California Gold Review

Reviewed by dano  on  3/31/2003

First Word: This was the best available for rental recently, and I had seen a lot of interesting stills on the radvideo.com site, so I decided to check it out.

Video: California Gold
Studio: Junior Studio
Director: Richard Morgan
Date of Production: August 2000

Cast: Christian Owen, Lee Walbash, Jasper, Clint Fox, Tommy Saxx, John Roberts, Chris Masters, Eli and Jason Nichols

The Story: Christian Owen narrates a story about how he and his friends "found gold" in the forest areas not far from Los Angeles.

Scene 1 (Lee Walbash): Lee, the taller guy on the cover, is riding his motorcycle shirtless and pulls over on a beautiful overlook to take a leak. Inspired by who knows what he gets back on his motorcycle and jerks off. Lee is a bottle blond with a nice enough physique who, despite his short stature, has a long dick. Unfortunately, it's not very appealing, as it is skinnier than two fingers and has a crook in the middle that makes it look like a boomerang. In less than five minutes he nuts on the gas tank and rides off.

Likes/Dislikes: I usually find jerk-off scenes to be pretty boring, and despite its brevity this one is no exception. I actually felt sorry for Lee as the shape of his dick appeared to prevent him from comfortably stroking its entire length--seems like he was short-changing himself.

Scene 2 (Christian Owen and Jasper): Christian, in his debut appearance (and as a star, no less), and Jasper find a place under the trees to relax after riding their bikes. Christian is very cherubic, with ruddy cheeks, sparkling eyes, and a toothy smile. Like Lee, Christian sports the bottle-blond look (I guess they had to fit into the "gold" theme). Jasper is quite handsome himself, with reddish hair and pale, freckly skin. After some chit-chat, they take turns rubbing lotion on each other. Christian teasingly reaches inside Jasper's waistband, which leads to some kissing and then extrication of hard dicks. They take turns getting on their knees to suck the other, with Jasper having a pretty easy time with Christian's thick dick but Christian having a tougher time with Jasper's even thicker dick. Down on the ground they 69 in a couple positions before Christian jerks off a huge load that partially lands on Jasper's ear. Jasper unloads just as impressively on Christian's chest.

Likes/Dislikes: This was actually a pretty good scene and nice introduction to Christian. The lighting was not consistent because of the different cameras and angles, which was annoying, especially when the action was in a strong shadow. The sucking wasn't spectacular but it was good enough for any fan of college-age guys getting it on, especially when they unleash big loads.

Scene 3 (Clint Fox and Tommy Saxx): Clint and Tommy are off into the woods for some bird-watching (who younger than my grandparents goes bird-watching?). They look sexy walking along in their cutoffs, and it's not long before they find a place to make out. With big ears, crooked teeth and beady eyes, Clint is a little goofy-looking (think Alfred E Neumann personified), but in an endearing way. Tommy is the porn veteran who seems a little out of place in this video (everyone else looks college-age) with his rough and older looks. They are soon naked, and Clint sucks on Tommy's fat, uncut piece before Tommy take's a turn on Clint's upward-curving one. Clint rims Tommy a bit before fucking him missionary, then they flip-flop. Tommy's taking of Clint is the only one in the video where we see anything of the initial penetration, and Clint gives us a good expression as it happens. Clint ends up ejaculating while riding cowboy, and Tommy shows that he's quite the shooter.

Likes/Dislikes: I didn't find either of these guys that appealing, though clearly Clint is the best sex performer of the video. He does it all and he does it well. This was one of the many scenes where the flies became rather pesky; their intrusion really detracted from the heat of the moment for the viewer (as well as for the performers, I'm sure).

