Fashionistas, The Review

Review QuickFind:  Sex Scenes: Disc 1 | Sex Scenes: Disc 2 | Conclusion

The plot…
The Fashionistas could be described as an old-fashioned love triangle where Helena, played by Taylor St Claire, and Jesse (Bella Donna) vie for the attentions of fashion designer Antonio (Rocco Siffredi). However, that would be to paint too simple a picture, as the story examines a psychological and sexual struggle for dominance among the protagonists, with a backdrop of the "fetish" fashion scene and deeper links into the BDSM subculture.

Dominant Helena, as the boss of a fetish wear company called Fashionista, uses a specially made DVD, as well as the gift of her little submissive girlfriend, to draw Antonio into her web - but it slowly becomes clear, as the relationships between Helena, Jesse, and Antonio develop, where the power behind Helena's throne lies. Jesse, Helena's lover as well as her creative powerhouse, is not quite the little mouse she first appears, far from it.

As Antonio's career is reeling from scandal and his new stylistic direction leaves him at odds with his usual customers, chiefly department store buyer Lesley, played in gloriously bitchy fashion by Caroline Pierce, he needs the boost that Helena's designs can provide. He's also a more than willing voyager on the sexual journey that Helena offers.

Helena, meanwhile, is scheming that Antonio's connections will boost her own career and company and is prepared to use all of her abundant powers of sexual persuasion to ensure Antonio is brought under her spell. She reckons without the secret, dark desires of Jesse, who has her own eye on Antonio. The ensuing struggle is played out over the course of several explosive sex scenes, where the mood is predominantly rough and the action features a good measure of sub-dom action as well as powerful fucking. It's set against a backcloth of live S&M shows and some exquisitely created fantasy bondage scenarios where Jesse's dark dreams are brought into startling reality. Exactly how this all transpires, I shall leave to the viewers to find out, because this is very much a must-see movie, even though I can't guarantee everyone will like it.

In truth, the wider setting for the story isn't as persuasive as the chemistry between Rocco, Bella and Taylor. It's this latter feature that really draws me into this movie; in combination with the power of the sex and the tasteful, mature way the aspects of BDSM and rough sex are incorporated into the hardcore action. I didn't find many of the characters very appealing, there's a certain meanness that really puts me off (people I trust have also observed this about Face Dance Obsession, Stagliano's last feature, and a movie, ironically, I enjoyed) Some of the dialogue makes me cringe, and though there are strong central performances from the massively talented Taylor and Bella, Rocco, for my money, struggles with the script and poor Manuel Ferrara, as Rocco's assistant, shows that acting, in English rather than his native French, isn't his forte. Yet. Fortunately, he, like Rocco and frankly every single performer in the movie, is hugely gifted in the sex department, which is where Fashionistas really stands out.

The sex…
The Fashionistas is endowed with a selection of mighty hardcore scenes, and John resolves the old plot v sex argument by allowing plenty of time for both, making this an epic movie. I should note immediately that every scene is laden with characteristic Stagliano imagery displaying women's bodies to glorious effect, but he surpasses what I've seen from him before - Bella's bondage scenes are among the most memorable images I've ever seen in a porn movie. All the girls he's chosen have amazing backsides (of course!) and costumes of choice are an impressive array of specially made latex numbers. It's perfectly possible to pick over this movie in detail during the course of repeated viewings and notice little details such as the way a boob springs back when released from a nipple clamp and the highly perceptive framing of breasts and faces and butts. First time I watched it, though, I was knocked back by the staggering intensity of Bella's performance in particular.

DISC 1 | top | disc 2 | conclusion
Kate and Rocco
The first sex of the movie happens when Antonio (Rocco) falls into a honey trap set by Helena (Taylor) in a neighbouring hotel room. He spies on Taylor punishing Kate Frost with a good old spanking, and can't resist when Taylor leaves and the submissive, looking irresistible in a clinging silver latex catsuit, offers herself to him. Whack! He continues the spanking, frees her pierced tits and supplies her with a doggy fuck in his inimitable style. He fetishises the rubber thong that traps Kate's pussy, wrapping it round his cock.

