Reviews

Mistress Maitland (2020) Another KK breakthrough 27 September 2020 Quite unsettlng at times, Kayden Kross's spotlight on Maitland Ward consciously transcends porn by delivering a dramatic, tension-filled frame in her well-written set-up scenes that lead to the promised and kinky gonzo sex.



Ward provides hert an excellent vessel to bring her script to life, reciting the sharp dialog with amazing sarcasm, cynicism and condescension. It's perhaps a bit over-the-top but what might be a drawback in a mainstream production proves to be quite effective in establishing a perverse mood for XXX payoffs.



The four scenes from KK's "Deeper" website are linked by the characters of dom Ward and her dom husband, not the usual ying/yang couple. Submission and subservience is reserved for the people Ward recruits for the couple's enjoyment.



"Secretary" stars Riley Reid, whose serene underplaying is a fine foil for Ward's malevolence. A job interview with more than the usual baiting and trick questions is made exceedingly sinister by Ward's readings. Certainly the classic Spader/Gyllenhaal movie of that name is the starting point here, but KK goes way beyond its BDSM power games into a bracing critique of our culture. Poor little rich girl Riley is the recipient of quite a bit of abuse, but of course she cannot only take it but as a superior sex worker makes the threesome with our perverse couple seem like child's play.



Porn's top starlet of the past year or two commands attention via her inimitable breasts in a more conventional scene: Ward picks her up at a bus stop after Gabbie has suffered car trouble and takes her home to hubby Markus to lightly abuse sexually. As hired stand-in for Maitland, Gabbie gets the last laugh, winning a car for outperforming Dupree in the sack.



Newer starlets Izzy Lush and Naomi Swann prove their mettle in a BDSM threesome with Markus planned by Ward that is pure gonzo but executed with fine tension and style.



And perhaps the show's centerpiece is a group therapy session for sex addicts that is perfectly written, directed and acted. New member of the group Maitland violates all the rules, cigarette smoking and then violating the "safe space" for confessionals by ridiculing and humiliating member Ryan McLane before the group rather than sympathizing with his plight. Also giving a fine performance here is RIley Steele, that bombshell of a decade ago over at Digital Playground where she worked alongside KK. Scene builds to the usual XXX content, a high-energy interracial sex bout for Ward with group member Pressure and his oversized cock.



This particular scene, titled "Higher Power" raises a nagging question that has arisen whenever pornographers take their work seriously, dating back to the groundbreaking work of Gerard Damiano ("Devil in Miss Jones", "Memories within Miss Aggie"). That is: could the serious film survive without the crutch of including considerable explicit sex footage?



In other words, now that KK has proven herself to be an accomplished film director, could she make a film without hardcore sex? This is a more serious issue now than during the theatrical porn era of Damiano's classics, as sex scenes now tend to run half an hour or more rather than 5 or 10 minutes long, so they inevitably disrupt the pacing and tension of the movie. "Higher Power" would play wonderfully as a brief one-acter wthout any sex, and Ward has certainly made the transition from mainstream movie/tv star to hardcore porn actress, but I doubt if KK could find a mainstream venue for her work -no fault of her own.



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All the Rave (2001) A labor of love 27 September 2020 Filmmaker Nicholas Steele teamed up with Saint (composer/stylist) for dozens of great Adam & Eve feature around the turn of this century, collectively my favorite examples of creative Adult Cinema. Given Saint's prowess in the musical field, "All the Rave" is a personal showcase merging music and cinema in a rather light and frivolous look at the rave and superstar deejay phenomena.



Story is extremely simple, taking a back seat to hyper-editing, flashing lights and near-constant dancing or humping.



Rebecca Rave (cute Chandler) and DJ Dream (Dale DaBone) are all the rage as top deejays, while Jonny Lee (Dillon Day) is frustrated by his has-been status, having helped the two of them on the way up when he was top dog in his profession.



Flashbacks show Lee back in the day, dressing flashy and humping Rebecca and other girls. Ultimately nothing comes of the conflict between Jonny and his successors, and even Dream and Rebecca team up.



Immersion in the scene, particularly the dancing, is the movie's strong suit, with the pulsating beat of Saint's musical score hypnotizing. Varied femme supporting cast includes UK imports Michelle B. and Kelle Marie, as well as fetish star Amber Michaels.



