Dinner Party 3: Cocktales Review

Reviewed by astroknight  on  10/19/2004

The Little Details

Running Time: 127 min.

Production Date: 5 / 21 / 2004

Director: Nicholas Steele

Cast: Carmen Luvana, Terri Summers, Dee, Lana Moore, Kimberly Kane, Isabella, Dominica Leoni, Lauren Phoenix, Lola, Summer Sweet, Lonnie, Cheyne Collins, Randy Spears, Billy Glide, Mickey G., Evan Stone, Joey Ray, Steven St. Croix, and Dale DaBone

The Short Story

Initial Expectations: Nicholas Steele has been kinda hit or miss for me. That said, Adam & Eve has really waited a long time for this one, including renaming The Fiesta, which was originally to be The Dinner Party 3. That reason more than anything might be why I have hope for this movie.

Initial Reaction: It’s often beautiful, but just as often doesn’t get too hot.

Who Should Watch It : Anybody wanting highly artistic and creative porn

Who Should Avoid It: Anybody wanting nastier porn

The Technical Stuff

Audio /Video Quality: The technical aspects are very well done. The audio is clear and well balanced, and the levels change a little throughout the movie in places to give it a bit more depth. The video is very well done and presented in anamorphic widescreen. There’s just a hint of grain through most of the movie, which does a great job of giving it a slightly more artistic feeling. There are a couple places where the grain gets a little heavier, but it actually fits those portions and helps give the movie an even more artistic feeling.

Music: The music is very well done. The style varies throughout the movie, as does the balance. It helps give the movie much more depth, and makes it feel like the extravagant feature it is.

Menus: The menus are okay, but surprisingly are presented in the full screen aspect ratio. The main menu looks okay, and blends a few clips from the movie with an easy style. The chapter menu is pretty average, and lets you choose a scene based on a small clip of each scene and a scene number.

The Feature

Carmen’s husband had a tradition of throwing lavish dinner parties. When he dies, she’s determined to let his spirit live in a little bit by carrying on the dinner parties just as if he were still with her. At his parties, people bare their sexual souls. They can either tell a story of one of their wilder sexual adventures or share a sexual fantasy.

Scene 1 - Carmen Luvana and Billy Glide

Carmen starts things off talking about when she hired Billy, her chef. They play with a little whipped cream back and forth before Billy drops down to tongue Carmen’s completely shaved cunt and run his mouth up and down her legs. She rewards him with some knob gobbling, and takes him into her mouth as much as she can before laying back on the counter for Billy to fuck her missionary style. She turns around so Billy can take her from behind and then lets him pop on her ass to finish things up.

This is an okay scene. Carmen and Billy put some very nice energy into the scene, and seem to have good chemistry as well. Carmen gets into the scene to the point that she starts crying out in Spanish, which is always a good sign with her. The only thing that holds the scene back is the style of the camera work. For ninety five percent of the scene it seems like it’s a combination of penetration close-ups or distance shots where you can’t see anything because there’s something in the way to block the penetration. I really have movies which feel like softcore movies with a few penetration shots thrown in, which is just what happens here. This scene has a lot going for it, but the style holds it back from getting as far as it might have gone.

Scene 2 - Lola and Evan Stone

Lola and Evan hook up as part of his fantasy of fucking a complete stranger in what seems to be almost a Victorian setting. The building they want to enter is locked, so the two of them decide to get it on instead. They help each other strip down before Lola takes Evan as far into her throat as she can manage while stroking away on him. Evan eats her smoothly shaven pussy in return as she stands in front of him before having her turn around so that he can fuck her. They rearrange their clothes on the stone staircase for a little missionary and reverse cowgirl before Lola finishes things up taking a nice facial.

This is a very hot scene. Lola and Evan have great chemistry, and the artistic feel of the scenes works much better. It still has some of the softcore with hardcore snippets feel, but it works much better here due to the dark lighting and overall flow of the scene. There’s a lot of quick edits and motion that make not seeing the penetration as well feel natural, and I think the scene works very well. This is a very nicely done scene.

Scene 3 - Kimberly Kane and Steven St. Croix

Steven’s fantasy involves the time of ancient Rome with his handmaiden Kimberly. They start out with some passionate kissing before Kimberly pulls up his tunic to wash his cock before trying to blow dry with plenty of spit. When he’s ready, Steven helps Kimberly strip down and lets her ride him in the mandatory reverse cowgirl. They keep things going in doggie and mish until Steven busts a nut on Kimberly’s stomach. Being a good handmaiden. she gets right up to suck out the last few drops.

