Master Strokes Review

Master Strokes

Cast: Vicent [sic] Kulinsky, Caio Garcia, Alex Villaboas, Allan Worth, Carlos Nucci, Gustavo Franco, Walter Soares, Dan Scarpa, Clovis Arnaud, Jaime Ayres, Henry Baynes, and Lucas Canigia (none identified by clip or scene, so I don't know who's who).

Director: Max Julien

Release date: 12/15/01 (box), ©2002 (opening statement)

Length: 88 min.

Extras: Previews for Legendary Bodies and The Minute Man Series.

Audio/visual quality: The videography is competent. The focus is consistently sharp, and the angles are pleasing. Artistic images are intercut at appropriate spots. The nonsex footage in the first scene is black-and-white; all sexual action is in color. The last scene incorporates weird "dropped frame" edits and intentional audio distortion, which does suit the mood. Well-done motion effects lend a more animated aspect to several still images. Extra effort has gone into the soundtrack, which includes music that's germane to the individual eras and themes of each vignette.

Highlights: The three-minute intro supplies clips of the 25th anniversary celebration of the Stonewall uprising. The narration briefly explains the inspiration behind the erotic art featured in the four vignettes. At the conclusion of the movie, there's a nifty little set of bios, including contact info for the artists who are living.

Robert Mizer, Photographer (Two solos and nonpenetrative partner play) The year is 1957. A young bodybuilder sportin' a sandy blond flattop brings home the latest Physique Pictoral. A "dear diary" voiceover expresses his starstruck thoughts. He's a bit of an oaf, but a cute one. He does a casual workout and treats himself to a solo orgasm while admiring the athletic pinups on his bedroom walls. His Latin buddy drops by and enjoys the same experience after the blond steps out for beer. The blond returns and invites his friend to a wrestling match (in jockstraps), followed by playful spanking for not maintaining enough physical discipline. They both have great smiles, as well as good bodies. They snuggle into a bath, watching each other wank to second little pops. The narration takes a twist mid-scene, when our hero abruptly confesses that he'd like to jack off while watching his buddy assfuck Mary Lou, the local small-town slut. I can't quite decide if it's meant to be funny (it might be), but it's a somewhat jarring moment in a piece that's otherwise sweet with innocence and longing. Time: 24:05. Rating: 4 stars.

George Quaintance, Painter (Solo) A muscular vaquero peers into a bunkhouse, where the paintings of Quaintance have mysteriously come alive. The models disappear like a dream, leaving the handsome ponytailed cowboy to care for his own raging hard-on. The lighting is rather odd (very red), but it plays nicely along his sleek contours while he plays with himself. He ejaculates toward the camera from a standing position. Time: 9:55. Rating: 3.5 stars.

Kristen Bjorn, Photographer (Two solos) A bronzed young man slowly strokes himself in a garden near a beach. The scene shifts indoors, where slides of Bjorn's work appear on a live model's body and the background walls. The indoor stud messes around with the projected models, pretending to lick and caress them. Sounds a little goofy, but I actually like this part—the images jumble together in an interesting fashion, much like an optical illusion. The action then cuts back and forth and superimposes until the two studs eventually finish up. I do wish there was a little less scenery in this scene, if you know what I mean. The camera operator keeps panning away from the outdoor stud to show us a little more of Rio. Time: 16:24. Rating: 3.5 stars.

Bill "The Hun" Schmeling, Illustrator (Multiple solos and nonpenetrative bondage & domination) A young brunet lands in jail. Suggestive graffiti and graphic drawings of prison domination are scattered about. This is soooo not-my-thing: although I was open-minded when I first encountered BDSM, much of it now strikes me as contrived and irritating. I can't imagine what BDSM fans will think of this scene, either, since it's ultimately all bluff and no rough. Regardless, it is well shot, from a technical point of view. There's an extended, menacing tease by looming leather cops, accompanied by strong overtones of interracial gang rape, but no actual penetration (except in the illustrations, where there's a lot). This leads to multiple ejaculations, a few of which land on the prone brunet's buttocks, and one of which lands on his face. A couple of those sprays come from offscreen sources, but they look real enough. The brunet finishes with an authentic, hands-free orgasm of his own, which is very cool. Time: 28:18. Rating: 3 stars, based on the artistic merit and sheer volume of climaxes—it's a shame there isn't a chapter break to allow the viewer to skip ahead to these.

Thumbs up: I'm all agog over the antique physiques. I need to find more of those photographs. And yup, this whole movie truly does place a creative spin on the standard hunky guy solo wank fare. I like the dovetailing between the artistic images and the live action. While viewing other adult movies, I've encountered unfortunate instances where intercut footage undermined the sexual heat, but I never felt that was the case here.

I'm not sure whether this counts as an "up" or a "down," but I should note that the Master Strokes performances tend to be more "class" than "crass"—there's no anal stimulation, no cum eating, and not even a single tacky toy in sight. The men do fiddle with their nipples and foreskins, but the self-stimulation is generally very cockcentric. I didn't particularly notice until I started listing the themes (see below), so I guess the effect on my enjoyment was neutral. Other viewers might feel differently, one way or the other.

Thumbs down: Must the decor ever include color combos like red (blanket) and yellow (pillowcase)? It's so…McDonald's. No, seriously, that first scene was looking great in black-and-white, and it would've been smarter and ballsier to keep it monochrome throughout. And how much effort is required for an editor to cut or mask any edge clutter that reveals "outdoor" action was shot on a stage? I caught a minor continuity error with a necklace, as well. Viewers tend to expect higher standards from artsy movies than from other porn, and this one would've benefitted from a little more attentiveness in places.

Themes: Masturbation (primary theme), bodybuilder physiques (primary theme), weightlifting, wrestling, spanking, undressing, bathing, bisexual fantasy, voyeurism, outdoor sex, facial, bondage, domination, leather, uncut cocks, body hair, multiethnic cast.

Condom use: None (n/a).

Juice-o-meter: Medium high for the first scene, where I notice the Latin guy also oozes a lot of pretty precum. Lower for the rest.

Final analysis: Although I've made some nitpicky criticisms, I still think Master Strokes pays a nice tribute to homoerotic art. It's a rather different kind of movie, probably best appreciated by fans of solo male erotica and/or the depicted work. I didn't know anything previously about any of this art, and now I'm inclined to go read up.