Don Jon (2013) Review (And Life Lessons)

I was looking forward to Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s directional debut for quite some time. Having emerged as a true A-lister in the wake of Inception, he was definitely on a good path in every sense.

Don Jon is about a regular Joe from New Jersey who’s usually quite devoted to his family, homies and his church.But he has a severe porn addiction. As a result, he has unrealistic expectations, which he has to overcome in order to find true happiness.

This guy has no lack of women lining up to be with him. As an attractive guy with lots of game, his friends even call him The Don. The true issue is that he has a severe addiction that’s messing with his satisfaction in relationships and with his life.

The cool thing about Don Jon is that it hits a nice place in between a “boys will be boys” movie, and a rather unorthodox romantic comedy.

Many conservatives were pissed off, because, you know, porn. But hey, I thought it was a pretty cool movie overall. I even learnt a ton from the movie…

Too much of a good thing can be bad

Let’s face it: people watch porn, and enjoy it. But moderation is key, just like with anything us people enjoy, whether it’s drinking, cigarettes, or being awake.

Don’t let anyone dictate who you should be

Especially in relationships! I think what Don Jon taught me was that there’s a fine line between compromising with someone to make a relationship work, and changing who you are in order to please that person.

True happiness can come from a very unexpected place

When Jon meets Esther, he has absolutely no attraction to her — he just sees her as some weird older lady who is in his class at college (a class his girlfriend forced him to take, by the way). She ends up being the right person for him, subduing his porn addiction, and making him feel genuinely happy.

The awesome thing about Gordon-Levitt is that he is an artist, and doesn’t do his work solely as an occupation. His production company, hitRECord is a testament to this as he provides a platform for artists from all walks of life to get involved in the creation and remixing of content.

I think Don Jon was the perfect manifestation of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s artistic flair and ability to captivate audiences. A solid film overall.

Rating: 7.9 / 10

Memorable moment: Jon’s sister finally speaks up in a critical moment during the film’s climax, offering him a very unique and valuable nugget of wisdom to help him get through a tough situation.