Chemistry

Vivid Entertainment

Genre: Gonzo

Director: Tristan Taormino

Cast: Marie Luv, Mr. Marcus, Mika Tan, Dana DeArmond, Kurt Lockwood, Jack Lawrence, Taryn Thomas
Non-sex role: Tristan Taormino

Length: 166.5 minutes

Date of Production: 5/9/2006

Extra's: The first disc had no real extras to speak of as the suggested audio commentary (suggested by those in the industry, not advertised on the DVD) never took place. The second disc was a far different deal though; starting off with some Bonus sex footage; with over 30 minutes of footage included in five separate scenes. The scenes were far better lit then most in the movie but the focus issues and other problems made it clear as to why they weren't included in the movie. There was then 8 short Bonus Confessions by the cast (Kurt's was the longest by far; making me roll my eyes at his claims of being different from his image, especially considering a series of emails he sent me earlier this year). I liked them because they allowed the cast more of a chance to expand on their thoughts without the editing that took place to make the story flow as in the ones included in the movie. There was then a 32 minute long Behind the Scenes feature credited to Ten C; it combined some interview footage, nudity, and bloopers fairly well and was worth checking out (I watched it while writing this review in fact). That led to a slide show for the women of the show to a Boxelder song, two more photogalleries, spam, and trailers to several other Vivid shows, including volume 2 of this series.

Condoms: None

Audio/Video Quality: Chemistry was presented in 1.85:1 ratio anamorphic widescreen color as shot by director Tristan Taormino for distribution by Vivid Entertainment. The movie was shot in HD though in the same fashion as the various Shane's World series as a form of porn reality TV show, resulting in a decidedly mixed set of technical values. Some of the camera work was by the performers themselves, tending to show a lot of extra movement as though they were on a ship at sea during a major storm. At other times, the lighting would be candlelight or even whatever ambient light peeked in from the mostly closed doors and windows. In all then, the visuals had a lot of footage in need of editing or lighting or even Sony steadycams but part of the draw of the movie was the gimmick of the unknown. Apart from the Shane's World analogy, this was very much like a condensed porno version of MTV's The Real World and looked like it so don't expect the visuals to look to polished and professional (lots of grain, video noise, and other flaws). The audio was presented in a 2.0 Dolby Digital with similar flaws (low levels, abrupt changes that weren't compensated for, and background noise) but like the visuals, it didn't truly detract from the experiment very much. The music added to the show by a couple of independent bands was also an interesting step up for porn but in need of more polishing up (and better placement too).

Body of Review: Vivid Entertainment has been undergoing a sort of renaissance in the past year; expanding into a variety of new arenas including alt-porn, hiring far better performers (that rely less on looks and more on sexual prowess than past contract hotties), and seeking out new material from a variety of directors in general. Their latest such effort was hiring columnist Tristan Taormino to come back to directing after a lengthy hiatus (not including a single flick earlier this year) with the result being Chemistry; a reality TV styled porno that set itself up as having no rules and shot over the course of a 36 hour period. The box said it like this: "Seven stars. One house. 36 hours. No rules. No script. No schedule. Just sex...The way they want it. A 3 hour movie with 8 sex scenes. Imagine an uncensored, intimate look at seven stars who know who they are and what they want. When left to their own devices for two days, anything goes. marie has an unforgettable 'first' with Mika and Jack. Kurt takes on sex-deprived Taryn. Jack fulfills a long-time fantasy with Dana. Mr. Marcus exhausts Marie. Mika and Taryn venture into taboo territory with Kurt. Kana lets her inner slut come out to play with Mr. Marcus...Nothing is off limits from rimming and facials to strap-ons, anal, and double penetration, they do it all. Get a unique perspective as they film each other with their own "perv cam" and share personal revelations in the private confessional. Watch them test each other's boundaries and push their sexuality to the limits. See all the elements come together in this wild experiment: raw emotions, spontaneous sex, explosive orgasms, and that one ingredient that drives everything: chemistry. Featuring 2-disc DVD set, over 1 hour of bonus footage including more sex scenes, music by Indie Bands Goodfinger and Boxelder, shot in high definition, DVD-ROM compatible, no regional coding, chapter search, photo gallery, and previews." In all, I thought the concept had a lot going for it as MTV's The Real World met the porn industry head on, showing the world that Shane's World isn't the only game in town. That said, here's a look at the scenes by cast and action, noting that no condoms were used:

Scene One: Marie Luv, the only black gal in the movie, and studly Mr. Marcus (the only black guy), were up first in the hot tub as they did the usual oral and vaginal acts. The sex was edited into some interview material which weakened it for me but as sloppy as the initial camerawork was; the raw energy of the two was clear. They then moved onto a bed inside the house (in an abrupt edit by the way) where they did some 69 before he plowed back into her pussy, even using an anal plug on her to stretch her ass out. This led to anal sex of course, her doing a slow ride as he tore her a new one anally, bouncing on his cock slowly and doing ATM between positions. It ended with a nut to her mouth as jerked off by Marcus, resulting in a warm scene with decent replay value.