On the BTS short subject Dale DaBone makes an interesting case for the return to story films, where actors can act and show off other skills, like his talent with motorcycles and martial arts. It was nice to hear given the accelerating drift toward gonzo back then and subsequently.



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The Masseuse 9 (2015) Merely adequate 26 September 2020 I expect more, a lot more, from a movie directed by James Avalon and written by Melissa Monet, two of my favorites. This Oiler for Sweet Sinner plays well enough, but is uninspired.



It stars Keisha Grey, back when she was the hottest young thing in porn. She's a registered masseuse, who foolishly gives her license to roommate Abby Lee Brazil who's desperate to land a job and pay her share of their rent.



Brazil gets caught and now both of them are out of work. Abby brings her to Mercedes Carrera's salon in search of work, as MC doesn't require a license given that she's more into the sex side of the biz than its therapeutic intent.



And so we have a fairly light-hearted variation on the rubdown theme, so light it fails to make much impact. Tyler Nixon co-stars as a masseur who gets to bed down both hot client Valentina Nappi as well as Abby. Main subplot concerns MC's regular customer who falls for Keisha.



Carrera gets the box cover shot for this one, and makes her presence felt when a handsome customer (Chad White) shows up and she takes him for herself to massage (and more).



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Whoriental Sex Academy 5 (2002) Lee in a gonzo mood 26 September 2020 Bud Lee certainly fits the bill as director of this collection of Asian women having sex, but he decided to go all-sex, making it a trivial entry in this Sin City series.



Kianna Dior, her huge natural boobs still going strong in porn two decades later, stands out in the cast as a teacher, but all the femmes are alluring. Plot is almost exclusively in voice-over, told by a new student writing in her diary.



It's gonzo sex, going down easily but hardly satisfying.



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Lap It Up (2009) Worthless Brit Porn 26 September 2020 No surprise that this lousy Television X filler feature has been missing from IMDb for over a decade -it is of no interest.



Merely five all-sex scenes of strippers doing a lap dance and then servicing a voyeuristic customer, it's shot on crummy sets and has absolutely nothing happening other than mechanical sex.



For the record, local icons Michelle B, Harmony Hex and Jane Berry appear alongside mainly famous studs, and in one scene a second stripper has a major (but only softcore) role and is omitted from the credits as a result.



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Big Tits in Sports 9 (2012) A stretch 26 September 2020 Brazzers' brass, having considered "sports" as something of a fetish, are hard-pressed in this series to find suitable sports as the jumping off points for their sex vignettes.



In this collecton on DVD we get a couple of models training for lingerie football, who play some touch football against the guys -winner gets use of the playing field. It's just a dumb excuse for Capri Cavanni and Kayla Paige to get serviced by Brazzers house stud Johnny Sins. A third girl, a busty blonde, hurts her ankle and gets no sex and no screen credit.



Another threesome feaures Brandy Aniston and mega-busty Trina Michaels as a pair of oiler wrestlers who inevitably involve referee John Strong in their sex antics.



But the biggest stretch has to be a yoga class, with Juelz Ventura (her piercing eyes in POV shots a highlight) humping Sins. Class has several other participants including the instructor, for Brazzers' unspoken name the extra game, of which the only one I could recognize was Alan Stafford stretching next to Juelz.



Bonus scene is a very dumb takeoff called "Raging Boobs", on boxing, more pointless than most of the label's parodies.



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Sex Toys for You and Your Lover (2015) Lousy except for summer 26 September 2020 This boring faux-sex education video from Adam & Eve turns out to be a 2-hour infomercial, hawking not at all subtly the line of sex toys peddled by Adam & Eve. You know, the Adam & Eve late-night cable tv ads promising 6 or 7 free gifts if you order now!



Various actresses, including the Kendall sisters, have sex while demonstrating a variety of toys Poor old Brock Avery has a demeaning solo using a penis pump, fancy cock ring (with mini-vibes attached) and some anal devices on himself.



It's very boring and rather tame porn, the only saving grace being director Skye Blue's once-famous fetish partner Summer Cummings delivering nonstop soothing voice-over narration on the soundtrack, that reminded me of those silly but erotic femme voice-overs on dozens of Nick Millard/Phillips MOS softcore porn videos back in the 1960s.



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Cheer Squad Sleepovers 33 (2020) Generic porn 25 September 2020 This volume of Girlfriends' hit series is a loser, little more than porn by the pound. Its near-total lack of interesting content indicates the show has run out of steam.



