Performers Of The Year 2013

Performers of the Year is normally a film I look forward to, but looking at the cover of the 2013 edition, I'm not sure. I think it's because the makeup on Brooklyn Lee really has me worried. I can't read her face at all like this, and it's not a very flattering photo. Her look on the back is just fine, though, so I'm trying not to judge this by its cover. My other concern is that Elegant Angel is starting to voyage more to the untouchable contract star concept, and some of their newer directors give me precisely that feeling. Hopefully they can manage to stay well-shot and well-directed, not to mention getting hot stars to be immensely dirty.

Jada Stevens opens, and has she ever come a long way from the perfectly-assed blonde in a Brazzers scene or two. I still wish she'd wear less makeup, but that's a universal complaint I have about porn. Makeup should add a bit, not act as paint. Let us see your face, your beauty. Then there's an overwrought tease sequence, followed by another one outside. The latter was better, as the lighting is more normal and more the type you expect from Elegant Angel. We get to do some nice ass staring, though some of the dancing gets to be weird, and the whole thing is just a bit overproduced. It goes right into a solo performance, but then back to some ass staring. Now some writhing while looking at what looks like redscale film. Redscale film is fascinating, by the way: it's basically film loaded facing the opposite way. This gives everything an orange/red hue. That's what looks like is going on here at the end of the tease. Then Mick Blue is going right in for some rimming when we fade back in. I'd be diving into her ass, too. Jada gets Mick's pants off, and he is quite clearly already interested in this scene. A good, well-lit, well-performed scene, even if the chemistry just didn't quite seem to be there. There's energy, but I just don't get that they're really that into each other. Somehow the anal even manages to seem mundane. Somehow, with this being a bright scene, the lighting still isn't great. Some shadows, but it's really more a matter that the white balance seems to be off. Hard to explain, but it just doesn't look right. A heavily edited facial in the end.

Asa Akira and Skin Diamond also populate the first disc, but as I'm on a hunt for bonus features and the like. We score on those with the second disc, getting four bonus scenes, including ones from Eva Angelina and Remy LaCroix. Yeah, this is really tasty. Eva's scene is a nice anal sequence with a tremendous facial in the end, and Remy's performance with Manuel Ferrera in an old warehouse makes the cut as well. A nice Holly Michaels scene is here, too, and I almost forgot how much fun she is to watch. The lighting here again is almost too bright, and the reverse cowgirl anal would be even better if Manuel would get his hand off her clit so we could actually look at her body. Really, if you aren't going to remember the purpose behind each position, why do you bother? Thorough on the anal positions, and a decent facial in the end, though so much of it managed to miss and dribble on the floor.

It had the potential to be really epic instead of just awesome. A nice collection here, though the generally solid technical skills I expect from Elegant Angel seem to be sliding away in increasing efforts to be more artistic. This is the trend that took down Michael Ninn's career, and I hope that isn't what's going on with what is one of my favourite studios. They offer a lot with Performers of the Year 2013, but not all of it is the instant gold that I generally expect. I hope, very much, that this is not a sign of things to come. It's still an excellent film compared to most, of course, but I feel like it doesn't quite stack up next to previous years.

Dr. Chauntelle does not use a rating system. Five stars is a default setting only.

FYI: this is going to be a review in layers, starting from most general and moving on to spoiler-riddled detail.

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I've written before about "the best of the future" - or the "predictive power" of Elegant Angel, as I like to call it. Here's the thing...

Every year (well, every year since 2008), Elegant Angel has done something intriguing. They name *The* performers of the upcoming/just-beginning year!!

Shot annually for release late December/early January, the Performers of the Year series highlights a collection of the industry's hottest established women performers. Each title in the series features a collection of new scenes, and each new scene stars one of the named Performers of the Year in some form of Elegant Angel-style tryst.

It's an interesting concept - not mind-bending in its "best of"-type originality, but well-executed and consistent. Plus - and I gotta say - the folks at Elegant Angel do have an eye. Though I find it curious (and simultaneously so obvious in its pragmatism) to name *The* stars for a year at the BEGINNING of said year, if you look through installments of Performers of the Year (here), their picks are pretty right on.

Performers of the Year 2013 seems no different.

Ever clever, Elegant Angel started their Best New Starlets (ladies who are coming up versus ladies who are currently dominating) series in 2012. I have the same general things to say about Best New Starlets as I just did about Performers of the Year.

So when I recently received copies of both Best New Starlets 2013 and Performers of the Year 2013, I wondered: what new could I learn from these titles?

Hmmmm... Of course, I learned something!!

My favorite part of Elegant Angel titles in general - well, at least those directed by Mason and William H. - is that they always have some sort of interview footage/lead-in sequence complimenting their very unique, high-end, aesthetically beautiful hard hard sex. Though these interviews and sequences vary in depth and quality (not everyone has something to say, not everyone can pop their ass as well, etc), I always enjoy getting to hear a little from the performers. I like the humanizing dimensions that also function to combat anti-porn folks' ideas that these women are somehow being by pornographers into this stuff - nope!!

Both Best New Starlets 2013 and Performers of the Year 2013 stick with this elegant Elegant format.

Performers of the Year 2013 is a two-disc set: disc one contains six scenes (five boy-girls and Lily Carter's gangbang, which actually is a deviation for the series), disc two has some bonus interview and BTS footage... with all the ladies except Lily.

Now, speaking of Lily Carter, her featured segment was interesting. Her 'interview self' was surprising - a tender and sweet, if not kinda timid, baby bird who discussed how nervous she was about acting. As I said, this was surprising, especially relative to 1. the voraciousness of her sex performances in general and 2. the fact that she just won almost every acting award possible for her lone foray into that sort of performance - as Anna in Wasteland (2012).

I found it odd that there was no additional interview footage of her, given the intensity of her scene and all. It made me think...

Also, four bonus scenes (all boy-girls) from ladies with Honorable Mentions: Allie Haze, Eva Angelina, Holly Michaels, and Remy LaCroix - kinda interesting.

BTS and Extras: additional BTS, post-scene, interview-type footage with each lady... except, as I mentioned, Lily Carter.