Danza I have faith that they will be able to deliver good performances and hopefully will have decent sized roles to play in what could be a sleeper hit on the limited release circuit.

Here is the trailer for Don Jon's Addiction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6615kYTpOSU