Still In High School: Double Boxed Set Review

Reviewed by astroknight  on  4/13/2004

NOTE: This is an amateur video. Amateur and homemade movies don’t have the budget nor the resources of studio porn, and therefore rarely get close to the same quality technically. I’m rating this DVD on the same scale, but most homemade or amateur features would rarely make it above a 3 on the standard scale I use for studio porn for their technical aspects. The performers also aren’t normally the ‘glamour stars’ one expects from studio porn, and instead use people who look like somebody you might encounter in your day to day life. Finally, the camera work has a different feel, as it’s often shot from a tripod or with somebody who doesn’t have the technical training or experience of professional cameramen. That said, amateur and homemade features have a great charm to them, simple because the people in them are doing what they’re doing to have fun and because they enjoy it. All the things that separate them from studio porn contribute to that charm, I hope people will keep that in mind when checking out this review and not just look at the ratings as the ultimate word on this release. Since the technical aspects are normally lacking and there normally isn’t much for extras in amateur features, I’ve weighted my overall rating more heavily towards the sex than I do in most studio porn.

The Little Details

Running Time: 141 min.

Production Date: 2000 - 2004

Director: None credited

Cast: Mandi and Alex

The Short Story

Initial Expectations: I’ve been pretty impressed with what I’ve seen from Pixie’s Emporium, and went into this set with some decent hopes.

Initial Reaction: It’s a great first time feature and reminded me why I’ve liked so much amateur porn lately.

Who Should Watch It : Anybody wanting fresh talent and emotions that feel real

Who Should Avoid It: Anybody wanting nastier sex or top notch technical aspects and camera work

The Technical Stuff

Audio /Video Quality: The audio is pretty clear but the balance leaves a bit to be desired at times. There’s also a bit of crackling at times which interferes slightly. The video is pretty good, especially for an amateur feature. There’s a little grain, but it’s very nicely lit. There’s a few minor problems, such as a bit of camera shake and seeing the cameraman in the mirrors, but nothing really interferes with things too much.

Music: There’s a little dance music in the background for a little of the movie. It adds a little, but not much. It’s a bit more prevalent in the first disc, and is actually provided by the radio in the room for that feature. This amused me a bit, but at the same time helped with the home movie feel of the feature.

Disc Complaint: There’s a watermark in the lower right corner of the screen. I mention it here because I know that a lot of people really hate watermarks. On the plus side, it’s clear and it stays there consistently throughout the feature so that you can put it out of your mind fairly easily.

Menus: The menus are pretty simple. Neither the chapter menu nor the main menu are animated, but they still look nice. The main menu presents the choices in a pleasing way which fits the feature very well. The chapter menu lets you choose a scene based on a small clip of each scene and a title for the scene.

The Feature

The Still In High School Double Boxed Set collects Still In High School: Who Needs a Boyfriend and Still In High School: The Lost Footage. Since I’ve reviewed both of the single releases already, I’ll concentrate on some general points here. Both movies feature Mandi, a cute brunette with a great body, and her redheaded partner Alex. They’re both eighteen years old and still in high school (hence the title). This set collects the first two releases featuring them.

You can see a very nice progression watching the Still In High School set. Both Mandi and Alex start out extremely shy, to the point that the cameraman has to leave the room. They gradually learn to deal with having him there, and by the end of the set you can see them taking a few directions without having to pretty much stop the action to do it. This makes things fun, and even helps you to see both Mandi and Alex better as people. They come across as very human, rather than a celebrity porn star on a pedestal that many people can’t relate too.

That feeling of humanity permeates the entire being of this release, and is a big part of what made it work so well for me. Yes, there’s little things such as camera shake, abrupt cuts, and the stars obviously dealing with the cameraman, but these are part of the charm. More importantly is that everything feels realistic. You don’t see Mandi and Alex trying positions that make you wonder if they’re also Olympic gymnasts. Instead you see them working through the standard positions that everybody remembers trying when they were a teenager or first started having sex. Sometimes it goes just as well as that also. Things don’t come across perfectly, but they do come across realistically and they laugh and joke about it with a little embarrassment just like most everybody else who had it happen to them did.

As for negatives, I think the only negatives that the set had were the ones which were put on it. Being Mandi and Alex’s first time, they’ve limited the action to just the two of them. There’s a little masturbation, but not much, and there’s never anybody other than the two of them. There’s also the technical limitations, but those are to be expected with amateur porn, and I thought that the job here was average at worst from what I’ve seen of amateur porn.

In the end, I’m extremely happy with the Still In High School Double Boxed Set. The action is very enjoyable, and after watching several of their movies, you can see that Pixie’s Emporium is trying to improve their product little by little. There’s nothing extra here beyond what you get on the single disc releases, but they’re packaged together at a great value. If you’re at all interested in either Still In High School: Who Needs a Boyfriend or Still In High School: The Lost Footage, make sure you have a couple extra bucks and just pick this set up instead.

The Extra Stuff

The photo gallery lasts about a minute and three quarters in the first feature and two and a half minutes in the second feature with about three seconds per decent looking full screen photo. There’s also a nicely done commercial for Pixie’s with Mandi.

The Down -n- Dirty Sex Stuff

Themes: Straight, amateur, and toys

Raincoat Factor: High

Condom Usage: None

The Bottom Line:

Currently, many double boxed sets from Pixie’s Emporium can be found online for about $17. This one is well worth the money, especially since the single discs run about $13.

Note to Pixie’s Emporium: These double sets are great! I hope you keep releasing them!

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

Other reviews by Astroknight