This one was given the Distributor Bum's Rush by whoever makes those kind of decisions, but it deserves better. Every Character on Screen is really unlikable and not even that interesting. However, they are welcome Screen Sleaze, Criminals, Low-Lifes, Pornographers, and the best of the lot, a delusional "Middle Man" Fixer type that fancies Himself some sort of Hands-Off, Masturbatory outlet.
Internet Ticket Taker/Porn Provider is what He becomes, all the while telling Himself, and the Viewer in an ongoing Voice-over, that He is an innocent Family Man of the Norman Rockwell persuasion. Talk about denial. This has an extremely derivative Movie Style that never makes any attempt to hide its Homage/Theft. Starting out as a Whacked Comedy it slowly moves to Neo-Noir territory and is better for it.
The Crime Story mixed with Dark Comedy works the best and the Wild Slapstick and over Acting from the two Central Figures gets unwelcome every time they show up and show off. The Movie looks great and is mostly effective, but sometimes becomes disjointed with a lot of Subplots and a whole lot of Characters sliding in and out.
Overall, not bad and worth a view if nothing New.
Middle Men
2009
Action / Comedy / Crime / Drama
Middle Men
2009
Action / Comedy / Crime / Drama
Plot summary
Chronicles Jack Harris, one of the pioneers of internet commerce, as he wrestles with his morals and struggles not to drown in a sea of conmen, mobsters, drug addicts, and pornstars.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
January 18, 2016 at 01:12 PM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
Whacked But Never Wicked
NOT PORNOGRAPHY...
...it's a billing service That's what our Main Middleman keeps telling himself. But, of course it is porn, billions of dollars worth. Fast-paced, with a rogue's gallery of out-there characters, particularly Rabisi, of course, in his element, I love how everyone keeps turning on each other, then realigning, then turning again, it never stops! Based on Real Life! Better than fiction, a real fun ride
Porn to run
A Goodfella's for the internet porn generation but here the incessant narration becomes irritating.
Jack Harris (Luke Wilson) is a fixer and a family man. When others want to cap knees, he looks for better non violent solutions.
In the late 1990s, Jack goes to LA and comes across two porn crazed but clever drug addicts who are making inroads in paid internet porn.
Wayne Beering (Giovanni Ribisi) and Buck Dolby (Gabriel Macht) have brains but bizarrely dumb with it. They do make millions in developing a porn site payment system where they take a cut in the early days of the net. They also get mixed up with Russian gangsters and a crooked mob lawyer.
Jack makes a lot of money but has lost his family and is in over his head. He certainly needs to get out of a fix.
Despite the presence of actors such as James Caan, it never amounts to being more than a solidly acting but middling film. It would had been better as a deranged farcical black comedy without the narration.