To be blunt, all you have here is the basic audience draw: underage-looking actresses having sex together. Divided into two parts, each one has four girls schmoozing a bit, and then going off two by two to have Sapphic sex. They don't even wear cheerleader costumes, not for a second, so where's the fetish?



I guess minimalism is the thing, even extending to porn circles. Not one of the actresses is a name talent, quite a switch compared to the days when Girlfriends would hire the biggest young names in the business for every show, namely stars like Briana Love, Riley Reid, Shyla Jennings, Lexi Bell and Jessie Andrews. And there's zero Older/Younger hook-ups, a staple of the series 8 years ago, when the gals would be on the road with their mature coaches around as chaperones (or seducers).



Of the mediocre talent on view, Alex de la Flor is the sexiest, and the center of attention during the video's second half.



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Young, Natural and Wicked (2017) Quite poor 25 September 2020 One of Quasarman's worst efforts for Wicked Pictures, this sleazy vignette feature stars Alexa Grace as the tall, tall niece of sleazy uncle Tom aka Tommy Pistol, my least favorite porn performer.



Pistol is even worse than usual, using an annoying voice, overacting and creepy to a fault. Imagine Jim Carrey or Jerry Lewis with a beard, fat belly, covered in tattoos and bearing a big dick. Ugh!!



He of course is a peeping Tom throughout, with Alexa and her friends getting serviced by the usual porn studs plus an obcuro guy (also with tattoos) named Gage Sin.



Worst moment has to be when Pistol finally snags one of the beauties, Mia Malkova of all people. The late August Ames has outdoor sex with Bill Bailey.



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Mommy's Dream (2020) Dee and pals 25 September 2020 Bree Mills knows how to get my attention, and that's by employing Dee Williams more and more in MILF roles, buoying up that overdone genre.



This time out we have Dee dealing with sweet teen stepkid Natalie Knight, whose dislike for schoolwork has her nearly at the dropout stage. Dee tries cajoling her but finally has to go nuclear: threatening to cut off her incestuous sex with the kid unless Natalie starts hitting the books.



Flashing amazing decolletage at Knight and the audience, Dee gets her way and sex on the couch erupts. It's a highly satisfying Sapphic older/younger scene.



Four big juggs are delivered in an unusually cast Ryan Keely/Skylar Snow matchup, dealing with ex-steps, as Keely has split up with Skylar's dad. The two actresses are not the usual beauties of porn, but suggest more of a charcter actress look.



Sabina Rouge is a most alluring young full-lipped redhead who new stepmom India Summer finds irresistible. Their scene titled "The Look Mom Can't Resist" was later reissued on the DVD with that overall title.



An overly cheerful vignette is credited to website member Metalhead42 for its inspiration. It concerns Alina Lopez and Vera King serendipitously giving each other engagement rings (Alina goes first) to get married, after King has divorced Alina's dad. Vision of Woody Allen's sleazy hook-up (and marriage) with his and Mia Farrow's adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn flashed through my mind. So what is intended by good old Metalhead42 to be a cute and friendly variation on taboo themes didn't hit me that way.



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Alien Rhapsody (2020) A case of overreach 25 September 2020 Serene Siren has brought fresh life to Girlfriends Films, but her attempt at sci-fi "Alien Rhapsody" is a failure. Sure, the four requisite lengthy Sapphic sex scenes are well-performed, but any chance at crossover to SF fans is bungled via crummy production values, subpar script and lousy acting.



Lacy Lennon plays a redhead suicide victim, offing herself due to her inability to accept her cis-female status when she longs to be a man instead. The suicide opens a wormhole portal through which an alien occupies her body and reanimates her as a lesbian sex fiend.



Writer-director Siren also shows up as the cop leading the investigation of Lacy's first murder, as her combo human/alien DNA generates secretions that prove deadly to her female sex partners. Victim is lovely blonde Charlotte Sins.



After a few continuity errors, we have fellow cop on the case Vina Sky making love to her pretty blonde girlfriend Emma Scarletto, after which somehow Lacy shows up and kills Emma.



Serene the head cop assigns the case to the Ze-File staff after she finds alien DNA at the scene of the first crime. Scientist on that team Diana Grace comes up with a serum that gives temporary immunity against the alien's ejaculation, and cop on the team Verronica Kirei takes it. VK masturbates in a shower when Lacy shows up and humps her, leaving her unconscious. Luckily, fellow cop Eva Long, after making love to Diana, catches Lacy still in the shower and locks her away for a lousy finish.



