Icon (VCA) Review

Couples Friendly: Yes. It has a plot, doesn't contain extreme or bizarre fetish material or male or female degradation, and has only one anal scene (CP and his significant other are not anal fans, but "to each his own" said the old lady, as she kissed her cow). Studies indicate that perhaps as much as 10% of the heterosexual population in the U.S. practice anal sex somewhat regularly, but it seems to me that nearly every "couples" film these days has at least one scene through which we fast forward. Statistically, if there's one anal scene out of six per given "couples" film, we're approaching 17%. Just an observation ...

Plot: Gwen Summers is a public relations-type in a company owned by Dillion Day. Via observation and an aura of general horniness, she discovers that Day has implanted a subliminal "icon effect" in TV ads that cause viewers to screw like bunnies and then get stupid. While their comas aren't permanent, according to Day, the "icon effect" is addictive and billions of dollars are at stake. When Dillion realizes that Gwen realizes that this thing is dangerous and Day is dastardly, she's chased down to keep her quiet. The "subliminal" effects on the ever-present monitors throughout the film are credited to other VCA features: Diva 1 & Diva 2 by Michael Ninn,and Indigo Nights and Infelicity (both courtesy of Dino), but they're just teasers.

Director: Dino Ninn (Ninn is also credited as writer and for the original score)

Cast: Gwen Summers, Gina Ryder, Isabella Camille, Julie Meadows, Shelbee Myne, Pat Myne, Mark Davis, Dillion Day, Evan Stone, and Marty Romano.

From: VCA Pictures

Production Date: March 2001

Condom Use: Prevalent

Raves and Rants: I love Gwen Summers, she's a peach. She tries hard to act dramatically, and she's hotter than a mis-fired pistol. Julie gives as good as she gets, and Gina, I love her, too. Heat in several scenes is great. The premise is cool, but poorly executed. As a whole this picture could have been much more than what Dino's turned out here. The plot is an excellent hook, but the script has been mauled. The story could have been better fleshed out, and more comfortable and appropriate settings could have been established for the actors. One of my pet peeves is that the actors' credits were misspelled in the titles, and the KNIN advertisement or web-page (which contains the subliminal implant) includes a note for a "Free Trail [sic] Offer," which shows up on all of the monitors throughout the film. Titles don't take much effort to get right (this is just typing and spelling, folks). What distresses me about spelling gaffes is the apparent disregard for quality control. What happens is you see them at the beginning of a film and it follows that the producer, director, or editor just doesn't seem to give a crap about what kind of end-product gets sold. I often believe these kinds of gaffes foreshadow a similar low-grade effort in the film itself, and it's evident in this case. Billions are being made in the art of porn. I don't begrudge that, but if it's PR'd as a quality product, then give us quality product. Hey, better yet, hire me -- I can do titles!

Who Might Like It: Couples looking for some lite Friday night sci-fi fare, and fans who would have liked to have seen a hardcore version of The Matrix.

Who Won't: Matrix fans looking for a quality hardcore version of their warped wet dreams, and gonzo fanatics.

Audio: Voices are synchronized and echo is minmal, except as noted in one scene, below. With a half-way decent home stereo system, the overall sound is OK, but through headphones, one can detect a problem with the stereo signal, with left/right pans where there shouldn't be. Maybe the sound editor got creative, I haven't figured it out. Unless you're a porn fan who's also sound engineer, it probably won't bother you.

Video: Exellent videography, picture is clear as a bell on a 28-inch tube, and also on a 21-inch PC monitor. There are no multiple camera angle options on this DVD. Lighting is interesting throughout, with colored lights in several scenes.

Music: Original score by Dino Ninn, who also wrote the screenplay. Looped samples, sounds like -- not exactly inspirational, nor do they stick in your mind, but serviceable.

