Cazual Conversation

Single guy tip No. 12: If a movie title has the word “porno” in it, no matter the rating or genre, thoroughly research said movie before taking someone to it on a first date.

“Zack and Miri Make a Porno” is not the exception to this rule.

The brief “review” I saw was innocent enough: “Lifelong platonic friends Zack and Miri look to solve their respective cash-flow problems by making an adult film together. As the cameras roll, however, the duo begin to sense that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously thought.”

It would have paid to read the actual review. By movie’s end, I decided I had seen X-rated fare with less sex. I’m not sure about my date, as she spent much of the time averting her eyes. 

“Now when I was your age,” I might tell a young lad of 24 or so, “an ‘R’ rating meant the woman might end up with a wet T-shirt for a scene.”

And the young man would likely look at me the same way I used to look at my grandfather when he said the biggest thrill in movies when he was younger might be a woman in a dress exposing her leg above the ankle.

The mood for the date was light, so we had eschewed “Eagle Eye,” a suspense/action movie with a PG-13 rating, for Zack and its “R” rating. It stars the lovable Seth Rogan and the cute Elizabeth Banks. What could go wrong?

Well, it seems the ratings system has changed. As was explained to by various reporters rolling their eyes when they heard what I’d done, what used to be “G” is “PG,” what used to be “PG” is now “PG-13,” etc., and if you are going to see an “R” rated movie, well, you might run across a man in a raincoat.

This is not to say the movie wasn’t funny. I heard several people laugh as I repeatedly explained to my date that I certainly had no idea what we were getting into.

There’s a reason you don’t let the man pick the movie, I suppose.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.