The Pornographer (1999) Movie Review: Doug Atchison’s conflicting and inconsistent script is a surprisingly revelatory take on the male loneliness epidemic

Dough Atchison, who you may know from his 2006 winning script “Akeelah and the Bee,” which was later turned into a critical and commercial success, had his humble beginning in 1999 with the low-budget “The Pornographer.” For a debut, the film was a strange, oddly self-aware drama about a man trapped in his own fantasies. His inability to form real connections with women, combined with a fragile sense of masculinity, eventually pushes him toward making amateur adult films.

Celebrating its 27th Anniversary with a limited re-release, the film follows Paul Ryan (Michael DeGood), a paralegal who spends most of his alone time either in strip clubs, having emotionless sex with prostitutes, or bingeing porn like it’s Netflix. A Taxi Driver-inspired voice-over informs us that he has been an ardent porn consumer since he was ten, and only recently has he discovered that he needs to do something more than just that. The naive theme at the centre of the film is, of course, about Paul not realizing that the emptiness he feels is not because of a lack of excitement in his life, but because of a lack of social and emotional connection. 

So, when one of his colleagues suggests that he should ask a woman out, he instantly goes for it. Atchison doesn’t offer Paul Ryan any kind of characteristic background for us to understand his isolation from the real world. He seems charming and outgoing but without the understanding that dating and mating are two completely different playgrounds. When he is rejected by the women he asks out for a play, he retracts – his male ego is shattered, and thus he decides to go back to his safe haven of porn films. 

Only this time, the fragility of his character takes over. He is unable to enjoy the ease with which things are shown in these adult movies. So, one fine day, he decides to make one of his own. And surprisingly, he is good at it. Until he decides to go to Spano (Craig Wasson), an adult-movie producer who nabs him with the idea of him being famous if he is able to bring him a fresh girl to star in one of his movies. 

Much of “The Pornographer” thus follows Paul trying to convince the innocent, aspiring, lost, and almost broke Kate (Katheryn Cain) to star in one of his videos as proof to Spano that he can get her to do a film for them. His interactions with Kate are the most natural, humane, and genuine part of Atchison’s film, but they also do not help in bridging the gap that the film unknowingly develops as it motion into predictability. 

On one hand, it is critical of the adult film industry that exploits women – mostly, young, aspiring actresses who are promised money and fame only to be manipulated into submission or diverted to a path of addiction. On the other hand, it always makes sure that it humanizes Paul more than any other characters, making his eventual moral dilemma feel completely unearned.

The reason for this conflicting and inconsistent narrative end is the poor writing that tries to patch through its inspirations – lifting from both early Scorsese and Soderbergh (sex, lies, and videotapes), but unable to develop Paul into a character whose motives are not defined by his actions but his need to somehow understand himself. It also doesn’t help that there’s a completely unnecessary subplot involving Charise (Monique Parent), whose presence does not add anything to the film beyond the obvious traps of nudity. 

That said, Doug Atchison’s debut as a director is impressive. He is able to cast the right actor to play Paul as Michael DeGood, who single-handedly uplifts the shoddy material to present a surprisingly revelatory take on the male loneliness epidemic. 

The Pornographer will be re-released, marking its 27th Anniversary

The Pornographer (1999) Movie Links: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Letterboxd

Where to watch The Pornographer