This is a pretty good scene with a great artistic setting. Kimberly and Steven keep things moving and have very nice chemistry. The camera work falls somewhere between the first two scenes. It doesn’t stand out as bad as it does in the opening scene, yet it doesn’t work as well as it did in the second scene. I was a little frustrated with the style, but Kimberly and Steven had enough passion flowing between them that I was still able to get into the scene quite well. This is a hot scene.

Scene 4 - Terri Summers and Dale DaBone

Pop star Terri gets it on with Dale in and around her pool next. They help each other undress before Dale stoops down to lick and rub Terri’s shaven slit. Terri returns the favor with some nice knob gobbling before climbing up for a reverse cowgirl ride. Terri also lets Dale fuck her from behind before finishing things up stroking himself onto her tits.

This is an okay scene. Stylistically, this is a great scene. It does an excellent job of capturing the music video feel from the camera angles to the editing to the lighting. It even throws out all audio from the performers to leave it with just music for the audio. Sadly, the lack of audio from the performers and the camera focusing on softcore shots left this scene feeling sexy but not hot. In the end, I’ve gotten more tingly feelings in my pants walking by a shoe display than I did from this scene.

Scene 5 - Dominica Leoni and Randy Spears

Randy’s fantasy is next, and brings things into the horror realm as vampire hunter Randy finds Dominica’s coffin just before dusk. They kiss before Randy drops down to tongue Dominica. He takes a ride on the wild side by letting fang faced Dominica suck his cock before climbing up for the reverse cowgirl ride. Dominica stays in control with a cowgirl ride, and even teases Randy’s neck with her teeth. Finally, she gets down on her knees to finish things up with an impressive facial and sucks out the last few drops.

This is a very nicely done scene. There chemistry is very nicely done, as are the camera angles. Once again the scene has more of a softcore than a hardcore feel, but it works better in this scene. There’s very nice energy and the scene flows well. The artistic look works well for the scene, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s nominated for an award or two.

Scene 6 - Lauren Phoenix and Cheyne Collins

When Lauren goes outside to enjoy a fag, chauffeur Cheyne follows her back inside when she’s done smoking. They strip each other down in the hallway and passionately kiss their way around each other before Lauren’s mouth wraps itself around Cheyne’s cock. They don’t bother with any oral action down under for Lauren, and instead go right to Lauren getting fucked from behind. They work in a little missionary action as well before Cheyne splatters his seed all over Lauren’s gorgeous face.

This is a hot scene. The camera work has some of the usual problems, but they don’t seem quite as bad here due to the tight confines of the hallway. It helps give the scene a little more claustrophobic feel, which combined with Cheyne and Lauren’s chemistry and energy makes this a winner of a scene.

Scene 7 - Dee, Lana Moore, and Mickey G.

Dee takes a trip to the dark side with Lana and Mickey after the girls find futuristic warrior Mickey asleep in a chair. They strip him down and team up on his cock before Dee rides Mickey’s face and cock. Lana hops onto Mickey’s face and plays with Dee before letting Mickey bone her from behind. Dee slides on a strap-on while they fuck and moves around to fuck Mickey from behind while he bones Lana from behind. Finally, Mickey gives Dee a very impressive facial while Lana pulls a string of beads out his ass.

This is a hot scene. I know that it makes some people uneasy, but it’s done pretty well here. The nearly softcore style of shooting doesn’t work nearly as well as it does in other scenes here, although I did really like the setup for the scene. The scene also feels fairly cut up, especially since things go directly from Mickey taking the strap-on from Dee to popping on her face while Lana pulls the string of beads out his ass. It’s pretty, but once again falls short of where it might have been.

Scene 8 - Isabella and another girl

Isabella and another girl team up for the next scene. It’s really hard to tell because the scene is shot in water with a black light and the girls painted with different colors to stand out. They roll around and kiss in the water and even mix in a glowing double dildo. They go back and forth caressing, kissing, and fucking each other before the scene fades out.

I can see this being a very hard scene to shoot. The lighting is low and it seems like it would have to be very precise. The only thing I can see that would be harder than shooting this scene would be getting off to this scene. I barely got any chemistry out of this scene and the dark location didn’t let anything else take over for the lack of chemistry. This scene made me very happy to have a remote control.

Scene 9 - Summer Sweet and Joey Ray

Blonde Summer and Joey start out the penultimate scene romantically on a bed. They roll around a little on the white sheets showering each other with loving kisses before Joey sticks it to her missionary style. They keep things moving along with a little spooning and both cowgirls until Joey pops all over Summer’s smoothly shaven slit.

