Monique Alexander shaving

Please Me

Vivid Entertainment

Monique Alexander and Charles Dera

Genre: Vignette

Director: B. Skow

Monique Alexander

Cast: Monique Alexander, Charles Dera, Alan Stafford, Brooke Belle, Sascha, Brooke Banner

Length: 129:31 minutes

Brooke Belle

Date of Production: 8/14/2007 (box); 8/14/2007 & 1/28/2008 (credits)

Extras: The best extras for most people are the 27:13 minutes of shortened bonus scenes described below (five of them) and while I prefer my extras to be related to the movie in hand, I can't deny the appeal of the specific scenes selected this time. There was also a set of three trailers to newer releases by the company but my favorite was the 16:44 minute long Behind the Scenes feature by Graham Crack Herr as it showed some clips, some goofing off, and a glimpse into the hard work needed to make a porno as good as Skow is able to do, Monique looking comfortable in her role as contract star. There was also an old biography for Monique Alexander, a set of trailers to Brand New Faces 7, Burn, Chemistry 4, and Miles From Needles, and the usual spam.

Brooke Banner and Monique Alexander

Condoms: Yes

Audio/Video Quality: Please Me was presented in the anamorphic widescreen color presentation as shot by director B. Skow for Vivid Entertainment using the MPEG-2 Codec with the 480i picture looking decent as a result. It looked like it was shot with a 1080i camera, the interlaced images converted successfully to a progressive image with ease, surpassing the more common 720p titles up converted to the format, Shylar assisting with a second camera to capture more angles than usual too, a positive development from some of the budget cutters I've seen in the past (more and more companies are moving to shooting porn with a single camera, "fixing" the footage in post production, despite warnings that it cheapens the final product in most cases). The attention to detail was clear from the very start too, the bitrate moving all around the board but often in the 4.7 Mbps area, on the modest side for standard definition but still good enough for those unwilling to upgrade their equipment. The detail was nice, thanks to the lighting, the composition of the angles, and the minimal editing; all taking advantage of how much the camera responds to Skow's expert guidance. The flesh tones were accurate and the better your home theatre is, the better this one will look, at least as far as can be expected under a standard definition product. The audio was presented in a 2.0 Dolby Digital English using a 192 Kbps bitrate under a 48 kHz model; decidedly on the low end for current high definition but adequate for the kind of attention it got/gets these days too. The dynamic range was the same as the company's other SD releases of late.

Body of Review: Vivid Entertainment has long been an industry leader, now evolving in the kind of quality movies they provide thanks to talented young directors like B. Skow who have assisted in ushering them into modern times. His showcase work with various contract performers speaks loudly for itself (like Lanny Barby, Sunny Leone, etc.) so I was happy to check out a title that slipped through the cracks earlier this year starring Monique Alexander in the movie Please Me. The light connections between the scenes were minimal to say the least but Monique was given a lot of love by Skow's capable camera work, the production shot in 1080i at 60i for those tech heads out there. Monique was in 75% of the movie and even some of the bonus scenes, fans might want to consider this alone as indicative of what to expect for your personal pleasure. The back cover said it like this: "Follow a behind the scenes crew as they visit the sexually deviant world of Monique Alexander. Watch as she shows you what pleasing your mate is all about. You'll be shocked to see Monique and her horny friends perform a number of sexual positions, including two blistering anal scenes! It's a B. Skow all-sex feature, so the story doesn't get in the way of the sex. Follow Monique around as she fucks her way through the day as only pornstars can. Live the life. Watch the dvd. And don't forget to say please." Here's a brief look at the scenes by cast and action, noting that some condoms were used for those still interested:

Scene One: Monique Solo & Pleasing You: Monique Alexander, the beauty featured on the front cover, was up first masturbating after she showered in the expansive, open air shower. The soaping up was pretty warm and led to her shaving herself, moving to the bedroom to meet Charles Dera for the old bump & grind action one would expect of her. Monique was looking kind of thin here and the camerawork made some parts of the scene look almost surreal, but I'll be the first to admit that I would have lost it unzipping my pants given the appeal of the cutie. In any case, the music was overdone, almost as if Paul Thomas was in charge of production and that was the biggest weakening factor for me, the use of a condom not truly making a difference to me (I'm condom neutral for the purposes of reviewing). Monique did some nice booty shaking by the mirror while waiting for the guy to show, each moving right into giving head once he did arrive. Her blowjob was skillful and heated but the vaginal riding lacked much energy from her, Monique always appearing to appreciate giving head far more. She did get better as the scene progressed (when she was on top) but even Charles had some initial wood issues (and if the guy fucking a hotty like Monique can't keep it up with a rock hard woody, expecting a reviewer at home to like it seems unreasonable). The vaginal and oral positions changed around at times, his wad of genetic juice launched onto her chest as she mechanically claimed "it was so good" and gave a few licks to his lollipop.

Scene Two: Cowgirl: Monique Alexander, wearing a short white top and furry cowboy hat, smiled at the camera as she teased in a rustic living room, a few blemishes marring her otherwise flawless body. Her ass looked somehow fuller here (a good thing!) an she knew enough to bend over repeatedly as she continued to play her looks up to the camera. The droning music reminded me of the olden days of porn (not a good thing) but calmed down once Alan Stafford came into the room to go down on her, licking her biscuit to get it moist ("you gotta lick it before you stick it...") for fucking. Monique reciprocated somewhat mechanically, giving me the impression that he needed to bath or something, but addressing the camera as she did so which weakened the illusion that she was into the act. There was no rubber this time and Monique bounced on cock much more readily, pausing only to give him more head or switch positions, but I'd be lying if I said it was a great scene even though she kept her mouth and eyes open when he rubbed out the population pudding to her mouth.