When Kate peels off the catsuit, Rocco nuzzles the sweet sweat from her glowing skin and eats her pussy as she sits on his face. The action further lurches into a mass of sweaty ass licking, butt-fucking toe-sucking fun, with lots of lusty energy and roughness. After some spit-soaked, deep, deep oral, a dildo helps Rocco open Kate's ass for his tool. Rocco makes full use of Kate's delightful derriere and Kate lets us know all about it! After, he covers her mouth with the catsuit and spunks over the rubber. Helena makes herself known, and tantalises Rocco by giving her slave girl a naughty, come-coated kiss. On reflection, I think I liked this scene best from the whole movie (maybe; maybe it's a draw with Manuel and Caroline and the Bella/Rocco finale) - even with "enhanced" tits and the odd tattoo or piercing, I think Kate is pretty cool and I like her husky, or "whiny", voice. The sex is rough but fun and has a little more warmth to it, rather than harsher attitude of some later scenes.

Bella and Taylor
Jesse (Bella) gets home from work and de-stresses by chugging a beer and dancing naked while watching an amazing video of herself being dominated by the imperious Star Chandler. The visual aspect alone of these domination scenes is quite outstanding, but the action is 100% for real - Star Chandler doesn't pull her punches. The other outstanding visual quality is the incredibly flexible form of Bella Donna as she slowly gyrates most enticingly to some excellent music - the soundtrack and the use thereof is another strong point of the movie.

But this is about the sex, which kicks off when Taylor returns to find her girlfriend in this private erotic show. With brief inserts of the slapping, spanking and bondage in the "fantasy" domination video, we see Taylor dominate Bella. The submissive is made to eat ass and endure the exquisite torture of Taylor's face sitting. Taylor uses her voluptuous physique to control Bella's breathing as she is smothered with pussy, ass and ample cleavage. Great shots of Bella biting on Taylor's nipples and pulling them way out lead on to some harder fuck action - Taylor four-fingers Bella's pussy and then uses a glass dildo and another huge glass cock on Bella's ass.

It's a shame that fisting was apparently filmed but not used, for the very real problem of obscenity prosecutions and conservative distributor's policies. I won't start on my censorship hobbyhorse, but I am very sad that a film like this, which deals with strong sex in such a mature, composed manner and does nothing out of cheap sensationalism or outrage, couldn't include a fisting scene. I don't blame John Stagliano, of course. But it makes little sense to then see Bella taking a glass dildo, which has a head almost the size of a girl's fist, right into her ass in a most intense and powerfully erotic scene, to which Taylor's blatant psychological manipulation of her girlfriend adds a certain emotional charge.

Sharon, Friday, Taylor and Rocco
The final act of the first half of the movie is a scene played out after hours at Helena's fashion company HQ, where Rocco has been trying on some latex trousers to see how they feel. It's another set-up by Helena - this time he finds blonde two playmates waiting for him in the form of pale, severe-looking Sharon Wild and the cartoon curves of Friday, whose silicone assisted chest measurement can only be inches less than her height! Both girls are dressed in maid outfits made of natural latex (glowing, well-spanked ass cheeks look great trapped in this material!), Friday sports a mask to go with it, and the pair are eager to fish Rocco's cock from his clinging pants and supply him with enough cock sucking and rimming to drive any man crazy. Rocco takes full advantage, treating the girls roughly, especially Sharon, who spills globules of saliva as Rocco masterfully throat fucks her.

Both girls are spanked, slapped and thoroughly fucked by the rampant Rocco, though Sharon clearly has his favour, before Helena arrives on the scene and takes charge. For apparently the first time, certainly the first time I am aware of, a woman on film dominates Rocco. And who better to do it than Taylor, her full, natural curves wrapped up in clinging red rubber? She grabs Rocco, slaps him and proceeds to smother him. Rocco ends up a willing submissive at the bottom of an admirable pile of female flesh, slapped, berated and drowning in pussy, as Taylor uses her own pussy and ass to smother him and then orders the two girls to break from fucking and sucking him to do likewise. As should be expected, John Stagliano supplies us with suitably up-front visuals to match the intensity of the action.

Taylor and Rocco
Eventually, the two are sent away and Rocco and Taylor go for it one on one. It's when Rocco starts to press his hand on Taylor's throat that she visibly melts and the tables are turned. It's pretty obvious that either in or out of character Taylor doesn't know the Italian stallion well, or she'd never have taunted him about his spanking - the goading question "Is that all you can do?" results in a flurry of blows to her big, beautiful ass, which soon glows like her rubber outfit, and launches Rocco into a frenzy of fucking. Maybe that was the desired result! He hammers his cock into Taylor's pussy, full bore, roughly manoeuvring her into one position after another. Her tits spill from the catsuit, which Rocco rips before burying his face in her snatch.