This is a nicely done scene. Joey and Summer really look to be into each other, and the softer feel of the camera work fits the loving feeling of the scene very well. There’s a lot of passion here, and its captured very well with beautiful camera work. This is a hot scene.

Scene 10 - Carmen Luvana, Terri Summers, Summer Sweet, Lauren Phoenix, Dee, Steven St. Croix, Randy Spears, and Evan Stone

Things finish up with a cast orgy. The couples all start out together and quickly works from oral into fucking. Dee and Evan quickly move past the oral into the fucking while Lauren and Terri do a great job of showing their oral skills on Randy and Steven respectively with Carmen working on Terri and Summer working her way between Randy and Lauren. Each guy fucks his way around his women, and Summer seems to disappear before things get too far along. Finally the guys blow their nutty goodness all over their partners before just laying around.

This is an okay orgy scene that ends the movie on a disappointing note. There are some things which are done very well, such as the camera work. The camera does a nice job staying back so that you can feel like you’re really seeing what’s going on. It moves in and out nicely, but often feels afraid of Evan and Dee. On the other side of things, none of the couples ever mix it up with other any of the other couples. Since the movie is supposed to be about sharing your sexual fantasies and exploration, this really disappointed me. At the very least it seems like Carmen should have made her way among the groups to be the good hostess and make sure that everybody’s enjoying herself, but none of the couples seem the least bit interested in anybody outside of who they came with. This leaves the orgy feel okay on its own, but a major disappointment as a part of the movie.

Dinner Party 3 really leaves me with mixed feelings. On one hand, it’s beautiful. Nicholas Steele shows a great artistic eye and does a fantastic job bringing in several different feels to the movie. He covers everything from soft and sensual to driving and dangerous, and each scene has its own feel. This did a great job of reminding me of the original The Dinner Party, and makes me think of Dinner Party 3 as a very worthy sequel. He also does a very nice job with the cast and their roles, as he’s given many of them a different attitude that makes the movie seem a bit expansive, covering a wide variety of sexual thoughts and attitudes. Dinner Party 3 has a lot going for it in the right direction, and is very easy on the eyes.

Unfortunately, that’s not enough to make a great porn movie and I found almost as much to hold the movie back as to push it forward. To start with, there’s Carmen Luvana in the lead role. Carmen can do a very good job sexually, but here she just seems wrong. She doesn’t capture the attitude needed for the role and delivers her lines with all the emotion of a half empty carton of ice cream. I know that English isn’t her first language, but the exotic feel of it doesn’t work nearly as well in reality as it might on paper, and I couldn’t help but think that things would have been so much better if Lauren Phoenix or Terri Summers would have been in her role instead. Terri would seem like a natural swap as Carmen’s long half blonde / half black hair would seem to work perfect for the pop star scene. The camera work was also very hit or miss for me. It often had some very quick edits, and it seemed like it preferred softcore shots where you couldn’t see any of the penetration mixed with close-ups of the penetration where you couldn’t see anything of the person’s reaction getting fucked. This style always annoys me, and although it worked here better than I think I’ve seen it an any of Nicholas Steele’s other movies, it still disappointed me as often as it worked for me.

In the end, Dinner Party 3 is an extravagant piece of eye candy. It’s pretty to look at and would probably work very well for magazine stills. Unfortunately, it often has a cold feel and seems like it’s afraid of the sex, and falls short of its goal because of it.

The Extra Stuff

The only extra on the first disc is a commentary between director / producer Nicholas Steele and director of photography John Noz Muka. They talk about setting up the scenes, things that happened on the set, and mostly about the cinematic aspect of the movie rather than the sexual aspect. They keep things flowing nicely as they talk, and at times you can sense that this movie is a work of love and passion for them. Other times it just seems to be a huge work of ego for them. Nicholas Steele can have a very artistic eye at times, but there are times here when he really comes off like he looks down his nose at people who want to watch adult films for the sex. The commentary is also hurt by a loud hiss in the background that really stood out at some points. I was also a little disappointed that Nicholas and John decided to take a break every time a sex scene started. This gave the commentary a very disjointed feel and added to my feeling of Nicholas not really being in adult films to shoot sex. It wouldn’t have been quite as bad if the movie audio came up to the same level as the commentary was, but instead they just disappear after saying they’ll be back in a little bit. Sometimes it even seems like what they’re saying is cut off by accident. In the end, this is an okay commentary. Nicholas and John give a fair amount of information about shooting the movie, but I think it would have been much better if they would have had a star or two join them.

