Don Jon

A bit too much teen cover, but otherwise it’s a quite interesting probe into a boy's life, or rather thoughts. A classic story at the beginning, which turns into a quite mature and watchable thing over time (with Julianne Moore's arrival on the scene). For a film about Joseph Gordon-Levitt's age, this one is more distinctive than it may seem at first impression. Scarlett Johansson is great again. (09/16/2015)

This film looks different on the outside (synopsis, trailers) than what it is. I wasn’t expecting it to be so mature and self-aware, my appreciation for Gordon-Levitt has risen. Until now I regarded him as an interesting actor, but now I seem him as an interesting filmmaker who knows what he wants to say without pandering. (01/03/2014)

A rather icky confession of one generation. In his director’s debut, Don Joe speaks to the masses who sit every night by their computers with a pack of tissues. He paints Scarlett as a tough bitch and we are presented in the right (well, still a bit twisted) light. Nice debut piece. Keep up the good work. (01/03/2014)

Joseph Gordon-Levitt's striking feature film debut may have a significantly smaller scope than it tries to appear, but when it fully flexes all its muscles, it works perfectly. Life truths, however wrapped in seemingly trivial issues of pornography or personal space, are sometimes just a few short sentences away from us. And to put such thoughts on paper, to film them, and even to play the central sixpack character takes courage. (12/23/2014)

Don Jon does not have nice characters, nor does it offer anything that dazzles or inspires. But it is distinctive, it knows what it wants to say and says it honestly and aptly. I applaud Gordon-Levitt for choosing to make this for Sundance festivalgoers and not for the much more numerous (and big-spending) consumers of dime-a-dozen Hollywood romances. (11/07/2013)