Wicked Wishes Review

Distributor: Wicked Pictures Edition Details: Standard DVD Movie Specs: Genres: Feature Film Also known as: Wicked Wishes: Reflections on the Life of a Sex Therapist Run Time: 103 minutes Rated: XXX Release Year: 2000 Director: Fred J. Lincoln (as F.J. Lincoln) Written by: J.P. Jones, Patti Rhodes-Lincoln (as Patti Rhodes) Cast: Alexa Rae (as Alexa), Briana Banks, Julie Meadows, Kelsey Heart (as Kelsey), Lola, T.J. Hart, Evan Stone, Devin Wolf, Lee Stone, Marty Romano, Erik Everhard Release Specs: Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: none Video: Full Frame, 1.33:1 Video Format: NTSC Format: DVD Regional Code (for DVD/Blu-ray): 0 (All) Number of discs: 1 Disc: DVD 9 (SS, DL) Special Features: All Access - The Making of Wicked Wishes, Interview with Lee Stone, Interview with Lola, Star Galleries, Behind the Scenes Photos, Audio Bios, Promotional Material, Photo Gallery, AVN Awards - Winners and Nominations, Company Profile, Trailers DVD-ROM Special Features: Wicked Casino, Wicked Web Hyperlink

Synopsis:
Therapist Alexa holds a retreat for couples needing help with their relationships. Once there, everyone starts messing around with everyone else all in the name of therapy.

Video/Audio:
Wicked Wishes is presented in the full screen aspect ratio, 1.33:1, which appears to be the original aspect ratio for the film. The picture is perfect with not a blemish or artifact in sight. The color levels are perfect.

The 2.0 English Stereo track is decent, but has its problems. The biggest is that some of the sounds in the film are unnaturally exaggerated. For example, the sound of Alexa and Devin Wolf walking just before the first sex scene in the film sounds horrible. No other language tracks and no subtitle options are available.

Chapters/Time Code:
There are ten chapters available from the main menu for Wicked Wishes. They are identified by a video clip from the scene and by a title for the scene, similar to mainstream discs. The chapters work well in allowing decent navigation through the film. There is a time code for the feature film, so time searching is available.

Special Features:
As per their norm, Wicked has packed this disc with extras, some that have to do with the feature film and others that are their standard extras. First up we have the feature film specific extras. All Access - The Making of Wicked Wishes is probably the best extra on the disc. It is a 15 minute behind the scenes look at the making of the feature film. The interview with Lee Stone is a four minute piece, unfortunately Lee Stone's voice is much lower than that of the interviewer. The interview with Lola is a short one and a half minute piece. Audio biographies are a combination piece featuring text information, audio information, pictures and a Wicked filmography for Alexa, Lola, Kelsey, Devin Wolf, Evan Stone, Briana Banks, Julie Meadows, T.J. Hart, and Lee Stone. The standard photo gallery contains 20 stills from the film on a track. The behind the scenes photo gallery contains 16 photos with shots of the crew in them on a track. The star galleries contain a photo gallery for Alexa, with 50 photos on a track, Lola, Kelsey, T.J. Hart, Briana Banks, and Julie Meadows, each with 20 photos on a track.

Now onto the standard extras. Unfortunately, for those who have seen a recent Wicked disc, these are always the same, down to the same previews. The promotional materials are the adult expo reels for Wicked Pictures for 1998 through 2001. The AVN Awards winners and nominations piece is a text feature covering the nominations and then the subsequent winners for Wicked Pictures for the years 1994 through 2001. The company profile is another text feature that gives a short history of Wicked Pictures. The available previews on the disc are Hell on Heels, Knockout, Dream Quest, Sex Safari, Working Girl, Pornogothic, The Bride of Double Feature!, The Kissing Game, Vengeance, Satyr, Double Feature!, and Flashpoint. An unlisted extra is an advert for the Free Speech Coalition.

DVD-ROM Special Features:
The DVD-ROM extras are the Wicked casino and the Wicked web hyperlink. As I don't have a DVD-ROM drive, no further information on these extras is available.

Review:
Wicked Wishes, although boasting a decent cast, fails on many levels. First lets visit the good aspects of the film. The sex scenes are great. The cast has great energy and interacts well with each other. The sex is relatively tame, despite the presence of some anal scenes, and should be good material for exploratory couples. For viewers who care, to the best of my memory, condoms are used in all of the sex scenes. The sexual themes in the film are oral, vaginal and anal sex with fingering.

Now onto the bad aspects of the film. First off the script is awful. You will find yourself cringing back on the couch when you hear the lines that are coming from the casts mouths. And while on the topic of the cast, while they all might do a great job at fucking, acting is not one of the fortes of most of the screen talent. Or at least no evidence of talent is discernable here.

The camera work is rather poor throughout the film. At times it appears as if the film has been processed from a widescreen image to a full screen image, but since the film's original aspect ratio is full screen, it turns out to just be shotty camera work.

The Money Shot:
While Wicked has created a great disc, the film on the disc is not so great. If you are a fan of any of the stars, this film may be of interest to you. Viewers who like porn with a plot and couples stand the best chance of liking this film while viewers who hate a plot in their porn or like nasty sex will probably be very disappointed. If you are interested, I recommend a rental first.

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