Rocco (2016)

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Crappy film

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Rocco is a bare boned (sorry!) doc on porn superstar Rocco Siffredi who has reached the end of his career. Ultimately an uneven tale is told focusing on the last shoots he orchestrates w/his cameraman cousin who deserves a doc of his own. Herein lies the problem w/this story, how did Rocco get into this business? He mentions his obsession w/women & his mother's disappointment but how did this Neopolitan neophyte find his calling? A more rounded examination from Nick Broomfield or Errol Morris might've succeeded but as it stands, all the sex & foreplay is merely titillating w/nothing substantive gained in the end (sorry again!).

"Rocco" opens with porn actor Rocco Siffredi talking about a "devil between his legs," his dark side that is permanently threatening to destroy his life. It's too bad that the filmmakers never make any effort to expose this devil and instead seem give their subject complete control over their project. The result is definitely interesting, and sporadically very funny, but unfortunately shies away from Rocco's darkest fears and the low-points of his life. For those unaware, Rocco is a porn actor known for very rough scenes, though apparently (judging from this movie, at least) the work atmosphere on his sets is quite friendly and supportive of the women he works with. You could obviously question if the team is always this nice to the actresses, even when they are not being filmed by outsiders or the women decide in the last minute they don't want to do the really hard stuff, and since the directors rarely interview the porn stars without Rocco present, that element of the film doesn't hold up to much scrutiny. We just have to believe the movie that Rocco is always a nice guy to every girl he has sex in front of a camera with, and your willingness to sympathize with the main character in his more emotional scenes will likely depend on wether you go along with that or not. Speaking of emotional scenes, there are a couple in which Siffredi talks about his family life growing up, or his family life now, and in these moments he seems honest and open about his feelings. However, once more the film suffers from a lack of outside perspective from people who might give a more critical account of our star's private behaviour. The scenes with his sons in particular are awkward to watch, and you can clearly see how uncomfortable they are with being filmed while their dad talks to them about porn. Most of the movie is centered around Rocco with very few outsiders commenting on the man or his work. One is his wife, though we only get a few lines from her about how great a guy her husband is. Another is his cousin and co-worker Gabby, though he serves more as comedic relief (the disappointed look on his face after Siffredi simplifies a set piece he thought of is hilarious and sad at the same time) than he does provide a different viewpoint on the hardcore scenes he films. The only person who manages to take the spotlight away from Rocco and affect the way we see him is fellow porn actress Kelly Stafford, who stole the movie for me. Not only does she offer a female opinion on porn of Rocco's caliber, her friendship with the man, which ostensibly goes much deeper than a mere business relationship, is also very believable and heartwarming. Overall, if you're interested in how porn scenes are filmed, this film might be of interest to you. Just don't expect it to be very critical of its subject.

Let me start off by saying I'm the furthest thing from a prude. Like most men, I've seen my fair share of porn and then some. I've lived through porn's "golden era", (i.e., pre-videotape and pre-internet).Porn used to be very expensive to buy. It also wasn't very high-def either. This so-called documentary almost goes out of its way to be as blurry as those old VHS tapes were. The documentary is structured as if you just came in the middle of something, and no background or context is provided.It takes a hardcore subject, and illustrates gang bangs and other raw activities in such a way that it already puts into question the morality or lawfulness of what they are doing.Most documentaries about porn or its actors often tend to portray the negative side,casting its participants as hapless unfortunates drawn together for the sake of a quick buck or infamy. The girls have Daddy issues and the guys have big dicks and unmatched libidos.To an outsider (i.e., those who haven't seen much porn), it almost always comes as a shock. You only get to see one side of the game. It all seems like chaos and indulgence. Rocco's duality, between his sex drive and his pious Italian upbringing appears to the reason why he's left feeling empty inside. Religion has a long tradition of treating sex as sinful and vile. But Rocco made his decision early in life to satisfy his earthly needs, and deal with the morals and ethics down the road. It's all an empty gesture to claim sorrow over choosing a life of porn, screwing every single fantasy woman imaginable.To me, it's all "first world problems". I have zero sympathy for his internal demons. Men in his position could have handled their super libidos in many different ways. To start crying the blues now just seems pathetic and dumb. There are millions of men who suffer every single day NOT having sex, or living with ED. Rocco's over-abundance doesn't move me to tears.Just about everything in this documentary is designed to confuse, misdirect and prop up the man as a tragic character. I'm sorry, but I don't buy it. Boo hoo, boo hoo... poor old me. I'm washed up as a porn actor, and I've suffered for my craft. Sure buddy. Whatever. The way Italian men think of their mamma's as saints makes me puke, especially for those that are in the mob or make a living porking the babes. It all seems a bit hypocritical, in my eyes.Rashida Jones' series on the porn industry is ten times better than this load of horse crap.

Well. I do not really know where to start. Unfortunately I was a bit disappointed with this one. I have read several interviews with Rocco, that have built my interest in him, his personal life, his view upon porn and things like that. However... this documentary does not really live up to those expectations.While there are a few, short interviews with Rocco and Gabi on how things started, Roccos relation to his mother, his sexuality, his wife/kids etc - it is still very short, and unfortunately not very personal. And even though that we get to know some weird and personal details they are very few and it does not provide a full picture. Unfortunately the most part of the movie is behind the scene shots from porn scenes with Rocco. Slow motion close ups on moaning faces of people having sex (I could not use the F-word here on IMDb), anxious young girls that are being asked about what they can do on film etc. If I need more of that I could have watched his movies instead. Thats unfortunate! Some positive things though; It makes you realize even more how sad up the porn business is and how a brand (Rocco) can make you do pretty much anything to anyone, without moral consequences. Of course, the girls there are not forced into it - but its still kind of disgusting how this one girl talks about this as "shes in it for the money and to be a star like Rocco". And Rocco gets to ruin her completely and she will not have gotten any further in her carrier! ;) And the few personal interviews with Rocco was also a positive thing. I would have wanted more of that though. More and deeper (thats what she said)!Nah. Barely okay... nothing more. Sorry!