Sex Tape (2014)

Elevator Pitch: Jay and Annie are thirty somethings, Jay working at a radio station and Annie is a vlogger whose content deal with family life. They have two children. In their youth they had been at it like rabbits but now they can’t seem to get to it due to the pressures of life. Due to his work Jay had had a surfuit of iPads which have been given away, including one to a businessman who wants to use Annie as the front for a business venture. In an effort to revitalise their sex life they send the kids to her mother’s for the weekend and clear the decks, but still nothing until, after a couple of drinks, they have the idea of making a tape of them performing all the positions illustrated in The Joy of Sex. The idea works and the resulting recording lasts for three hours. Although he has agreed to do so, Jay forgets to delete the tape and within hours their iPad synchronises with all the ones they gave away. Somehow they have to recover them.

Content: There is quite a bit of nudity and almost nudity (It is said that Cameron Diaz usually includes a no nudity clause in her contracts, but not for this film) and quite a bit of non-revelatory sex when the couple were young. Also some drinking in social situations. We see Jay at work and Annie at a meeting with Hank, potentially her boss. In their home situation their children are difficult. Annie is variously unsuccessful in her attempts to seduce Jay, until they make the tape. When they find that it is out there they try to collect the iPads, but it seems that  their friend Robby’s son has a copy which he is threatening to upload to a porn site. They have to get the iPad back from Hank in his luxury pad, where Jay is chased by a guard dog.

A View:  Even Cameron Diaz being sexy can’t save this outing. She and Jason Segel were nominated for the Worst Couple at the Razzies, and it was generally disliked by the critics. I did laugh once as Jay was being chased round Hank’s house by the guard dog, but generally Jason Segel seems to be a very dull actor, which has to be a disadvantage if your chosen style is comedy. So sadly I can’t recommend this movie. You can hire it from Amazon for $1.99 which must mean something.

Other Cameron Diaz films rteviewed on this site which may or may not give you a laugh are Bad Teacher, There’s Something About Mary and, What Happens in Vegas.