This is absolutely breathless action, with no time for a pause before Rocco squeezes his cock into her ass and arguably fucks it harder than before. Only breaks for ass-to-mouth oral provide Taylor with a respite from the ruthless, balls-deep anal onslaught. One might imagine that Taylor was glad of the chance to suck and stroke Rocco off onto her face to end the ordeal, but not a bit of it. She apparently took it all in her stride, even though she looks absolutely shattered - indeed, Taylor makes out on the DVD audio commentary that it was Rocco who was worried, about the female domination, and that for her part it was the heat in the rubber outfit that was making her struggle. Oh, nothing to do with the guy giving her the ass fuck of a life time, then!

Seriously, this is pretty severe stuff, expertly captured by Mr Stagliano and performed with breathtaking commitment by Rocco and Taylor. However, I have to quibble and say that there's an edge to the relationship between the characters that I didn't really like and also that the fact that Antonio ends up dominating Helena does somewhat undermine subsequent plot developments. It's a real plot vs. sex dilemma - I wouldn't like to give up seeing Rocco and Taylor together, but maybe it would have been better for the story to have Taylor to always be dominant. The problem is that as the story continues she regains the upper hand, which is harder to believe after we've seen her being well and truly mastered in this scene.

DISC 2 | top | disc 1 | conclusion
Bella, Billy & Mark
Bella's character Jesse is up to her own little scheme, meanwhile, producing a little surprise for Antonio in the form of a hidden scene on the promo DVD for Helena's latest fashion line (this promo itself takes the form of a mock news report, and is extremely funny and well done - sassy girls, including this amazingly sexy girl called Suzy Q who is apparently a dancer and sadly doesn't perform in the sex, waylay an unsuspecting guy). Much like the good old Evil Angel fetish menu, Bella offers Rocco a number of fetishes to enjoy on his DVD.

This is another visually arresting, deviously kinky scene, with Bella butt plugged, done up in an amazing mask and restrained in a frame. This time she's teamed with two hooded guys and subjected to various delicious tortures, each viewed as though they were a scene on the DVD. "Feet" first, featuring foot sucking, light cropping of her soles and foot wanking. Then "pussy" - the guys spread her pussy and attach clothes pegs to her lips. "Ass" - the clear butt plug is removed from her vulnerable ass and she sucks on it, as the guys insert various intriguing toys into her butt. "Tits" features a load of nipple twisting and the application of vicious little clips on tender tits, before "mouth" rather bizarrely shows similar treatment of her lips, which bulge almost grotesquely from the tight mask.

Then Bella throws her whole body into some astonishing blowjob action, though the word blowjob is entirely inadequate to describe her sword-swallowing feats here. She bends her body over backwards to ingest their pricks deep into her throat, gagging and spluttering till strands of drool hang from her glistening tits. Her performance is intense beyond reason, and it almost seems anticlimactic to have the guys just pop on her face. The sight of Belladonna in that memorable, improbable pose, with chains hanging from cruel clamps applied by Star Chandler to her tits and pussy lips is a more fitting ending to the scene.

As I mentioned, the visual impact of this scene is profound and the device of the DVD presentation is clever. However, I feel this presentation is both a strength and a weakness as the scene performs its function in the movie extremely well and supplies action of the type that's rarely seen in combination with hardcore sex (though in my view it should be, but that's another story), but the slightly clinical execution lends it a certain remoteness. Bella gives it everything, but I didn't like the way the guys are presented, as stoic masters who don't interact with her.

Live Show
Rocco and Manuel, along with Lesley (Caroline), are Helena's guests at an S&M club, where the entertainment, after some dancers and a show of Helena and Antonio's collaborative designs, takes a turn for the truly kinky, as a hooded male master gives the ample buttocks of his sexy slave a very stern whacking by hand and by implement. Performed by Kane and Casee, this is serious stuff, by the standards of spanking in hardcore porn movies, though I guess it could have gone even further. But it's convincing and craftily scored too. It works for me!

Then the masked girl from the DVD is brought out, chained up in the frame, and a hooded Brandon Iron does a good job with the nipple clamps and spanking of this slave. Antonio realises that it's Jesse, just as she's made to deep throat a dildo. It's a great moment.

Caroline & Manuel / Brandon & Monique
Before Rocco can regain his composure, Caroline and Manuel drag him off to the backroom, where the really hardcore leather, whipping, bondage, spanking, torture and even electro-shock action is going on. Caroline is a real delight as she samples the various pleasures on offer, and it's nice to see Ms Tricia Devereaux being reduced to a shrieking wreck by the electro-shock torture - and I mean that in the kindest way possible!

