Photoplay (VCA) Review

Reviewed by Principal Skinner  on  11/14/2000

PHOTOPLAY stars VCA contract girl and breathtaking beauty Vicca in a "Bud Lee Joint" about the trials and tribulations of a photographer (played by Tice Brune) for dirty magazines. Appropriately enough, Vicca and her comrade in sex, Nikita, play models, and of course these these slender, long-legged beauties fit into their roles like a condom. Actually, brunette cutie Stephanie Swift plays the photographer's estranged wife, who seems to be handling her husband's career just fine whenever she finds solace in the arms (and other body parts) of Colt Steele. Since fair is fair, Tice also gets his shot at his models, and everyone else seems content to have sex with one another (if only my life were this complicated).

Obviously, the appeal of PHOTOPLAY does not lie in it's story and screenplay (which isn't exactly up to David Mamet standards), but in its sex, which is plentiful, though not outstanding. However, I have always found Bud Lee to be at the very least, a competent and serviceable director, with occasional flashes of excellence (demonstrated in CENTERFOLD, and in the more recent LADIES NIGHT OUT). Admittedly, it's hard to ruin a porn video when the eye-batting presence of Vicca is around (although many directors have tried), especially when she performs in three of seven "above average" sex scenes, including a threesome with two guys where she allows (condomed) anal penetration as well as an all-girl foursome with Angelica Sin and Rayveness.

For the sake of objectivity, let me admit that I am one of those gushing fans of Vicca who can just stare at her rocking body for hours upon end (well, maybe not for hours) and be fully satisfied (then again, maybe not). Both Vicca and Nikita have done better work, especially in Elegant Angel's THE COMING OF NIKITA and COMING TO BEVERLY HILLS, but this DVD is a good introduction to these imported beauties. Stephanie Swift fans should find satisfaction in her straight scene, which is good, but not great. To me, Stephanie's career best performance was amply demonstrated in SEX SAFARI (reviewed elsewhere on Adult DVD Talk) where she performs in each and every scene, so watching her here was a less interesting experience.

The bonus features on this disc are excellent, and include the obligatory photo gallery, a couple of trailers, and a brief interview with the director himself. One of the extras available on PHOTOPLAY is a series of fairly complete scenes from Bud Lee's other works for VCA, most of which had not yet been released on the DVD format. In particular, I was happy to see the Francesca Le/Nick East scene from CENTERFOLD, which, in its simplicity, is one of the hottest I've ever witnessed. Of course, it helps that the gorgeous Ms. Le also happens to be one of the most carnally uninhibited performers ever to appear in adult movies, despite her short stint in the industry. Just watch her amazing expressions as she sucks and fucks the very lucky Mr. East with incredible energy and desire. Bud also captures one of the best (if not a little too brief) anal shots as Nick pumps her doggy style while the camera closes in for a close-up of the hardcore action. Of course, this scene is available in its complete form on CENTERFOLD itself, which stars the former Mrs. Bud Lee, Hyapatia, herself. However, that disc had an minor, but nonetheless annoying defect running for the first 10 minutes of the feature (which just happens to be while Francesca is strutting her stuff) where a noticeable horizontal line would appear throughout the bottom half of the screen. The excerpt found on PHOTOPLAY exhibits no such problems, which has to mean that the original master source used to press the CENTERFOLD disc had been damaged, or was from a lesser quality source. Although this may all seem like nitpicking, this scene is such a favorite of mine that I want it preserved on the digital format in the best possible condition.

As is the standard for VCA, picture quality and sound is excellent. Although this is one of their earlier releases for the DVD medium, PHOTOPLAY demonstrates the excellence maintained by the company (except for their noted problems with CENTERFOLD) throughout their catalog of movies.