Kama Sutra: Positions Of the Perfumed Garden Review

Reviewed by astroknight  on  9/6/2005

The Little Details

Running Time: 56 min.

Production Date: 2002

Director: Kenneth Knoll

Cast: Linda De Villers, Ph.D., Bryce Britton, M.S., and Alexander B. Taylor, Ph.D. as sex therapist commentators and Tawny Roberts, Ricky Roberts, Sabrine Maui, Donald James, Lorna Payne, and Jason Creed in sexual roles

The Short Story

Initial Expectations: Instructional videos on Eastern sexual techniques sometimes lose me for getting into the spiritual aspect a bit much. I’m always curious about this type of movie, but at the same time also a bit apprehensive.

Initial Reaction: It’s a bit limited due to the softer style of camera work, but still has plenty of new positions for people to try.

Who Should Watch It : Anybody interested in the Kama Sutra or different positions

Who Should Avoid It: Anybody wanting a release that goes into the spiritual aspect of the Kama Sutra

The Technical Stuff

Audio /Video Quality: The technical aspects are nicely done. The audio is clear and well balanced, with both the voiceovers and the performers appearing at the same level. The video is also nicely done. There’s just a hint of grain, but that is also somewhat due to some of the footage being slowed down to match the voiceover a little better.

Music: The music has a very soft feel, and somewhat surprisingly keeps a very western feel to it. It works well for the feature, and helps to keep it romantic.

Menus: The main menu is okay. It nicely lays out the choices and has a little animation throughout the menus to give a good first impression. There isn’t any chapter menu.

The Feature

The Perfumed Garden was written by a Tunisian scholar in the fifteenth century. It’s a bit more playful and bawdy than the Kama Sutra, and focuses more on the genitals. Like the Kama Sutra, though, it was also written by just one person. After talking generally about how different positions work better for different people due to different body styles, it moves through many of the different major position breakdowns with a little talk about the strengths of each style. Man on top, female on top, side-by-side, kneeling / lying, sitting, standing, and rear entry positions. It nicely points out positions that might be a little too acrobatic as well as positions that might work extremely well for one partner while giving the other a bit of a break to let things last longer. It also offers tips for orgasm control and gives a quick recap of positions that are best for G-spot simulation.

Positions of the Perfumed Garden is a pretty good educational release. I really like how the voiceover frequently pointed out benefits and limitations for the different partners for each positions. The doctors also add nicely to the feature without interfering with the demonstrations too much. The positions are normally nicely demonstrated with the narrator adding in a few details about the different positions. Most of the time it worked pretty well, but with how many variations there are for each position it also lacked a little for me. The release works very hard to not show any penetration or naughty parts below the waist, and there were several points in the feature when I found myself wondering what differentiated one position from another. There were also times when I had a hard time wondering how any penetration was to occur with the positions. With a little more graphic camera work, I had a feeling that these questions would be answered pretty well. Finally, the feature came off as a bit clinical due to some of the language of the voiceover. All that said, there’s still a lot of information here that is, for the most part, nicely presented. Although it has a few minor problems due to its limitations, Positions of the Perfumed Garden is a nicely done instructional feature that should help couples spice up their sex life.

The Extra Stuff

The photo gallery contains over forty nice looking snapshots. There’s also a positions menu that lets you see each position in a small window at the side of the screen. It’s okay, but would be much better if you could see the positions better.

The Down -n- Dirty Sex Stuff

Themes: Straight and educational

Raincoat Factor: High

Condom Usage: None

The Bottom Line:

Currently, Romantic Arts’ DVDs can be found online at many mainstream stores for around $15. If you’re interested in this release, I’d definitely recommend at the very least renting it. There’s a lot of information here, and although it lacked a little due to its limitations, it didn’t do a bad job of it. The technical aspects are nicely done but there isn’t much attention given to the extras. This is a nicely done educational release.

Note to Romantic Arts: You did a great job with your feature. I hope you expand the extras a little on your DVDs in the future, as right now it’s the only thing which seems to be lacking.

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

Other reviews by Astroknight