A few seconds of chintzy model shots and animation are hardly enough to make this sci-fi, so we have 3 hours of 4 streamable sex scenes and little more. For porn fans that's all they seem to require nowadays.



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The Secret Garden Part II (1992) Gothic conclusion of the story 25 September 2020 While Part 1 was filled with black humor and toying playfully with the audience, Part 2's conclusion of Michael Zen's film is presented in a Gothic mode, part fantasy, part Gothic thriller. The popular porn format of the 1990s of shooting 2-part movies for commercial reasons (two shots at the Video Store New Releases trough) is a drawback, but the change of mood almost justifies this artificial division, which reminds me of the Italian movie practice of dividing movies routinely into 2 parts with an intermission for theatrical release.



Part 2 relies heavily on an 8-minutes-plus opening recap of archive footage from Part 1, which features that film's sexual highlights including performances by P.J. Sparxx, T.T. Boy and Anisa.



Part 2 lets star Ashlyn Gere take over, and I was surprised to see the overall format of Zen's story resemble the classic Homewrecker strucure, a genre best exemplified in two of my all-time favorites: Pasolini's "Teorema" and Harold Prince's "Something for Everyone". Terence Stamp starred in "Teorema", bedding down with every member of a family he wishes to destroy, and Michael York in famed stage director Prince's rare theatrical film, destroying the household of Angela Lansbury.



Gere, fiancee of Hyde family son Jonathan Morgan is out for revenge. The source of her quest is revealed in a strange dream sequence presented with many Gothic Horror movie tropes, as she wanders at night in the Hyde mansion clad in traditional white nightgown and relives witnessing a sex scene of relatives played by Nikki Sinn and Tom Chapman, enacted with flowers prominent and with gloved hands -a fetish carried over from Part 1.



Gere has sex with Morgan, his sister Flame and brother Randy Spears, but meets her match in family matriarch Ona Zee who defeats her in a final showdown, leading to a six months later ending coda scene of Zee and Morgan, with gloved hands, tending to a flower garden plot that implies the final resting place for Gere who has disappeared. Zen's final shot sardonically is a closeup of Melanie Moore, portraying porn director Jimmie who was Gere's girlfriend from Part 1, and who is plotting revenge per voice-over narration.



I find Part 2 superior to the initial movie thanks to its more serious tone and satisfying plotting, but clearly a single 2-1/2 hour film would have been the proper format here.



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The Secret Garden #1 (1992) Brechtian porn 25 September 2020 Once upon a time, Adult Cinema was taken seriously, perhaps too seriously. It was the VHS era of the '90s, when budgets were big and many a film director pretentiously mounted ambitious productions, as the Porno Chic successes of the previous decade or so forecasted a thriving lucrative marketplace for engaging explicit entertainment -long before the maturing internet would provide free competition for XXX content.



Among these auteurs were the Mikes: Ninn, Zen and Raven, all of Hall of Fame caliber.



Zen wrote, produced, directed and edited this 2-part "Secret Garden", a very stylish and well-performed porn movie I saw back in the day and just recently revisited. It unspools with a wry, bemused tone, with elements of fantasy and condescension.



Each scene is introduced by a title card explaining or hinting at what we will see, and other Brechtian devices include a scene interrupted by showing us a film crew (with Melanie Moore cast as the director, a sort of Suze Randall type) shooting what we're watching. Later co-star Randy Spears keeps talking directly to the camera, telling us what sexual position he'll perform.



Unfortunately, this is not a fully realized or major work, certainly not in the class with Zen's best work (e.g., "Blue Movie" and "Satyr"). It's just too smug for words.



Story concerns the wealthy Hyde family whose members are keeping secrets. Matriarch Ona Zee communes with a phallic statue in her garden, giving rise to two potent masturbation scenes. Her husband Mike Horner has his own vices, exemplified by his cheating with Ashlyn Gere, the star of the film. Son Randy Spears is married to beautiful redhead Flame, but also seen humping Gere, the star decked out in red garb including her wig. And youngest son Jonathan Morgan pops up at the end of Part 1, to introduce to the family a surprise fiancee.



The sex scenes also include two featuring T.T. Boy cast as a porn actor (identified as T.T. Boy in fact), a wonderfully sexy role-play by Flame pretending to be a prostitute to service husband Spears, and P.J. Sparxx as T.T.'s hot lady in the garden porn scene shot by Moore.