After Caroline had joined pony-girl Monique in deep throating Brandon, the action proceeds with Rocco and Manu manhandling the increasingly excited Caroline. Rocco, or should I say Antonio, gets nasty with a crop and some rope in a bid to get her to buy his line for her store, but Manuel sends him away to keep her to himself. It's just unfortunate that I don't find Caroline too attractive, because this scene is one of the sexual highlights of the movie: very physical, very intense and intimate despite the setting. That's not to say it's romantic - it's a mass of licking, grabbing, deep throating, spanking, slapping, spitting, foot-sucking, ass-licking, hair-pulling, raw fuck action which leaves buxom Caroline's big pale ass glowing with visible hand prints as she is pushed through a series of positions by the demanding young Frenchman till she's left splattered in come.

The main pairing is contrasted with Brandon and Monique in more deep throat and anal action, including the use of another of those wild glass dildos. It's a shame that Brandon and Monique are used, quite effectively as it happens, as a mere supporting act because I think Monique is beautiful, talented and has the attitude that merited a greater part in this movie - maybe next time? Otherwise, no complaints - in sexual terms, the Manuel/Caroline pairing is much more like what I like to see.

Taylor, Chelsea, Rocco & Gia
Back in the main room of the club, Rocco is examining pony-girl Gia's ass (she's got one of those bums like two boiled eggs in a silk handkerchief) when he's grabbed by Taylor, who rams his face into her pal Chelsea's red-rubber clad ass. He's dragged off by the hair and left in a corridor. He finds his way to another hall where sounds of SM action emanate from behind locked doors, eventually finding an open room where he finds that jewel butt plug, the mask and other accoutrements.

Suddenly he's grabbed again and quickly finds himself prostrate on the floor, being smothered by rubber-dressed bitch queen Taylor and her sexy, beautiful and profoundly irritating partner in crime Chelsea Blue. It's quite funny when Rocco calls Chelsea a "troia" (literally sow, but used to mean whore), not realising Chelsea knows what this means, and it's funnier still to see in the behind the scenes footage how Rocco tries to charm his way out of that one. But in the scene, it's whack! That'll teach him. Pony-girl Gia is on hand with a butt plug in her ass, with which Rocco is instructed to fuck her. She also adds to Rocco's discomfort, sitting on his face, as Taylor blows him. More tit smothering and face sitting action leads to Rocco being tied up in a chair, blindfolded and made to rim Taylor while Gia sucks him, before the sneaky women slip out of the room, leaving Rocco helpless.

My complaint about this scene primarily isn't what they do (though I've no desire to watch men being dominated, I don't object to it either) but the way that they do it. I would be delighted to have Chelsea sit on my face or be smothered in Taylor's ample cleavage but it's the verbal stuff that I find quite tedious - "Did I give you permission to talk?" etc ad nauseam. In the context of the story, Taylor's character is ultimately proved to be a shallow, empty-headed, heartless bitch so I guess this spiteful teasing of a semi-submissive Rocco is entirely in character.

I guess I have two pet hates about this sort of scene: one is verbal domination that too readily resorts to foul-mouthed abuse is a common flaw in the depiction of this activity in hardcore movies (this movie isn't a serious offender in that regard, just a little bit irritating). The other is that the dominatrix ends up on her knees sucking the sub's cock. On the DVD commentary track, Taylor admits this isn't realistic. Don't get me wrong, I am far from being an expert on this sort of material but I guess this is where my tastes and those of John Stagliano are at the greatest divergence in the whole movie. Some great imagery, again, but I really don't have a good feeling about this scene.

Bella and Rocco
Once Taylor and gang leave, Bella sneaks in and it's clear she set the whole thing up to give herself to Rocco, rather than letting Taylor keep Rocco to herself. Stripping out of her rubber dress, she presents her ass to him and he eats, still tied, blindfolded and unaware that this ass doesn't belong to Taylor (surely a connoisseur like Rocco can tell the difference!). Amazingly, Bella can stand with her ass on Rocco's face and bend right down and swallow his cock at the same time. This nearly gives the game away, the removal of the mask confirms it, and there's a palpable sense of anticipation before Bella bends her body into more remarkable postures as she deep-throats Rocco some more.

Just then, Helena (Taylor) storms in, seething, and the girls exchange slaps as they quarrel over Rocco. However, it's clear that he's made his mind up and the vanquished Helena slips away leaving Rocco and Bella for the romantic finale. Well, it was never like this in the old movies. It's another mind-bogglingly intense scene, firstly featuring a whole lot of deep throating in which Bella uses her whole body to deliver the blowjob - this sounds improbable, but it's true. She's totally, utterly committed to the act, and Rocco just uses her mouth and throat, leaving her spluttering, slavering, tears melting mascara.

