Dark City

GENRE: Feature Film, Parody, European

DIRECTOR: Ethan Kane

PRODUCER: Marc Dorcel / ADAM & EVE

MSRP: 34.95 (EURO) / $44.36 (US) 

DATE OF PRODUCTION: 2008

LENGTH: 1 hr 46 mins + 30 min Making of Featurette

AUDIO/VIDEO:When viewing this dvd I had to resort to using the 'VLC Media Player' on my PC. The dvd is PAL encoded so it will not play in a standard US dvd player. As a result I'm unable to tell you exactly what the aspect ratio, and audio quality would be on an appropriate dvd player. With that being said the video looked superb on the 'VLC Media Player'. It had an HD quality about it, and the audio was excellent with an almost surround sound feel to it.

CAST: Ava Rose, Karlie Montana, Marie Luv, Maya Hills, Paulina James, Victoria Sin, Ron Jeremy, Tommy Gunn

CONDOMS: None

SYNOPSIS:

Before I get into the heart of my review there are some things I need to point out. First of all the version of "Dark City" that I got for review is the French version. This seriously complicated things for me. Unlike most Marc Dorcel dvds I have received this one was not an international/NTSC compatible version. I ended up having to play it on my PC just to be able to watch it. The good news though is that there is a version by 'ADAM & EVE' which is available for American audiences. I provided a link for both dvd versions in case you would like to check them out. Aside from my review copy being French I noticed some rather odd things during my viewing. When the sex scenes were taking place the audio would turn to English. This was also the case for the scene where the lead actress/performer (Ava Rose) performed a song. I'm not sure why this was, but it was interesting anyways. The rest of the dialogue throughout the film was spoken in French, and it actually looked as if that was the language the performers were speaking.

What I gathered from watching "Dark City" is that it is a noir film about three characters, and their intertwining relationships. The odd assortment of characters includes a detective named Nick Caprice, a damsel in distress named Molly Breathless, and a mob boss named "Big Boy" Mahoney. Tommy Gunn takes on the role of detective Nick Caprice, and portrays the character with a brilliance that you don't often see in Hollywood movies. Seeing as I don't really know a background on the character I can't go into detail on his role in the story. Most of the plot seemed to follow Nick Caprice's interactions with other characters though. Throughout the film Nick Caprice had many sexual encounters with some very lovely ladies. A couple of those encounters involve drunken fantasies about Molly Breathless (Ava Rose), a girl who seems to be tied into a twisted relationship with "Big Boy" Mahoney. Molly's involvement in the story is sparse, but when she is onscreen she really outshines the rest of the female cast. Her sexual performances along with the song she sings are definitely the highlights of the dvd. As far as the villain of the story goes that would be none other than Ron Jeremy himself who takes on the role of mob boss "Big Boy" Mahoney. All of the performances given are theatrical in quality. The dvd seemed to be more of an actual movie than a porn film in that respect. It was amazing to say the least.

There were an impressive amount of sexual encounters within "Dark City". The film actually started off slowly with a one-on-one session between Tommy Gunn (Nick Caprice), and the ebony female performer Maya Hills (Liz Truehart) though. It wasn't the best sex scene, but it was okay for what it was. The two performers engaged in various positions including reverse cowgirl, and doggystyle. Maya definitely had a fiery energy about her during the sexual encounter. In the end Maya's breasts were showered with Tommy's cum. It was a nice finish, but not one of my favorites. Most of the other scenes within "Dark City" also included Tommy as the lead male performer. The best one regarding his performances would be the fantasy sex scene with Ava Rose though. It took place within an old cathedral that was brilliantly lit. Ava wore a very sexy evening gown that was white in color. It suited the whole noir setting. During the scene Ava gave an amazing oral sex performance. She deep throated Tommy's cock several times before allowing him to penetrate her. Ava really seemed to enjoy herself, and actually ended up coming several times during the scene. The scene ranked among my favorites in the film.

Aside from those sexual encounters there were also some scenes where other not-so-important cast members got their chance at the spotlight. The female performer who played the role of Tommy's/Nick Caprice's secretary used her sexiness to distract two thugs who intended on ambushing Nick during one scene. Her actions resulted in one of the most impressive sex scenes in "Dark City". She ended up engaging the two male performers in a truly hardcore threesome. This blonde haired vixen (???) could deep throat like a pro! She definitely seemed to enjoy the pounding she received from both guys. In the end she got two mouthfuls of cum which she spit out afterwards. It was an awesome finish, one I definitely enjoyed watching. For those of you who like some all-girl action there was some of that included as well. In one of Nick Caprice's drunken fantasies he witnesses Molly (Ava Rose), and two other female characters/performers engage in some fairly hardcore lesbian activities. There's a lot of body rubbing, licking, and dildo penetrating shown throughout the lengthy encounter. Last, but definitely not least there was an orgy scene involving a couple of guys, and four girls. There was some interracial sex involved, some girl-on-girl action, and even a threesome. It was a small orgy that was grand in scale.

The overall tone of "Dark City" was presented in a visual, and audio style that stayed true to the noir genre. Colors were toned down. In some parts of the film the colors seemed to only include shades of grey, and brown. There were no really loud colors displayed during the film. I noticed that sometimes the lighting was exaggerated in a manner that accented/shadowed the backgrounds, and characters within the film. It made the entire film appear to be a big budget feature, even more so than a lot of feature films out there today. I could tell that the director spared no expense when shooting this amazing film. Out of all the content that was shown I'd have to say that the song that was sung by lead female performer Ava Rose was definitely the most memorable. It was truly a haunting moment that's definitely worth some sort of award.

EXTRAS

- Making Of Feature (30 mins.)
- X-Tra Pleasures Tv Commercials
- Strip Teases
- Trailers

CONCLUSION

Very rarely do I see a film that really "WOWS!" me. Dark City did just that. From the cinematic black & white opening to the noir atmosphere, and the many sexual encounters I found nothing but love for this film. I did not expect such brilliant quality from a porn film. This dvd presentation outshines many of Hollywood's movies in a lot of ways. After thinking about it I wouldn't really call this film a parody. It's more of a re-imagining with sex included. The female cast in this film were all so beautiful, and Tommy Gunn played his role like a mainstream actor. I usually don't say this about male performers, but Tommy looked amazing in this film. He nailed the character of Nick Caprice, and Ava Rose nailed her portrayal of Molly Breathless as well. If two performers ever deserved an award for their roles in porn it would definitely be Tommy Gunn, and Ava Rose. I think what really got my attention in this porn production though was the song sung by Ava Rose during one of the scenes. It was truly haunting, and suited the mood of the story. I'm going to go ahead, and say it ... If you don't have this dvd in your collection definitely get it! It deserves my highest rating, "Must Have!!!".

VERDICT: Must Have!!!