DON JON  3.0***

          Perhaps the best way to introduce  this film and its main character Don Jon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt ) is by recounting his first confession early in the movie( he’s a devout Catholic) where he’s confessing to committing, since the last confession a week ago, 2 sexual intercourses "out of wedlock" and 17 masturbations while watching porno. This is the first of many such repeated confessional scenes, with the numbers varying each time, reflecting the progress of various events around him. The name Don Jon is undoubtedly designed to remind you of the fictional “Don Juan” ( actually his 2 best friend and bar buddies named  him “Don” because he manages to always hook- up with the best looking ladies. In real life he is a  bar tender who leads an average life except for his obsession with watching porn.

This movie, written, directed and acted by the highly talented Joseph Gordon-Levitt is more than an almost "X"-rated movie. We discover that for whatever reasons, Don Jon enjoys self-administered sex induced by pornos better than the real thing, although he has no lack of either. That is until he meets Barbara (Scarlett Johansson), an encounter that results in a serious relationship with the possibility a fairy-tale ending …. but then?

Many think  that Gordon-Levitt is one of the most versatile young  actors in the up and coming generation of young actors. In this his first writing and directing debut, he has turned in a solid piece of work and wisely avoids flashy, avant-garde stuff and uses the reliable style of voice over narration quite effectively.. Repeated scenes (aforementioned confessions, as well as things like driving his custom car, work outs at the gym and family dinners) are used effectively to reinforce the themes, while the story and subject matter are allowed pretty much to speak for themselves.

Johansson in this movie demonstrates that she can be as versatile an actor as Gordon-Levitt, given the opportunities. As Barbara, she shows a Johansson that the audience has never seen before with a depth hidden by shallowness, or a shallowness hidden by depth, depending on the angle you take. .And of course she looks gorgeous !!! Julianne Moore has an interesting role as a middle aged woman who befriends Don Jon and offers a different perspective to his sexual hang-ups. Tony Danza and Glenne Headly provide great support, playing Jon's parents in a way that brings back  memories of the Archie  Bunker TV family. Brei Larson as Jon's sister accomplishes an exceptional scene-stealing feat with no dialogue, constantly hooked on to her IPhone and seemingly oblivious to people around her….until close to the end of the movie , with two lines, she hits the nail in the head (and Jon too) pointing out what kind of a person Barbara really is,and showing that she has all the while been quite a good listener.

The movie mixes comedy and drama with ease. It also manages to make some profound points regarding such taboo topics as sex and pornography. Obviously this is an adult film and only for those who are not squeamish about the strong  sexual content of the movie.

This has is a strong “R” rated movie because of the heavy sexual content and language.