Pornographer (2001)
AKA: Le Pornographe
Year: 2001
Directed by: Bertrand Bonello
Starring: Jean-Pierre Léaud (Jacques Laurent), Jérémie Renier (Joseph – Son), Dominique Blanc (Jeanne – Wife), Alice Houri (Monika – Joseph’s girlfriend), Laurent Lucas (Minor role as assistant)
Country: France, European Cinema
Language: French (English Subtitles)
Runtime: 01:45:55
Genres: Porno-Themed, Depressing, Unsimulated Sex
Plot – Spoilers:
A well-known director of porno films Jacques Laurent hasn’t made a film in years. He gets back into the business when debts and a growing dissatisfaction with his existence lead him back to the one thing he knows to do.
Though Laurent’s wife is supportive, he is riddled with shame over his profession and even tried to hide it from his son Joseph for years. At some point Joseph walked out and Laurent links it to his discovery that dad was a porno man.
Laurent always fancied himself as a sort of porno artist, and while his artistry is questionable, there is no denying the dignity he attempts to carry himself and his work with, which makes him unwittingly comical at times.
Now back in the business, Laurent finds he’s a misfit, and in between attempting to shoot his new movie, he reaches out to Joseph who himself is struggling with internal philosophical and political conflicts.
Le Pornographe might be a bit too slow for some, but it captures quite well the self-denial, shame and tragic doom of trying to fight stereotypes of the porn profession. Especially by those who consider themselves artists first.
Good frickin lawd!!! synopsis/ description quote: “director of porno films Jacques Laurent hasn’t made a film in years. He gets back into the business when debts and a growing dissatisfaction with his existence lead him back to the one thing he knows to do.” And this clown who looks just like that sloppy-physique club CLOWN Renaldo in the movie “Scarface” is lecturing on the “failures” of capitalism?? Coming from an IDIOT Frenchman (typical) who doesn’t grasp that socialism has failed the citizens 20x worse every time throughout the history of man, and that no matter the economical system.. the “rulers/ people in power” (politicians who create a warped rendition {CRONY-Capitalism} 100% against the original design… and will of the people; (the ones who get it/ who are the REAL intellectuals – who realize that Capitalism *UNFETTERED* is the closest thing to ‘PERFECT’)… can corrupt ANY of them?? Fuckin retard sounds like the new radical left in the US (over especially the last 50 years, and ramped up exponentially since the America-HATING cunning CLOWN fraud obozo) All of these insufferable nimrods seem to love to be ruled by fascists (that new extremist left running the US of the rails and into the ditch and hitting every tree in sight right now). Don’t get me started!! This flic was enough of a snore-fest without this brainless DRIVEL from Marxist-and-totalitarian-loving Frenchmen. Shortly after that CRAP I started “skimming through” this flic with the skip-forward button, jumping in 10 second intervals, reading the closed-caption… Read more »
This film got rave reviews at Cannes and received awards and critical praise. I have been avoiding this one. I’ve been known to be able to sit through slow movies and enjoy them but there are limits. This is slow as molasses but I was waiting for the pay off. I didn’t check to see how much time was left until about 75 minutes in to the film and found out that there was 30 minutes to go. My heart sunk. When Jacques sneaks in to the strange woman’s apartment I was thinking it was going to get weird but he apologized and left. Then when the persistent woman that wanted an interview with Jacques finally convinces him to meet her I thought she was going to be some disgruntled ex-porn star and blow his head off or something. Nope. Then, the last chance, Jacques is depressed after leaving his wife and heads back to his lonely hotel room. Uh…
It’s such a romantic movie about a man’s feeling. Would be a much better movie without one penetration scene almost in the beginning. That wasn’t match with the rest of the movie. Otherwise an artistic approach to a middle age man’s emotions.