Cliffhanger ending sets us up for Part 2.



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Endlessly (1993) PT's apotheosis of Lifestyle Porn 24 September 2020 Watching many of Paul Thomas's movies back in the day, both complete and in bowdlerized Playboy Channel format, I coined the genre term Lifestyle Porn so vividly (pun on his Vivid Video reign at the time) demonstrated by this work.



In "Endlessly" he's jettisoned all notions of plot or characterization in favor of mood and hedonism. Title refers to star Nikki Dial's longing for endless lovemaking as she chats with gal pals Tiffany Mynx and Alex Jordan at a party thrown at Marc Wallice's home.



Her wish comes true when she's wandering at night in the surf out front of his beach house and encounters Marc in the flesh. Dial talks him out of returning to the party and they continue walking on the beach with less than scintillating dialog.



Director Thomas cross-cuts between folks having sex at the party in various groupings, all while various music plays to knit the disparate footage together. Ultimately Marc & Nikki return to his home after the party's over and make love, more or less endlessly. High or low-point has her sitting on the toilet when he shows up and asks the immortal question: "Can you pee for me?". Not to worry, she gives him a blow-job instead. When they hump in the bathroom, both stars' eyes are riveted on watching themselves in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors, which I took to be PT's silent commentary on this sort of self-centered lifestyle.



Slightly experimental in structure, movie is ultimately tedious, unless one is addicted to staring at Nikki Dial's body -endlessly.



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Cougariffic (2020) Much improved 24 September 2020 Older/Younger is a staple of lesbian porn, with some very fine femmes on view in this trio of scenes from Adult Time.



Best is McKenzie Lee serviced by Alina Lopez in "The Recluse". Lee is a widow who has become a shut-in, so when young neighbor Lopez visits in Welcome Wagon mode she gradually lets down her guard and is rewarded by not just a new friend, but also a sexual whirlwind. I've been a Mackenzie fan ever since she emigrated from Brit Porn to becoming one of Jenna Jameson's featured actresses over a decade and a half ago, and she's quite moving in this wonderful one-act play.



"Wrong Homework" is more fanciful, as professor Cherie DeVille reads the riot act to her student (newcomer Jeni Angel) when an essay for class turns out to be an erotic tribute to her. But her umbrage turns into pure lust for some of that good old sex in a classroom.



Dana DeArmond cements Act II of her career, now a full-fledged MILF, holding her own opposite India Summer as the two gang up on troubled teen Eliza Ibarra, who is suffering from a constant need to masturbate.



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Devious Moms (2020) Well-done MILF action 24 September 2020 I really enjoyed the cast of this Bree Mills collection of "Moms on Moms" content.



India Summer and Reagan Foxx make a great team in the sack, when India's husband stands her up for a date. It was nice to see India back as a brunette after showing up as a blonde in several shows of late.



That imported stripper (from Germany) Texas Patti is fun to watch as a frumpy house maid, but her true spirit comes out when she gets down and dirty with Elexis Monroe. Yet another Adult Cinema veteran Julia Ann shows off magnificent decolletage in a less than exciting match-up with Tia Cyrus, latter hardly a household name in MILF circles.



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Learning from the Best (2020) The great Dee in all-girl Oiler 24 September 2020 Dee Williams is the star of this Fantasy Massage DVD, appearing in different roles in two of the three sex vignettes.



Opener has Dee lecturing stepchild Kenzie Reeves on the use of a bolster, leading to savory Sapphic sex with the lovely kid, who gives as good as she gets.



Williams returns as a hard-driving business executive who insists on dictating work with her personal insistant Jaye Summers while getting a rubdown from masseuse Cassidy Klein. All three actresses give strong sexual performances in the inevitable threesome.



Final segment has sisters (step of course in faux-incest mode) Gia Derza and Zoey Foxx stood up by their respective trainers decide to practice massage technique on each other, leading to sex as it always does in a porn film. Vignette is unsubtly titled "4 Hands 2 Sisters".



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Lesbians in the Wild 2 (2013) Amateurish and unappealing 24 September 2020 Madison Young's followup movie is no better than the first one, as she shoots pointless footage of actresses having Sapphic sex mainly outdoors.



She uses a boring and sloppy single-camera technique more appropriate to a home movie. Other than Beretta James in the spotlight, the cast is not particularly attractive, and their nearly constantly fingering each other, with or without a fetish glove on the hand, gets old in a hurry.



