Don Jon

Though Joseph Gordon-Levitt has carved out action-man credibility in blockbusters like The Dark Knight Rises and Looper, the former Third Rock from the Sun child star spent most of his formative years appearing in indie films. Those influences are clear in his surprisingly full-on directing debut, the eye-opening and somewhat raunchy tale of a modern Don Juan with a major internet porn addiction. He plays Jon, a pumped-up New Jersey gym bunny with gelled hair and sculpted abs who meets his match in the pneumatic Barbara (Scarlett Johansson), a beautiful blonde whose own escapism is found in Hollywood romantic comedies. The lascivious lothario tries to mend his ways but the pull of porn is strong: will he overcome it? What seems like a tough pitch is deftly handled in a very unusual comedy that walks a fine line between ironic sexism and genuine sexism. Gordon-Levitt goes surprisingly far with his boorish but oddly likeable antihero, but in a final twist he produces a satisfyingly positive note to end on which doesn't feel forced or preachy.