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The five porn scenes excerpted in Daniel Murphy's "The Five Most Ridiculous Porn Scenes" (a 5.30 Esquire posting) aren't funny. All porn is fundamentally dreary and depressing because the people involved on both sides of the camera are (a) obviously not very bright and (b) untalented (to put it mildly). But the idea of the piece -- the promise of it -- is...well, somewhat funny.

Vidal-isms<< previous | next >>Over by Thursday or Friday

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on May 31, 2008 at 10:35 AM

comment #1

jjgittes says ...

Jeff, I'm a fan and all and love your insights into film but honestly your dismissal of porn and you're gender bias towards SATC today is really weird intellectualization that is misapplied.

Good porn exists. When done right it can be thrilling and actually, life affirming. There's nothing wrong with watching two good looking people have sex - and really there's quite a bit right about it.

Your categorization of porn performers and directors as untalented is stereotypical and not entirely accurate. There was a recent porn film called "Corruption" that was not only a great porn film but actually a really good film with hot sex and good acting.

Good porn exists Jeff, this is a no brainer - not sure where your head's at today (?)

Posted by jjgittes at May 31, 2008 11:29 AM

comment #2

Adonis says ...

What you don't think a porn star wrestling with a fake 20-ft anaconda is funny? How about if the lead man is short and has to keep looking down to remember his lines?

Pussy Beat's a winner, Jeff. It's a winner.

Posted by Adonis at May 31, 2008 11:36 AM

comment #3

George Prager says ...

"There's nothing wrong with pornography except that it makes you look at more pornography."
-- Gore Vidal

Posted by George Prager at May 31, 2008 11:39 AM

comment #4

rgmax99 says ...

Yeah...what Gore said.

Posted by rgmax99 at May 31, 2008 12:27 PM

comment #5

David Ehrlich says ...

what jjgites said. and also what gore said.

jeff is a bit off today. i certainly understand and partake in the animosity towards SATC, but his post certainly read with a hint of misogyny. i just wish that rather than dismiss the poster who proclaimed himself to be done with the site, that jeff had engaged him in some sort of dialogue so that we could better understand where he was coming from, and he could better understand our collective response.

Posted by David Ehrlich at May 31, 2008 1:28 PM

comment #6

btwnproductions says ...

I believe the dismissed poster is a woman, a rare breed here in this boys club. I haven't seen the movie but I wouldn't assume that every guy here wants to fitted into some sort of anti-SATC "collective."

Posted by btwnproductions at May 31, 2008 2:18 PM

comment #7

supertaster says ...

lord knows it takes tons of talent to link to articles day after day and provide commentary...only someone very bright can make a living sucking off the teets of large corporate owned studios (which, btw, is nice to see they've come back with some new verts...things were looking a little thin for a few weeks)

Posted by supertaster at May 31, 2008 2:42 PM

comment #8

Breedlove says ...

T.T. Boy is talented.

Posted by Breedlove at May 31, 2008 4:51 PM

comment #9

EOTW says ...

Did TT Boy just get a shout out? Here's calling Manuel Ferrara!!!

Posted by EOTW at May 31, 2008 5:11 PM

comment #10

D.Z. says ...

Found http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/31/the-dnc-deliberates/index.html?hp
courtesy of Crooks and Liars.

Posted by D.Z. at May 31, 2008 6:46 PM

comment #11

Hallick says ...

"All porn is fundamentally dreary and depressing because the people involved on both sides of the camera are (a) obviously not very bright and (b) untalented (to put it mildly)."

Utterly, shamefully wrong. And you're brighter than somebody who'd make any kind of "All ____ is ____" statement. Porn, strictly for what it is, and not for being any kind of alternate form of storytelling in movie form, a la the delusions of filmmaking grandeur in the mind of Burt Reynolds' character in Boogie Nights, has plenty of bright and talented people on both sides of the camera, and just as many dimwits as you'd find in a typical Hollywood film, I'm sure. I don't look for Citizen Kane in a porno film any more than I look for Swan Lake in a sumo match.

Posted by Hallick at May 31, 2008 7:40 PM

comment #12

Breedlove says ...

I've been deeply moved by some of Herschel Savage's work...

Posted by Breedlove at May 31, 2008 7:44 PM

comment #13

BurmaShave says ...

I'm not about to passionately defend porn, but your generalizations are, as always, breathtaking.

Posted by BurmaShave at May 31, 2008 7:53 PM

comment #14

EOTW says ...

Savage is amazing, no doubt. But what of those young Euro porn/gonzo upstarts? Surely, you would agree that Rocco Siffredi is the Daniel Day-Lewis of porn?

Posted by EOTW at May 31, 2008 8:13 PM

comment #15

Legowombat says ...

As bad as these are, they're no worse than most depicitions of sex in mainstream movies, which are similarly ridiculous, exaggerated and unrealistic. At least porn is capable of admitting people sometime have pimples on their buttocks, and that not everyone finds the sound of a saxaphone erotically stimulating.

I'll dismiss the Basic Instincts, 9 1/2 Weeks', and No Way Out's of the world as being particularly false and unerotic, because there's a sterile, posed quality and a complete lack of intimacy.

There's only two I respect:

- 'That was awful' in Ang Lee's 'The Ice Storm'.

- The anonymous woman staring at Sofia and holding her gaze as she is pentrated and stimulated to climax. It's a wonderfully intimate, honest and life-affirming depiction of female sexuality, that oddly came from a Gay Director.

Posted by Legowombat at June 1, 2008 2:05 PM

comment #16

CinemaPhreek says ...

Wells obviously knows next to nothing about those involved in "adult cinema" and really put his foot in his mouth with this shot from the lip comment about "brightness." I don't really respect the business, am not a fan but I've met enough of those in it to know there's some really scary smart people who work in it.

Posted by CinemaPhreek at June 1, 2008 10:59 PM

comment #17

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comment #19