Scene Two: Mika Tan, the only Asian of the cast, was up next in a darkened room as she playfully blew Kurt Lockwood while Dana DeArmond recorded the action. Dana felt left out so she offered herself up in some POV missionary; Kurt tapping her pussy slowing as he recovered from his illness. That led to Mika donning a strap on dildo and porking wonderboy as he continued to work over Dana; a Lockwood specialty. It wasn't a bad scene and the sexually adventurous out there might applaud Kurt's getting in touch with his feminine side.

Scene Three: Dana DeArmond, Mika Tan, and Jack Lawrence, then had some fun out by the pool on the overcast day after the ladies explored Tristan's extensive collection of toys on a table inside the house. Kurt worked the camera (better than in his debut movie too) while the ladies went from a lesbian scene to handling Jack like seasoned experts. They continued going at one another until the sun got in the way so they moved the cushioned futon under the shade of the deck, Mika impaling herself on a strap on dildo wielded by Dana (probably making Kurt envious). That led to a technical DP with Dana and Jack providing the cocks, Mika getting anally ravaged by Jack afterwards. After several more permutations, he rubbed out a load to Dana's mouth and she shared it with Mika.

Scene Four: Mika Tan, Taryn Thomas, and Kurt Lockwood, were up next on the bed after Mika blew him in POV fashion as a warm up. She gives good head and this scene was no exception, moving to him boning her in missionary as a result. She made the scene until Taryn came in to assist in elevating the heat levels even more; taking over as she and Kurt did the nasty while Mika left them to go at it. Taryn was the hottest looking gal of the cast (sorry Tristan) and while her enthusiasm and skill levels weren't as solid as Mika's, she used a lot of dirty talk to enhance the moment. The screwing led to more oral and she rimmed him while jerking him off, going back to sitting on his cock in a very active vaginal ride that led to his nut coating her tonsils.

Scene Five: Marie Luv, Mika Tan, Jack Lawrence, and Mr. Marcus, were up next as Jack went down on Marie to be replaced by Mika doing her female friend (Marcus wanted her to experience a gal going down on her) and the guys providing the meat sticks later on. The room was far too dark to properly capture the moment but the romance of candlelight recording aside, the action was pretty solid. They screwed to completion and the results were expected, ending the scene in a confusing jumble of shots that were in need of editing (as well as lighting).

Scene Six: Taryn Thomas and Kurt Lockwood, were up next as Marie shot them going at it with some wake up sex in bed. Taryn was on top and actively pumping away (no, not using a toy on him but getting his cock thrust inside of her) but after some interview material, Mika Tan started blowing him soundly. He ate her out and then screwed some more with Taryn doing clean up on his cock. Yes, Mika couldn't resist fingering his ass as the ladies double teamed his rod and balls orally, easily fitting the strap on dildo inside of his ass yet again. He eventually rubbed out a load as she finished screwing his ass with a little titty fucking for good measure. For the record, Kurt wasn't gay because he loved getting drilled anally although it didn't make him straighter either. The musings by Kurt trying to justify his stance were kind of weird considering how relatively tame his movies are (strap on action has been around in porn for decades though he didn't seem to know that) but it must be a sensitive spot for him considering his rants of recent months, poor guy.

Scene Seven: Dana DeArmond, the fleshiest of the ladies in the movie (and quite attractive no matter what the haters say), was up next in bed with Jack Lawrence as he ate her out slowly through her white pantyhose. He really took his time to get her off, without any penetrative sex to speak of as a reward.

Scene Eight: Marie Luv and Jack Lawrence were up next with Dana DeArmond and Mr. Marcus joining in soon after as they performers wrapped up the show. Jack used a toy on Marie while Marcus used his personal toy on Dana; everyone happy as a result. It was the longest scene of the show and had a lot of different positions with Jack rubbing out a large load to Marie's face to finish up after Marcus jerked his off to Dana's mouth.

Summary: Chemistry was certainly one of the more interesting releases by Vivid Entertainment this year with Tristan showing why she was so well received years ago when she made her two part anal sex series for Evil Angel. I thought the two disc set was a little too gimmick oriented but it worked much of the time thanks to the way the cast seemed to fit nicely. In short, they had the titular Chemistry with one another and that elevated the show up from the technical values on display, with the second disc of extras a lot of fun to watch too. So, in terms of fuck for the buck, heated performances, replay and strokability; the movie was easily worth a rating of Recommended to me and I could see a lot of you enjoying it even more. I look forward to seeing the next volume in the series to see how Tristan keeps it fresh, knowing full well that she's just the gal to do it.