Run Time: 01:30:56

The Flick: The film begins with Gwen Summers, as a production exec of some kind, working with Evan Stone as sound producer, and Gina Ryder, who is supposed to provide a voice-over for an advertisement for KNIN (some kind of what ... we don't really know) from inside a sound booth. Gina can't do any work while watching the KNIN clip, she loses it for a moment, and Gwen isn't happy because of her tight budget. Evan convinces Gwen to leave, promising that he'll get the ad completed, but Gina is overcome again by the ("cheesy" comes to mind) images on her monitor. Evan's afraid she's had some kind of breakdown and enters the booth. Upon his looking at the monitor, too, shennanigans commence. While the script may leave much to be desired, Gina and Evan chalk up a winner in this scene and their synergy is evident. Lighting is appropriate for a sound booth, but some might want more close-ups. I thought the scene was well done and it aroused my prurient interest (or whatever I call that thing at any given moment). I've always thought that Gina is a firecracker, and she proves it here.

Exhausted, Evan and Gina snooze. Gwen comes back and can't wake them up. She consults with Pat Myne and Marty Romano, apparently video producers, and asks Marty to bring up the KNIN promo -- she has a hunch that this video had something to do with the overload she witnessed in the sound booth (Pat is skeptical and heads for the bathroom or the 7-11, he just kind of disappears). Marty punches the KNIN spot up for her on his monitor, and very quickly we're monitoring Gwen and Marty, starting to get down. I love Gwen, and she was outstanding in Nothing to Hide 3 and 4 and Vengeance, but lately she seems to have modeled some of her act on the Teri Weigel method, so sometimes she vocalizes a little too much. That said, she's absolutely fantastic, but sometimes I think a lot of screaming and heavy panting masks either a jaded actress (in that particular scene) or an over-zealous director. Or, in my own dream, it just could be that she goes absolutely nuts when aroused. I guess the thing is, is that she is so attractive and so exciting singularly, she certainly doesn't need to go overboard to get my attention. As she heats up, though, some of the apparent over-acting disappears. Gwen teases Marty and the viewer with a slow strip until she demands a licking, and we carry on from there, with an enthusiastic BJ, missionary, reverse cowgirl, and doggie, until Marty slowly pulls off his condom and comes.

It appears that Dillion Day is monitoring Gwen and Pat's coupling via a hidden camera. Oh oh, the plot thickens, not to mention Dillion's plot, which rises with the entrance of Shelbee, and the observation that Dillion is the mastermind behind the "icon effect," which is going to make oodles of money (we don't exactly find out how). Their relationship is presented here as parasitic, or symbiotic, or maybe they just like to do it in the office. Audio-wise, there's an echo, probably because of the stark office furnishings and lack of carpet and curtains. The big boss' office is pretty damn small, but its small size results in monstrous close-ups; the camera guy was probably parked on Dillion's back for a couple of shots. Artistically, there is some nice creative light and lens work with strong backlights and mirrored images from the desk (also, Dillion is no slouch in the pouch, as the girls will certainly note). Well shot and edited video-wise, it's a hot coupling, but we fast-forwarded through the "anale finale".

Flash to Gwen waking up from her coupling with Marty, who is dead to the world. Dillion, apparently immune from the "icon effect," sees her wake up on his office monitor. He's furious! Looks like trouble, but we have no idea why, and he calls security to grab her. Here's where we start to get an idea as to what's going on. Gwen is shown running through some kind of warehouse, intercut with scenes of Dillion screaming about losing his company. Yikes! Gwen, run away! Gwen hits the highway.

Cut to Circuit City, or something similar. What the hell? Mark Davis and Julie Meadows (as Cathy, which is the first screen name we've heard) are deciding what TV set they want to buy. Gwen calls Shelby on her cell phone because she needs to talk to somebody about what's happening. Oops, the KNIN visuals are on in the TV store, and Shelby and Mark get "sex-merised," of course, despite Gwen's frantically imploring Julie not to watch it, but of course there wouldn't be any intercourse if she didn't. Both Julie and Mark are professionals, but even so, they both make it an arousing scene through natural chemistry or experience. Unfortunately, via some funky editing, you might think you're watching an old karate film, with some strange cuts, sound that doesn't appear to match certain cuts, and slo-mo cuts that must have been inserted to fill time. Foreplay fans will love this scene, though, as digital and oral antics go on for nearly 10 minutes before poking and prodding begin. Gonzo fans might want to fast forward at this point, I understand foreplay isn't really something that's highly regarded in that genre. Julie looks like she's pretty turned on, given her sharply pointed nipples and the swollen, rosey hue of her nether parts. Standing doggie, an energetic reverse cowgirl, and more standing doggie precede Mark's pop shot on Julie's breasts.

