"What happens in bed, stays in bed"

Title: Sex Tape

Year: 2014

Genre: Comedy

Director: Jake Kasdan

Writer: Kate Angelo, Jason Segel y Nicholas Stoller (screenplay)

Runtime: 94min

Cast: Cameron Diaz, Jason Segel, Rob Corddry, Ellie Kemper, Rob Lowe, Harrison Holzer,

Produc.: Escape Artists, LStar Capital, Media Rights Capital, Sony Pictures Entertainment

Budget: $40 million approx.

Views on the importance of sex are varied, and there are both, those who need to do it often, as those who don´t see it so necessary. However, it would be to deceive us, telling us that good sex doesn´t help a good relationship, because the understanding in a couple isn´t only based on good dialogue.

As we see in Sex Tape, young Annie (Cameron Diaz) and Jay (Jason Segel) have no problems in this area, being perfectly able of adjusting themselves to different scenarios for their romps, this being an activity they practice often. It´s just that sometimes, monogamous practice can lead to carelessness, and although it´s never clear whether there are reproductive interests, the consequences are visible. Clive (Sebastian Hedges Thomas) and Nell (Giselle Eisenberg) are two children that, wanted or not, end up arriving, requiring attention and making it impossible for their parents to intimate.

Something I don´t doubt also to be true (even not being a father myself) is that there must be nothing more gratifying than having children and devote yourself to them. These are special beings that change your priorities and ways of thinking, and for whom we tend to enjoy the change. What doesn´t mean that there are moments that every parent has the right to take, and the possibility of keep having sex is one of them.

Here it is never clear if is it that this couple is disorganized or what, but with their kids playing around they end up putting aside the enjoyment of their own bodies. A practice that then, they don´t know how to retake. Annie and Jay mastered the art of doing it, just as a player would dominate a ball. But now parenting has taken away their training, becoming their attempts a failure to be the ones they used to. With such unusual problems as for Jay to have an erection, when back then his cock looked like an always ready boy scout, capable of smelling Annie from the distance. Still, Annie has already talked to her mother and that night the house is all for them, so solutions ought to be found right away.

Many might disagree with this of filming ourselves, but I think, crazy or not, in intimacy everyone does what they please, and fantasize whatever way they find in fun. In this case we are obviously in front of a comedy, so this madness must especially be seen with humor. Although, we ought to understand that Annie doesn´t come out with this idea so much for wanting to do something picaresque, as for wanting to spice things up and regain to have that sexual spark that seems lost. I would say then that the idea isn´t bad, but understandable. As I said before, in intimacy, each in his own way.

Luckily for the couple, the occurrence results in three long hours of that, they had been putting off for so long. Unfortunately, their hot video is then stored in Jay´s computer, who accidentally sends it to multiple contacts, through their iPads. Jay will explain Annie how such a thing could have happened, but understand it isn´t relevant. It´s enough to know that others could see it.

Recently, I just started to watch the already ended sitcom How I Met Your Mother (2005-2014) in which Jason Segel also used to work, and I put it up just to emphasize that, with a good script, this actor does comedy well. However, in Sex Tape Segel lacks the magic that characterized him and the rest of that serie´s cast. Especially cause in it Segel had counted on good material, which does not happen here, this having being a false step that, let´s hope, he´s already gotten out of.

Once Annie and Jay are aware of their mess, a comedy that is funny little becomes quite ridiculous. Annie and her husband begin a desperate journey in search of those copies, but with no idea of what they will do to get them. I think that neither Segel himself (here co-writer) nor his fellow librettists knew how to be original, deciding it would be good to see him been beaten, and her, snorting cocaine. Besides, it couldn´t be missed the strangeness of seeing Rob Lowe as an eccentric businessman, in whose house there´re distributed paintings with images of The Lion King (1994), where in each, his face replaces the character shown. What could this mean? One may ask. I guess cocaine really circulated.

The only thing that ends up being minimally funny, or I´d say that, rather curious, is when we ourselves get to see part of that video, right in the end, and that's the most fun. It must have been great for the actors to shoot several segments of a fake erotic video.

My rating: 1/10


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