Scene 4 (Christian Owen and John Roberts): For some reason Christian and John have to dog-sit for a friend, so they take the dog for a walk. They can't interest the dog in playing Frisbee, so they toss it back and forth between themselves (and look like wusses doing so). They find a clearing, spread out some blankets, and make out in front of the dog. John Roberts is a really skinny guy with teeth that are too big for his mouth, but he is one of the most sexually demonstrative performer in the video. After exchanging sucks, Christian gingerly fingers John's shaved butt before John climbs aboard Christian. They switch to an interesting position where John is on his back, ankles overhead, and Christian is on his knees but leaning way back and resting on his hands. This gives a great view of penetration but does not allow for the hard thrusting we should have been seeing and, in fact, makes it look like they are trying to avoid any contact other than the penetration. Christian provides the only cumshot of the scene as he jerks off onto John's crotch.

Likes/Dislikes: It was good to see Christian as a top here, but the fucking was so tame it ended up being a disappointment. I would have liked him to take more control and really give it to John. Maybe he didn't find John all that desirable. I don't blame him.

Scene 5 (Chris Masters and Eli): Chris experiences the ever-present "car troubles" and pulls over to let the SUV "cool off." Eli, who is doing mechanical work on something that looks more like a trailer than anything else, asks if he can help. Chris takes out the only thing he needs help with and soon Eli is on his knees sucking the biggest dick in the video. In a very quick sequence, Chris sucks Eli a bit (maybe five seconds) before we see Chris rolling a condom onto his uncut dick. Chris fucks Eli in a missionary position on the ground for a minute before they move to the tailgate of the SUV for more of the same. Chris is a big fella all around, with a very serious look, while Eli is a good-looking Hispanic who thankfully has not succumbed to the standard porn look of shaving all his body hair. Chris cums on Eli's crotch, but unfortunately Eli never gets hard or ejaculates.

Likes/Dislikes: Although sex on a tailgate is an extreme visual turn-on to me, this scene was terrible for two big reasons. One is that the performers never established a connection on any level, and this failure clearly came across. The other is the simulated use of a condom. This is the only scene of the four with anal sex that we see someone actually putting on a condom, a preparatory step that should be shown more often in porn. Although we don't get close-up shots, it's clear that Chris is not wearing a condom while he's fucking. This is most apparent near the end where he withdraws his dick to do some finger-fucking at least twice and we can his dick is bare. Not so bad, right? But right before he ejaculates he pulls out his dick and then flings a condom that he has been hiding on a finger, as if he were tearing the condom off his dick (watch it in slow motion), before spilling his seed. Now I'm sure condom use is often simulated in porn, but when the simulation is done so blatantly it looks as if the producers are taking us viewers to be fools. It would have been better to leave this scene out.

Scene 6 (Christian Owen and Lee Walbash): Christian is riding around in his new car when he runs out of gas. I swear, porn stars should not be allowed to drive. He raises the hood and waits for help (he must be the only guy in California who doesn't have a cell phone so he could call for help), and soon Lee is riding down the street on his motorcycle (editing problem noted: when Lee pulls up the hood of the car is closed). Lee gives Christian a ride back to his place to get him some gas. They chat a bit, letting us know that Christian has been out since he was 16 and Lee is bisexual but that if he knew more guys like Christian he wouldn't have to make any choices. Their sex scene is all-oral as they suck each other and then 69. Christian gently tries to finger Lee's ass, but Lee will have none of that. Christian kneels over Lee and jerks off into his face, aiming the first volley right between Lee's eyes (a very nice facial). Lee jerks off onto Christian's chest, which we don't see very well because of the shadows (this scene was shot near sundown, so the shadow problem is noticeable throughout this scene). Then they retire to the hot tub for more kissing.

Likes/Dislike: Normally when you have two stars whose scene you're building up to you want to have a sizzling scene. While I can understand that neither of these guys wanted to bottom here, I think it's an expectation that one of them would. And if they're not going to have anal sex, at least the oral sex should be memorable. But even here neither guy is an expert. Nevertheless, I sensed that they had fun together, and the cumshots were spectacular, so no sizzle, but no fizzle.