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Russian Institute 26: La fille de la directrice (2020) Quality pantomime porn 24 September 2020 This long-running Dorcel jail-bait sex series has veered toward pantomime lately, with the 26th edition issued with all dialog removed, making it easier to watch for both English and non-English speaking viewers.



Mary Rock is a find in the title role, a school girl whose mom Tina Kay runs the title school for girls. The tall beauty has plenty of sex in a story short on story and long on humping.



Lack of dialog rendered the final scene cryptic as the cast's seemingly dramatic verbal exchange was rendered mute. But I suspect fans won't care as the leads plus lovelies Lana Roy, Zazie Skymm and Nikki Foxx all perform arousingly.



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Lesbian Bridal Stories 5 (2011) Lots of guest stars 24 September 2020 Girlfriends Films often employs talent in NonSex scenes to aid in the set-up scenes for videos, but never gives credit. This lapse (in fairness) leads to a sometimes fun guessing game as to who's showing up unnounced/unadvertised, and six beauties pop up briefly for this volume of the long-discontinued Bridal series.



The four vignettes presented here stray widely from the series' main theme. Lead-off segment has young friends Shyla Jennings and blonde Bree Daniels swapping wedding stories, with Bree stressing her sister's. As usually is the case at Girlfriends, they head for the bedroom to try on costumes: Bree in her blue bridesmaid dress and Shyla putting on the sister's wedding gown. Soon after, Bree seduces Jennings to delight their legion of fans.



Carrying on the bridal gown fetish, we have lovely (if obscure) actress Malena Morgan trying on her wedding gown while her maid of honor Jelena Jensen puts on her red dress. Soon JJ has stepped over the line and seduced Malena, latter in gown and equally fetishistic pantyhose.



A rather perverse segment stars Jessie Rogers, whose guest star mom Brenda James leaves her alone with Lily Carter and guest star Zoey Holloway. I was squirming as Zoey and especially young Lily keep harassing innocent Jessie, cajoling her to let them try on the gowns and even hose of her mom and her mom's lesbian spouse-to-be. They even force Rogers to don her suit to be worn at the wedding, setting up role-play with Rogers as the groom and Lily playing the bride in bed.



This scene is meant to be taboo, and comes off merely in bad taste, with actress Rogers looking bewildered at the silliness of the action. I had to wonder at the relationship of Zoey (is she perhaps Lily's perverse mom?) to the other characters in this poorly directed scene.



Finale is even stranger, as a trio of guest star schoolgirls (Ashlynn Leigh, Chastity Lynn and Jessie Andrews) are giddy, telling Syren de Mer the news that their school coach Amber Chase is getting married to a woman. Fount of wisdom Syren lectures the kids on tolerance and how they should keep their traps shut so as not to get Amber into trouble and possibly losing her job at school.



Then Syren meets with Amber and her lover, guest star Brandi Love, and surprises them with news that she's learned they plan to get hitched. Seeming to be friendly and supportive, she segues to asking them where to meet girls, as she's been divorced and is now bicurious. Unbelievable scene soon turns to open-minded Brandi agreeing to let her fiancee Amber go off with Syren to teach her Sapphic sex. No surprise to the fans that De Mer proves to be a quick learner.



Note that Ashlynn and Chastity did get to hook-up sexually, with screen credit, in "Mother/Daughter Exchange Club 20", released a few months before this movie.



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Home Improvement XXX: A Parody (2010) For idiots who enjoy laugh tracks 24 September 2020 Not much need be said to criticize this amateurish ripoff/"parody" of the tv hit -just another cash-in exploiting a quirk in the law regarding plagiarism.



An extremely poor and unfunny script sinks this one entirely, with a variety of talented Adult performers showing up for work. Icons like India Summer and Syren De Mer have nothing to fear, with hundreds of fine performances canceling out this wasted assignment.



The constant phony laugh track from tv precedent renders the show unwatchable, with routine XXX scenes the only reason any one would tune in. The cryptic "hiding his face" role by Randy Spears as a neighbor, leading to a Glory Hole sex scene is baffling.



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Thief of Hearts (2019) A quirky heroine in a quirky film 24 September 2020 Not altogether successful, "Thief of Hearts" is a sleeper from Wicked Pictures, far removed from assembly-line porn and worth discovering for its originality.



