The Private Adventures of Pierre Woodman 1: A Life Of Porn

Private

Genre: Compilation

Director: Pierre Woodman

Cast: Nikky Anderson, Pierre Woodman, Su Ann, Aliza, Tania Russof, Andrew Youngman, Mafalda, Phillipe Soine, Richard Langin, Roly Reeves, Katja Kean, Jean Yves LeCastel

Length: 136.5 minutes

Date of Production: 2/2005 (compilation only)

Extra's: The extras this time were pretty light with three photogalleries (one from the scenes, one from Pierre's youth, and one of comedy shots of Pierre and friends mugging for the camera), some trailers, cast biographies, and a few limited Production Notes that left out the males and any significant details of the scenes.

Condoms: None

Audio/Video Quality: The Private Adventures of Pierre Woodman 1 was presented in a mixture of aspect ratios depending on the particular scenes used. Some were done in 1.33:1 ratio full frame and others were in 1.85:1 non-anamorphic widescreen as originally shot by director Pierre Woodman for Private. Noting that the scenes were mostly from long ago (in porn terms, they were all very antiquated)), there was tremendous amounts of grain, video noise, inaccurate colors, and other visual flaws. The audio was almost as bad with what sounded like dropouts and some unsynchronized parts, all done in their original language (typically French), rather than the usual English language dub. Most of the scenes were hollow, done in monaural, and made it sound as if recorded in a wind tunnel but the last one was okay.

Body of Review: One of the things that generally doesn't mix too well with porn are policemen and this is largely due to the manner in which police represent authority, societal norms, and the matter of police arresting performers over the years when catching them "in the act". There are exceptions to such rules though with the most notable being the career of Pierre Woodman, the infamous director/performer, who went from being a flatfoot working as a cop in France to becoming a well known director for Private and Hustler, to name a few companies. In their latest compilation series, Private is now releasing the first of a ten volume set, titled: The Private Adventures of Pierre Woodman 1: A Life of Porn. Serving mostly as an introduction to Pierre's varied antics for the company; the first volume provided six scenes from his earliest, and most acclaimed, period with the company. There were a great many technical flaws but the overall vision he shared from this period showed his potential as a director as well as the company he helped elevate to something more than just a third tier porn producer (who had substantial success with the print media but not with their videos when Pierre joined them). Here's a brief look at the scenes included, noting that the credits were sketchy at best:

Scene One: Castings X 3: 2/1996: Nikky Anderson, a fabulous looking blonde it her first scene, followed the usual format for the Castings series by giving an interview and then having sex with hairy Pierre Woodman on a motel room bed. It was pretty basic stuff with her grunting and groaning like crazy as he filled her mouth, pussy and ass with his cock, spanking her from time to time for good measure. The technical deficiencies were many here and Pierre's never been a guy I liked watching with the gals but she showed a lot of promise here and I can see why she became a fan favorite after this initial scene.

Scene Two: Golden Triangle 2: 9/1993: Su Ann, one of the least attractive women I've seen in one of Pierre's movies, was up next on a bed with two uncredited guys that forced her down and made her have sex with them. They spoke French but she soon warmed to them in the large bed situated somewhere in a jungle hut. Her camouflage outfit and black leather thong looked pretty cool and she was fairly talented in terms of the sexual activity with oral, vaginal, and anal for those who care but she seemed to be watching the clock too much for my tastes. The technical aspects of the scene were really weak too so when the narrator called it "compromising and censored", I believed him just as I did when he said it was Pierre's "first film for Private" (filmed under an alias).

Scene Three: The Tower: 11/1994: Aliza, a curvy blonde with an attractive face (not the hottest gal of the movie but way out of my league), was up next in a scene on a rooftop with an uncredited guy. Also shot in French, the pair seemed to have a bit of fun as they sucked and screwed energetically with the city skyline in the background. Her neon blue bra looked especially good as she rode him but the scene was also hampered by some mechanical action.

Scene Four: Tatiana: 9/1997: Tania Russof, the beautiful brunette on the front cover and a gal that really put Private on the map (who came to Private under the name "Riga" in January 1994), was up next in a scene from her breakthrough movie, Tatiana. Dressed as a milk maid of sorts (just to give you an idea), she stumbled across a man playing a piano in an abandoned castle; turning her on in the process. Like the other scenes, it was in a foreign tongue (sounding like French and another language, perhaps Russian) and had many technical limitations but the limitations of her sexual skill were the worst for me. How such a babe could be so weak sexually is beyond me but I'll admit that she was hot looking enough to cover for some of her lack of talent.

Scene Five: Pyramid: 11/1996: Mafalda, an Asian gal with a great ass, was up next after a striptease dance in the wild outdoor desert, taking on Phillipe Soine, Richard Langin, and Roly Reeves, with all of them dressed up like Muslims on a jihad. She seemed enthusiastic in some aspects but the scene suffered from the usual problems here of following a formula and having little special to recommend in light of the mechanics of the sex. It had a DP and the technical limitations weren't as glaring as the previous scenes but you'll know right way that it was shot long ago (several generations in porn terms).

Scene Six: That's$ Life 2: 1/1998: Katja Kean, another totally hot blonde with a great body, was up last in a scene taking place in a tropical paradise (in a lagoon) with Jean Yves LeCastel. The two had some underwater sex done very nicely and for all the limitations, the action was refreshing in terms of location and energy. There were some technical limitations here too but at least they were trying something more difficult than normal. In many ways, it was the best scene of the bunch and a good reason to look for some of her other movies. Yum!

Summary: The Private Adventures of Pierre Woodman 1: A Life of Porn was worth a rating of Rent It to me for the sheer historical value alone and the varied interview that allowed Pierre Woodman to speak his piece. Over the years, the man has been accused of a great many things, none of which were substantiated by the over active imaginations of the gossip columns and yellow journalists of the porn world, and his contribution to porn has been pretty solid in many ways. In terms of placing Private on the map, he was their premiere director for a long time, not like their guns for hire method used nowadays, and some of his movies, if made today, would probably look brilliant due to advances in the technological side of things. Otherwise, the scenes lacked in the technical department and as much as I wanted to give the DVD a higher rating, the best I could justify was a Rent It unless you're a fledgling porn historian wanting to see the world of foreign made porn through the eyes of one of the top men in his field. I can't say what kind of a cop he was but he sure has had a lot of success with making porn so in that sense, he made a good choice in terms of career paths.