Scene 7 (Clint Fox, Jason Nichols and John Roberts): In the final scene, Clint and Jason fondle themselves as they drive their red convertible to the same location we've seen before. John joins them in his red bug, and they sit around and smoke (Jason and Clint do, anyway). Jason, another average-looking guy, and Clint both let on that they were gymnasts at one time, while John admits only to an expertise in having sex. Jason and Clint each perform a tumbling routine while naked and sporting erections (after all, the word "gymnastics" is derived from the Greek term for "nude"), and then it's down to a nice 3-way. They all give and receive in a couple suck-and-rim chains in and around the car, John services the others, and Clint does the same, even taking both cock heads in his mouth simultaneously. They try a few combinations involving anal action, with Jason topping John, who rims Clint; Clint topping John, who rims Jason; Jason topping John, who sucks Clint; and Jason topping Clint doggy-style while Clint sucks John. As before, Clint ejaculates while getting poked, then John shoots several volleys cross-wise over Clint's chest (and Clint has an interesting reaction to seeing the cum fly by). Jason ends things with a full load onto Clint.

Likes/Dislikes: As 3-ways go, this was pretty good as all parties stayed engaged throughout. I liked the gymnastics but wished their talents could have been put to use in some more exciting positions. This would have at least made the scene remarkable.

Audio/Visual: All the scenes were shot outdoors. While I like outdoor sex in porn, it does pose challenges for the producers. The background noise is harder to control, and the sex sounds are harder to capture, so either more dubbing is needed or music is added. I liked the music in this video, but the dubbing is noticeably below average, preventing you from hearing much of the action (or maybe the performers really were silent). Another problem is lighting, and this was a problem the producers did not quite handle well either. Some scenes were too dark, and some shot in sunlight had action obscured in shadows. The nature shots shown during action transition were nice touches, especially the two butterflies being rather playful. But the flies! They intruded on every scene. No amount of repellent (seen being applied in the "behind the scenes" feature) seemed to help.

DVD Features: If there's one strength of this DVD it's the features included on the DVD. First there are interviews with Christian Owen, Lee Walbash and Clint Fox, in which they talk about themselves or the making of the video. Christian comes across as a very intelligent 18-year-old. The interviews serve as a backdrop for some behind-the-scenes footage. There are hot previews of five other videos from Junior Studio: The Heartland, The American Way, Feels So Good, The Hollywood Kid and Hard Action, the last being a "pre-condom" flick from 1990. No distinction is made as to which are available on DVD, however. There's an extensive photo gallery, and of course a scene selection feature with one selection per scene. This was more than I've seen in DVD's from bigger studios, so I was impressed.

Bottom Line: After graduating from high school, Christian Owen left his New England roots for fame in Southern California. He had a measured approach to doing porn, appearing in four videos over a one-year period for well-established directors (Richard Morgan and Kevin Clark, masters of "twink" videos, Wash West, and Joe Gage). But he abruptly left porn in 2002 after a much-publicized relationship with porn promoter Jason Sechrest (and I don't know whether there's a cause and effect there). I detected a little apprehensiveness, as might be expected for a first-time appearance, but I did think he showed a lot of promise in this video. Whether this was fulfilled in his later videos I can't say, but I do know he developed quite a following in internet forums. If you like Christian Owen, you might like this video since he's in three scenes. The other models don't have the same appeal as Christian, but most give good performances. Other than that, I'm not sure there's much here. I liked the outdoor settings and the scenery (Gold Creek Ranch, Angeles National Forest, and Dry Gulch Ranch in Malibu), but the challenges of outdoor shooting were not always overcome. With seven scenes you'd expect a lot of action, but the total time of the video is 81 minutes, or less than 12 minutes a scene. This leads to a lot of quick edits, and we are never really allowed to warm up with the action in a scene before it's over. Christian and his friends may have found gold in California, but I did not find gold in this video.