It plays more like a Non-Adult indie rom-com than porn, with unpredictable moves by its free spirit heroine Katie, very well-played with naturalism by actess newcomer Lena Anderson, who doesn't resemble any of the stereotypes of what a pornstar looks like.



Her pranks and impromptu antics are not humorous but merely strange and seemingly spontaneous, creating a "what will Katie do next?" mood that's both watchable and a pleasant diversion from the ossified porno format.



Problem here, which keeps this Hank Hoffman movie from both respectibility and true artistic achievement, is that crutch of pausing the requisite number (5 for Wicked releases) of times for a tedious 20-minute XXX sex scene. From the meet-cute scene with antihero Ryan Driller, Katie's odyssey to escape from the mundane routine of ordinary life ultimately is left unresolved and thereby unsatisfying -as if this was merely a pilot for a series rather than a stand-alone film.



And the sex interludes are as extraneous to the narrative as usual, though introducing a new lineup of starlets. In addition to recently crowned busy star Kendra Spade as Katie's ex-lover, we have busty and exotic Gia Milana (who I first discovered when she was known as Shay Evans), pretty blondes Nikki Peach and Bella Rose plus plain-jane Jaycee Starr.



But it is tall and lanky Lena, with instantly trademark bangs hairdo, that impresses, and clearly deserves roles in mainstream cinema.



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Tell Me What You Want 2 (2004) Limited format 24 September 2020 In this Toni English/Kelly Holland series for Adam & Eve we're stuck with a lousy premise: vignettes virtually identical to each other, in which a sexy actress talks dirty confidentially to the viewer (i.e., to the camera). Meanwhile, she's having sex with a designated porn stud.



Effect is supposed to enhance a scene's eroticism, but the in-your-face approach actually detracts from the scene's success. Instead of escaping into a screen fantasy, one is constantly reminded of how artificial it is.



For this edition, Toni/Kelly has assembled a fine femm cast, with Nikita Denise and Aurora Snow the best at bringing such sexy voices to the show. Perhaps porn fans addicted to phone sex might enjoy watching this oddity.



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Pick a Room (2019) Nice, simple erotic fantasy series 23 September 2020 Attractive cast buoys Francois Clousot's 6-part web series for Digital Playground, heavy on interracial sex content.



Unusual casting has both leads African-American performers: Kira Noir and Ricky Johnson as a couple with marital problems who consult sex therapist India Summer for help.



She hypnotizes them, causing them to share a dream of being together in a corrdor, where each numbered room contains a different sexual fantasy to try out. This concept is perfect for setting up vignette porn, with the stars alternating segments until reunited (of course) for a finale.



Several guest stars perk up the action, especially in threesomes. A very interesting casting has latina Luna Star as a brunette with deep tan closely resembling Kira, for an outdoor threesome by the pool with Ricky and contrasting pale face Lexi Lore. And of course India gets down in a couple of segments, strikingly sexy in her black mesh body stocking.



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Mother-Daughter Exchange Club 37 (2015) Poorly made edition 23 September 2020 This is one of the more pointless volumes in this popular but severely limited/repetitious Girlfriends series.



Split into two halves, Part 1 has sisters posing as mom and stepdaughter in order to qualify for the on-line club involved in daughter swapping. So Anikka Albrite is prematurely trying on a MILF role for size, trading sis Scarlet Red to predatory cougar Syren De Mer in exchange for bedding down with Syren's kid Shyla Jennings. A cute in-joke has Anikka salivating over on-line photos of Shyla (even one with the star in crutches from her "Poor Little Shyla" hit for the label) with other stars like Aaliyah Love and Heather Starlet. Nothing is made of the sisters' ruse.



Second half is a bit cryptic, by varying the usual four-shot of 4 actresses in the frame setting up the swap to instead a 6-shot of three mom/daughter sets together.



Extraneous pair in NonSex roles are veteran star Misty Rain and as her kid Layla Price, who also get a set-up scene of their own, none of which adds anything to the story line. This filler was apparently shot when they were making "Lesbian Seductions 50" together, and used to pep up this MDEC opus.



Actual swap here has Mindi Mink getting her claws on reluctant lesbian Veruca James, while Anastasia Pierce is non-kinky for a change trading for tall Melissa May, an actress whose list of credits (per IMDb) is unimpressive. Low point of a basically man-hating script has the four women on the phone when Veruca is cajoled into dropping her boyfriend, yelling in unison: "Fu*k you Jerry!".

