Bad Penny (Adam & Eve) Review

Reviewed by astroknight  on  10/19/2000

Running Time: 85 min. (the cover states 87 minutes, but that includes a 2 minute political message)

Production Date: 5/30/99

Director: Bob Chinn

Cast: Nina Hartley, Tina Tyler, Shaena Steel, Tony Tedeschi, Mike Horner, Billy Glide, and James Bonn

Extras: Hot Shot, Photo Gallery, Trailers, and Bios of a few of the cast members.

Audio Quality: Pretty good.

Video Quality: Better than average.

Music: Normal porno music. Nothing that stands out.

Initial Expectations: Fairly high since it's part of Adam & Eve's Premium Collection, as well as having Nina Hartley and Tina Tyler in it.

Initial Reaction: Slight disappointment.

Review: I guess Penny (Nina Hartley) and Roger (James Bonn) are on vacation. They stop in a ghost town so that Roger can drain the weasel. While he's relieving himself, Shade (Tony Tedeschi who you know has to be a tough dude with a name like Shade), a homeless guy walks by and doesn't want to go any further. Apparently he had trouble getting jobs since he's not sure if Shade is his first name or last name. He's also confused as to what to put in the remaining space. He parks himself on Penny and Roger's little red car to rest after Penny gives him some water to drink. When Roger tries to give him some money to get him to move on, Shade shoves him into a pole where he's knocked out. They notice somebody coming and Shade convinces Penny to not call the cops on him and they drag the body into a nearby yard. The people turn out to be Maddie and Jared, a couple who's jogging. They decide to go for a roll in the hay, and luckily find a nearby barn. While Roger is coming to, Penny tells Shade that she doesn't love Roger and that she wants to go off with him. As they drive off, Jared and Maddie hear Roger and take him to the cops.

The highlight of 'Bad Penny' has to be Mike Horner and Tina Tyler as Sheriff Caleb Jackson and Deputy Sue, respectively. They make a great Andy and Barney Fife combination (we get to see a few Cooters too, but not like in Mayberry). Surprisingly, Sheriff Jackson never gets to have any adult fun. Perhaps he's afraid that his gun's a little to rusty or he's not that good of a shot anymore. Instead, he's too busy trying to figure out what's going on. Deputy Sue, however, is more than hospitable. She brings Sheriff Jackson coffee in one of their 'nice ceramic mugs' and lunch for Maddie as they hold her for questioning. She even gives Maddie some 'home made' dessert that I'm thankful Aunt Bea didn't bring for her. She also consoles Roger in the bathroom. Since Roger is married, he doesn't carry any condoms with him. Thankfully, the cop shop has a condom machine on the wall. Sadly, Deputy Sue doesn't appear to know how to use her handcuffs, as they never come off of her belt.

While the sheriff tries figuring out what happened, and Deputy Sue keeps everybody positive, Penny and Shade are holed up in a cheap motel room. You can tell that she's now Bad Penny since she wears a black wig. Shade doesn't think things are quite right and wants to avoid hurting Penny. Of course, this doesn't mean that they're going to take too long of breaks while trying to find out how long it takes to get a cheap motel mattress to squeak. Finally, Shade leaves Penny so he doesn't screw up her entire life and sends her back to her husband. Sheriff Jackson knows something's wrong, but can't get Penny to admit anything, so she and Roger go stay the night at the cheap hotel where Penny breaks out the wig.

The sex in 'Bad Penny' is very tame. A lot of it borders on boring, which is really sad considering the cast. When the horizontal mambo starts, two scenes come to mind that only use one position! The camera work doesn't help things a lot either. A lot of the shots are close up or at angles where you can't see much. At times I thought I was watching one of the 'edited for cable' adult films. On the plus side, it does make for a very couples friendly film. On the negative side, it's really disappointing when you know the talent that both Tina and Nina have. The girls are all good looking, however, and are also quite real looking. I know that Nina is enhanced, but they are subtle and well done, so I can tolerate them.

One really positive thing about 'Bad Penny' I have to give Adam & Eve specific credit for. They have put actual credits at the end of the movie. Not just a list of who's in the movie. They list the cast member and their character name. THANK YOU! This has never seemed like it would take much effort, yet there are very few studios who do it. Thankfully, this isn't the only positive thing. The plot is pretty good, and the acting is much better than average. The audio is pretty clear and well balanced through most of the movie, and the video is very clear. Unfortunately, there isn't much of anything for extras.

Raincoat Factor: medium low

Overall: Although 'Bad Penny' might make a good choice for somebody who's really nervous about watching an adult film, it will probably be fairly boring for adult film fans. It would also make a pretty good couples movie. The plot and acting are pretty good, but the sex is lacking. The DVD is also lacking on extras. Major fans of Nina or Tina may still want to pick this one up.

Themes: straight, lesbian