Raw

A movie about the rise and fall of a porn star is not a particularly original idea, but RAW tackles the issue with a dark sense of humor, some solid acting, and a couple really hot sex scenes.

Joel Lawrence stars as "Jerry", a struggling actor who has just failed at another audition. A friend tells him he can get him a job as an extra on a movie. Only after he gets there does Joel discover that it is a porn movie! He is to watch along with three other guys as Tyce Bune gives it to Jessica Jewel, who looks really hot in a maid's outfit. However, even Tyce isn't enough for Jessica...she wants ALL the guys, and this movie's first sex scene is far and away the best as Jessica gets cock from multiple positions and in multiple holes. The scene climaxes with not one, not two, but five facials that leave her face a milky mess!

Joel goes home to his wife-to-be Kylie Ireland. She teases him a little then shows him what he can look forward to on his wedding night. Kylie looks fantastic and gets into the action, but unfortunately after the first fantastic scene, this one is a bit of a let down.

Joel receives a call from a porn producer/agent played by Herschel Savage. He wants Joel to do some more porn...this time with him as the star. During the phone call, Savage is getting a nice blow job from Midori, which makes for a particularly humorous phone conversation between him and Joel.

Joel goes to the set of the porn movie he will be working on and gets to witness a hot scene between Keisha, Donita Dunes, Tyce Bune and Lance Romance. Director Antonio Passolini has some fun making fun of porn movies here, or at least the perception of them, as the actors deliver bad dialogue with horrible timing! The sex however, is anything but poor. I haven't seen Keisha in a film in a while, but she still looks great, and is particularly hot here in a nurse's uniform with white thigh highs!

Joel finally gets around to his scene, in a jail setting with the lovely Asian doll Syren. We are then treated to a montage of clips as Joel becomes more and more popular as a porn star. Porn fans won't want to miss a funny cameo by Stacy Valentine during this part of the movie!

Of course, fame starts to go to Joel's head, and when that happens, things start to go bad for him...both in his new career and at home. After an argument with Kylie, he goes to spend the night on the couch and fantasizes about her fucking the groomsmen right after their wedding. Kylie's pretty hot in this scene, wearing the white lingerie you see her wearing on the movie's box cover and taking both anal and facials from all three of the guys (Michael J. Cox, Steve Hatcher and Kyle Stone). Naturally, Kylie finds out about Joel's secret life which leads to the movie's conclusion. Without giving it away, rest assured that Joel gets what is coming to him, and Kylie...umm...gets what's coming to her!

Given the less than original concept for this movie, I was surprised that I enjoyed RAW as much as I did. Part of the reason was the great sex, including the opening gangbang scene and plenty of facials and anal fun throughout. But points also have to be given for the acting in this movie, particularly that of Joel and Kylie, as well as Herschel Savage who could have played his role as the typical "slimy agent", but instead played it more realistically.

The bonus features on this DVD are exceptional, including multiple angles, biographies, previews, a fun behind the scenes clip, a photo gallery and a hidden clip of Kylie dancing in her white lingerie at a strip club. The strip club footage took me a while to locate, but I can vouch that it is on the DVD and not bad, even though it was obviously filmed with a hand-held home video camera and not that great in quality.

Overall, I certainly recommend RAW as one of the better releases I have watched in the past few months. The sex is hot, the story is interesting, and the features are numerous. Another solid release from VCA!

This DVD has it all. The only thing missing is lesbian action, but everything else makes up for it. A must-see for any adult video fan.

What do you do if you're a struggling actor who's down on his luck and about to get married? Do you moonlight as a waiter for some quick cash? Do you hope to win the lottery? Do you start collecting aluminum cans for the nickel deposit? Nope. It's none of the above. Instead, you turn to where the money really is - PORN!!!

And that's just what "Jerry" (aka Joel Lawrence) does in "RAW - The Rise and Fall of a Porn Star" a humorous and sometimes dark coitus filled comedy from VCA's "Platinum Plus" series. I'm not exaggerating when I say it's one of the best adult film packages I've seen in the new millennium thus far. My enthusiasm for "RAW" was further elevated when I discovered it also featured one of my favorite porno queens of all time - luscious Kylie Ireland! She's just fantastic here playing the role of Lawrence's bitchy wife Margaret, a woman whose greedy ways inadvertently steer Joel toward porno stardom just so he can earn enough money for them to get married. Kylie's also partly responsible for pushing Joel over the edge and causing him to take on the role of his abrasive porno alter-ego, Buddy Brando, in everyday life. After that, "RAW's" storyline gets a little conventional as we watch Joel slowly but surely fall from the top of the porno mountain. Although the plot is a bit cliché (think "Boogie Nights"), the sex is exceptional, thus making "RAW" must-see smut for any true adult film fan.

After watching Joel, Kylie and the rest of the star-studded cast get it on, I'm not the least bit surprised by the title of this VCA offering. This flick truly is "RAW," unadulterated fun all the way.

Antonio Passolini's modern-day classic about a mainstream actor who gets sucked into a life of porn is funny, hot, well-acted and makes for a positively brilliant DVD. VCA's disc of the video has more going for it than just a crystal-clear transfer; there are tons of extras, including behind-the-scenes footage, audio commentary by Kylie Ireland and technical director D3, and a bonus masturbation scene. Pre-nom this baby for Best DVD.

Extras: Live-play still gallery, cast bios, alternate angles, behind-the-scenes footage, audio commentary, bonus scene, trailers.

The intrigue of Raw goes beyond watching attractive people have sex, beyond enjoying a well-written, funny film. Raw speaks about the varying facets of the porn industry, drawing a sharp contrast between the productions of an Antonio Passolini (the writer/director) and the fuck flicks of Pierre, the director portrayed in the movie. I don't want to sound like I'm writing a college thesis here, but Raw is a lot more than plot, dialog and sex. Raw speaks volumes about the porn industry and even includes actual locations (The Stage) and extras from within the industry (I recognized a couple faces from porn sets.)

Joel Lawrence, this film actually stars a man, plays a phenomenal reluctant porn star that rises to the top, becomes an ass, and hits rock bottom. Kylie Ireland has a great performance as his innocent fiancé turned sexual dynamo. And Hershel Savage is a perfect producer/agent. Great casting. Great acting.

I find it extremely interesting to watch a couples oriented, feature film with a plot centered around cum drenched, fuck flicks. I highly recommend this film, as I do every Antonio Passolini movie.