Most of the extras are found on the second DVD. Trailers are included for Rawhide, Vortexxx, and Behind the Mask. The photo gallery includes over one hundred excellent looking snapshots. There’s also weblinks, bonus scenes, and a behind the scenes featurette.

The behind the scenes feature lasts over forty minutes and breaks things up scene by scene. You get to see both the scenes being shot and some of the people between takes. There’s also a bit of the crew setting things up and Nicholas Steele working with the cast. Some of the segments run a little long, such as the dinner sequence since it seems overly cluttered and busy at times, but it also works in my head since I’m sure that shooting porn movies isn’t completely organized and flowing process. Of course, with Randy Spears, Steven St. Croix, and Evan Stone there’s plenty of fun to make up for it. Overall, there’s some nice behind the scenes segments here.

There’s also a couple photo gallery featurettes. First is one on the script, which shows some of the ideas being put forward in pictures and sketches as well as actual pages from the script in what’s basically a sixty picture photo gallery. There’s also one on the boxcover. They aren’t overly interesting featurettes, but for people interested in them they’re a nice addition. I also like them because they’re so different from the usual extra.

Bonus Scene 1 - Christie Lee and Steve Drake

The first bonus scene is never before seen footage shot during the filming of Snow Job with Christie and Steve and is presented in anamorphic widescreen. They take a break to be alone, with Christie appearing to be talent in the movie and Steve being the “director”. Nice guy that he is, Steve decides that he should fill Christie’s need for sex for the day, and quickly starts groping her. He kisses his way around her ass while she plays with herself and even lends her his tongue and a finger to help. She sucks and strokes him in return, and even tries taking him to the back of her throat. Christie moves on to ride Steve in the cameraman favorite reverse cowgirl before letting Steve take her from behind. Finally, Christie lets Steve stroke himself onto her face, and takes it with her eyes open for most of it and a small smile on her lips until she wraps them back around his manhood to suck out the last few drops.

This is some nice extra footage. It works as extra footage more than as a normal scene as the editing is a bit rough and there’s a few minor video problems. That said, there’s some nice heat here. Christie and Steve look like they’re having fun and keep things moving nicely. It works very nicely as an extra, and definitely has me looking forward to seeing more of Christie Lee.

Bonus Scene 2 - Christie Lee, August, and Cheyne Collins

Christie and August head into Cheyne’s room to find him laying around on his bed for the second bonus scene. Cheyne asks them what’s up, and rather than answering him with words they decide to show him. They work out his cock and kiss each other before teaming up on Cheyne’s cock orally. August moves up to ride Cheyne’s tongue before coming down when Christie asks for a turn eating her. Cheyne lets Christie lap away at August while he fucks her from behind and then moves up to give it to August missionary style. The girls keep it going with a little doggie and cowgirl, and make sure that nobody’s ever left out. Finally the girls team up on Cheyne orally one last time until he blows his nutty goodness on August’s face.

This has a bit of an amateur feel. The editing is a little rough, things don’t always go entirely smoothly, and you can even hear a bit of the crew. That said, it’s also a really fun scene. Cheyne and the girls look like they’re having a blast, and they all put plenty of energy into the scene. I love how they keep things moving around and never leave anybody out. Even with its faults it’s a surprisingly strong scene that’s worth checking out.

The extras don’t end on the second disc, however. There’s also a twelve page cocktail recipe guide. It’s filled with pictures from the movie as well as drinks such as the Golden Orgasm, Pump Me Upside-Down, and the Pearl Necklace. It’s a great little extra and it helps with the overall presentation of the package.

The Down -n- Dirty Sex Stuff

Themes: Straight, food play, group, male anal penetration, toys, and lesbian

Raincoat Factor: Medium high

Condom Usage: Between Evan Stone and Lola; Dale DaBone and Terri Summers; Mickey G, Dee, and Lana Moore; Evan Stone and Dee

The Bottom Line:

Currently, this DVD can be found online for between $22 and $35 with stores offering it everywhere in between. I’d strongly suggest renting this one first as I suspect it will either really work for you or not work that well at all due to Nicholas Steele’s style. The technical aspects show some very nice care and the extras are very well done. This is a great release as long as you like Nicholas Steele’s style.

Note to Adam & Eve: With a cast this size and a move of this scale, a cast listing by scene would have been a great addition as would several more chapter breaks rather than just one per section. Also, having the menus be in a different aspect ratio than the movie made them seem a little cheap.

If you have any questions or comments, please e-mail me .

Other reviews by Astroknight