Scene Three: What's Cookin'?: Brooke Belle, a lean gal with a nice ass, was up next in the kitchen as she pranced about in her black bikini undies in front of a cooling fan. The camera work during the tease was better than the music yet again, her figure built for speed over comfort from what I could determine. Making breakfast led to her masturbating on the counter, attracting Sascha to come to her for some loving. The scene showed them bumping uglies from the very beginning, passing up the extended oral the other scenes had offered up. Brooke was a decent ride too albeit in a mechanical fashion, the lack of chemistry between them noticeable but not unexpected. She did blow him by the end of the scene but there was again something else going on that I could not quite place, the couple returning to screw where he jerked off a small wad of spew to her crotch and lower abdomen.

Scene Four: Pajama Party: Brooke Banner, a curvy cutie that I've been noticing more in fetish related titles of late (usually a sign that a performer is lacking in more mainstream work, sadly enough), finished the movie out with a lesbian scene between her and Monique Alexander. Brooke had some red undies on and the slow motion with thumping music really did not work well here, the slow seductive nature of her warming up probably better served by a completely different tempo. That said, the gals looked as fresh as ever on the bed and gave each other some extended caressing and oral love, the use of a toy minimal but not unwelcome. I'd have licked the amino acids off either of their fingers this time and it was a modestly warm scene for those that like the gals as much as I do, giving the show a bit more stroke value in my estimation.

Bonus Scene: The Sunny Experiment: Sunny Leone, the gorgeous brunette featured on the front cover, was up first as she masturbated some of her daily stress away at her desk. The movie started off by establishing that she would introduce each scene and add some playful tease to add value. The red leather chair she was in as her clothing disappeared looked perfect for her and her lean young body beckoned as she seductively teased ever so slowly. Just when I thought she was climaxing, she made a call to an escort service, hotty Monique Alexander coming into the scene dressed as a wayward schoolgirl. The pair showed the kind of chemistry few readily acknowledge takes place between modern contract performers, Sunny's stern mistress routine a total role reversal for her that I liked. Monique was no slacker either as she did a striptease worthy of her skills, my only complaint being I wished she was about twenty pounds heavier. In any case, the ladies ate each other out and took their time doing so, aggressively exploring each other to the hilt as they got off a few times. They did use some toys but this was the perfect example of Vivid's growth as a company in how the lengthy scene (it finished up around the 42 minute mark of the movie) allowed them to really take their time and do it all. Whew! (note: this appears to be a shortened version of that scene but showed a lot of heat)

Bonus Scene: Cassidey's Day Off: Brooke Banner, another established blonde with a stripper body, lots of tattoos, and clothing practically falling off of her frame, was up next with weird Tony Pounds as they were rejected for a room but found themselves on the dance floor going at it instead. I'm not exactly sure why this transition happened (I watched it a few times to see if I missed something) but after a brief dance, they were naked on a small loveseat with her lips wrapped around his cock, sucking the life right out of him. She seemed to playfully savor the cock rather than try to aggressively get him off in record time, a nuance I'm not sure most people speeding through the movie would understand. He gave her a taste too before tapping her fine form, the gal pushing back on his cock like crazy as he drilled her in doggy. Sadly, the missionary right after that ended the scene, with the now-expected abdomen pop so while it was chemistry filled and fun, it was too short, leading to some of the darker elements of the feature's plot.

Bonus Scene: Alphabet: Brooke, Derrick Pierce, Tory Lane: All hell breaks loose when it comes to these beautiful ladies dancing to Trance music as they taunt and tease the other. Stripping down to nothing they find themselves playing with the other until Derrick joins them . The girl take command and total control of the scene. They take turns mounting his cock as well as giving him a BJ, with one of the ladies riding his face. Derrick after making sure the ladies are immensely satisfied takes his turn and come all over the ladies bodies. (review by Ravyn)

Bonus Scene: The Sitter: Monique Alexander, T.J.Hart, Steven St. Croix: Totally impressed by Monique skills, he convinces T.J. to re hire her as The Sitter. Once there Monique is seduced by T.J and the ladies go at it with some G/G action . Steven joins them shortly there after for a very heated threesome action that leaves the viewers wanting for more. This last scene was kind of hard to figure out if Monique leaned more to T.J. or Steven , guess I am going to watch this scene again *eg* (review by Ravyn)

Bonus Scene: Debbie Does Dallas...Again: Savanna Sampson, the most seductive gal in the contract stable but found nowhere on the front cover, was up last in an orgy with Monique Alexander, Stefani Morgan, the mighty Evan Stone, Christian, and Jay Huntington, in the depths of a whole new realm. Savanna was playing her most famous role to date and took to the oral and anal like a champion as Jay and Evan boned her deeply. Stefani and Monique double teamed Christian on a nearby couch but as the scene progressed, the partners mixed it up more than a little bit. Savanna was looking tight and in great shape, easily holding her own against the junior members of the team here and surpassing them on skills, energy, and enthusiasm to name but a few qualities. The overall scene was solid enough to boost the sexual score of the flick for me; ending things on a high note with a cute ending after the pop shots.

Summary: Please Me by director B. Skow for Vivid Entertainment was not nearly as good as some of his previous showcase works for a variety of reasons. Monique seemed out of sorts as often as not, the technical side of things from post production hampered my enjoyment a lot, and while I did manage to add some vivid memories to my spank bank (pun intended), the replay value this time only justified a rating of Rent It. In short, Please Me had a number of rough edges to it that even a director as skilled as Skow could not overcome, such being the case with others far more often but still surprising to me all the same.