Rocco fucks her from behind, jamming fingers in her mouth and slapping and spanking her as he ruthlessly rams into her, bending her pliable body as he does so. They fuck standing up, then in doggy on the couch, and then Rocco moves straight into her ass with no edit to permit preparation. Which brings us to the real issue with this anal scene, one of the rawest but most honest I'd say I've ever seen. If Bella's reactions are an act, I take my hat off to a most convincing performance, but that's not the way it looks. Despite being shot on film and the potential for that to make this seem less immediate, this just looks so real - the true credit is to Bella for her performance and to John Stagliano for not shying away from showing it as it is, i.e. the pain and the pleasure and the way Bella takes it all like it really means something to her.

After this, there's a little more laidback anal in missionary, Bella rubbing her clit with this glazed look in her eyes, and there's a sense of a sweaty intimacy before they pick it up again with reverse cowgirl anal, some choking, a break for a little more oral and yet more assfucking till Rocco shoots his load onto Bella's face, and they kiss.

This is a fitting finale to the movie - Rocco really pushes Belladonna to the utmost and she responds with such a whole-hearted, committed performance of quite startling intensity. It's hard to find words to do justice when I see someone like Bella giving so much in a sex scene, and still keeping it real. There are also many details that you can pick up on when you watch the scene again, from some great camera angles to the finer points of their interaction. Exceptional.

Overall | top | disc 1 | disc 2
As I appear to have rambled on at considerable length yet again, the conclusion will be to the point. There's just so much here that I feel like I've barely scratched the surface even though I've been struggling for months, much as I did with Rocco's Way to Love, to reconcile my feelings about the movie and put them into words. I don't want the fact that there are certain features that I didn't really appreciate or enjoy to obscure the fact that The Fashionistas is an excellent movie. The sex is amazingly strong, the fine cast, though not entirely my ideal cast, is possessed of masses of erotic ability, and the standards of overall quality in terms of lighting, shooting, costumes, music and style are absolutely beyond doubt.

Any criticism of the movie is relative, of course, and as Fashionistas is on a different level it demands criticism of a different nature. No plot to fault, no acting to criticise in a Red Light District movie, for example. The Fashionistas works on many levels, arguably the least of which is the actual story - the set-piece sex scenes and the interplay between the main characters generate a good deal more interest. John Stagliano's tale here intrigues on the personal level but the overall setting doesn't really grab me, even though it does make for the incorporation of some nifty story-telling devices. The acting is generally quite good, Taylor, Belladonna and Caroline Pierce really shine, but somehow the dialogue restrains Rocco from fully showing his natural charisma.

Ultimately, my biggest problem with the movie is really a matter of taste. After a good deal of reflection, and repeated viewings, I'd say that liked it a lot; there's a substantial amount of exceptionally strong action that I can really appreciate, I greatly admire the sheer attention to detail and the irrefutable quality of the production, not just the movie itself but also the presentation of the whole project on DVD (see below). But, and there's always a but, there's a certain feeling, a certain hostility, I suppose, about the movie that means I admire it but I suspect I will never love it.

Even though it's potentially hard work, I would still advocate that anyone should watch this movie. Why should the best be restricted to those in the know? You might not like it, but you will be better off for seeing it - The Fashionistas is the most thought-provoking, involving, fascinating, challenging and downright infuriating adult movie that I have seen.

DVD Comments
Such is the standard of the production of this DVD, it almost merits a whole review on its own. I shall spare you the chore of reading through too much more - suffice to say this is the best adult DVD product I have seen. The movie itself is of outstanding picture and sound quality and comes on two discs, accompanied by a full disc of extra features including a most fascinating "making-of" featurette and a soundtrack CD in a superb, glossy fold-out package. The soundtrack is excellent and fully merits its own disc - we are a long way from generic porn muzak here.

There are a ridiculous amount of extra features, on the movie discs and the third disc, from photo galleries to photo shoot footage to bloopers, pre-production coverage, castings, and other humorous moments - Easter eggs feature in the movie, and they feature on the discs too. There's also the option of a full commentary by John Stagliano with Taylor, Bella and Tricia Devereaux over most of the length of the movie, a very interesting option too and well worth checking out. All in all it's such an exceptional value package, it's worth every penny even at full list price.