Just to mention again, we're an hour into the movie here, and still "trial" is spelled "trail" on the "icon effect" screens. Didn't anyone on the set notice???

Gwen's still on the road when Dillion calls her, trying to set up a deal, probably a double-cross. Gwen wants to expose the threat and enlists the help of a friend at the company to obtain a copy of a tainted tape as evidence. Oops. It's Isabella, and she wants Gwen to check it out to make sure it's the right one. Gwen! Watch out! Don't look! But of course both girls check the tape on a digital camera's 2-inch screen, and the girls shortly go rabid on each other. Hey, that's CP's kick, two girls, but this one didn't quite do it for me. Maybe the rooftop setting (well, it is a clandestine meeting, afterall, I guess), but the set-up's a little lame and besides that, the girls just don't seem really turned on. Neither Gwen nor Isabella seem interested, and given the set's appearance, I frankly don't blame them. It's dark, it's too obviously staged, it just doesn't really adrenalize the viewer. This scene probably could have taken place in much more comfortable surroundings for Isa and Gwen, which could have resulted in more heat, and better camera work, and better edits. These girls are both hot as hell, we all know it, but unfortunately they don't get to show us because of the staging -- it looks like a strip-show routine and there must not enough have been enough material to edit into a really erotic scene. Again, I think Gwen's growling and grunting giggles and squeals indicate that she might not just be having the best time of her life, and she's making up for it vocally.

Duplicitous cell phone conversation between Isa and someone unknown -- I don't want to give you folks everything! Suffice to say that Gwen's caught and strung up in some industrialized basement. Shelbee comes in to wrap up the crime, and the plot. Suddenly Pat (Myne ... remember him?) comes in to save the day and romp with Gwen after he has a fight with Shelbee. Shelbee disappears and Pat and Gwen wrap themselves up in the moment, after they both inadvertently stare at the ICON in the ever-present monitors. The environment, the set, half-Alien and half-Matrix, allows for some acrobatic accomodations (it's maybe the elevator room or the generator room of an office building) and some creative camera shots. The music score for this scene sucks, I'm sorry to say -- wayward Gothic, if there is such a thing (it needed some righteous techno). The sex is very hot, however.

Menus: The main menu is simply organized and in addition to Play Movie, includes Jump to a Scene (chapter selection), Star Bios (for Gwen Summers, Gina Ryder, Julie Meadows, and Shelbee Myne), Photo Gallery, Other Titles (trailers for Dark Garden, Being With Julie Ashton, and Cap'n Mongo's Porno Playhouse), Virtual Tour (a four and a half minute advertisement for VCA Interactive DVDs), an Internet connection to VCA (accessed through Windows Explorer or other file management program [visit_us.htm], it directs you to VCA Interactive; when the htm page is opened via Explorer the gif files on the web page don't show up, and your PC will need to be accessing the web via DSL or dial-up -- it's just as easy to enter the web address in your browser, in my opinion -- or even click on the link above), and Contact. The animated Play Movie menu is a 60-sec. round of fade-in/fade-out of the movie's sex scenes, but if the viewer doesn't select anything (including PAUSE), the movie starts at the end of that 60-seconds. Hey VCA dudes, it might take a few minutes to get an iced bourbon alongside the waterbed, or our costumes on, or to set up the trapeze, so try to not start without us! I'm not a control freak but I certainly enjoy pushing the Start button, if you know what I mean. Thanks!

Extras: The Star Bios don't provide any real information; from each star's menu you can jump to one of her scenes. The photo gallery consists of about 20 stills that run automatically, about six seconds per pic. Selecting Internet gives you a 30-second promo for VCA's website (see above about the visit_us.htm web page on the root directory of the disc) but if it's in your PC's DVD drive, it will not connect you to the VCA Interactive website. I couldn't find any easter eggs, even though the Virtual Tour advertisement mentions that VCA Interactive titles have them (as "hidden menus"). I might not have the patience or expertise -- write me if you find one.

Themes: Straight, anal, girl-girl.

Conclusion: Icon is currently priced from $15 to $30. At the low end it's probably a decent deal -- otherwise, consider a rental. If you have any reaction or comments about this review, please e-mail me at cpost513@hotmail.com -- CP