Where to start? Where to start? Maybe I should just list the things for which I'm planning to prenominate this amazingly beautiful film in the '98 awards: Best Film; Best Director, Film; several Best Sex Scenes; Best Actress, Film (Sasha Vinni); Best Tease (Anna Romeo); Best Editing for a Film (James Avalon); Best Cinematography; Best Art Direction, Film; Best Trailer - hell, if I'd heard the final music (being composed at press time by one of those musical Ninn brothers), that might be a pre-nom too!

The films stars several Penthouse Pets, including the '94 (Vinni) and '95 (Gina LaMarca) pets of the Year, most of whom have never done hardcore before (though once you've seen them,  you're not likely to believe that); and ex Vivid contract girl (and Pet) Lene Hefner, who's never given a better on-screen performance.

Comparisons are bound to be made to Andrew Blake's break-throughs is sensuality. This is better. Philip Mond has crafted every image for maximum impact and heat. For one thing, the colors are brighter, and the concept "soft focus" is nowhere to be found. true, this is, for lack of a better term, a "couples film," but Mond pulls no punches when it comes to hardcore sexuality. More importantly, however, it's an art film, where you'll get off on the ambiance nearly as much as on the sex. But it's also a movie where the usual terms we use to describe sexual action seem woefully adequate.

Oh, yeah... the story. Vinni is looking for love (or at least the scent of it) in all the right places. her boss wants her to find the perfect fragrance for his new perfume, and what follows is her search for it among flowers in lush arboreta, classic villas, limpid pools and other exotic places, and imagining scenarios that fit the fragrances' moods. (Appropriately enough, Metro has developed a perfume/cologne which will be marketed as a tie-in.) Trouble is, each of those nine (count 'em, nine!) sexual scenarios would take several photographs to describe with justice, so I'll have to leave out stuff like the one where they've made up vinni's ass to look like a perfect tiger's head, with its "mouth" bouncing up and down on a guys' raging hard-on. Or the one where she's made up like a blue Hindu goddess who rises out of a placid pool to sensuously lick blond Grace Harlow's pussy. Or one of Vinni's solos, where she gets herself off using the petals and stamen of various exotic blooms. (In case you hadn't guessed, Vinni is in nearly every scene.)

No, let's talk about the one that starts out with Vinni painting a picture of an orchid on a white canvas. But wait a minute.... did that orchid move when she applied the brush? Sure enough, that's lene Hefner's pussy under the paint, and the scene evolves into Vinni comforting her with kisses as tattooist Devin completes the work on her lower lips. Pleasure follows pain, as Devin plunges Hefner's pussy front - and backwards while she licks Vinni to ecstasy, finally wearing red silk gloves to jerk Devin off into her mouth. Wah!

Then there's the girl/girl/girler, with Vinni and Penthouse Pets Brooke lane and Anna Romeo. The gals are costumed in neo-classical Spanish dress, all brocade and tassels, with the addition that tow of them are carrying what looks like leather dildos. Sure enough, that's what they are, and after some rubbing and lickin go of pussies and tits, the gals strap the dildos to the ankles of their ultra-fashionable knee-high boots and proceed to fuck each other and themselves to ecstasy with the devices. Look for consumer versions of these toys to appear within days of the film's release, and to show up in scores of new releases, but just remember: you saw them here first.

What follows, however, is the scene that's sure to give Sen. Jesse Helms a coronary: in a gold-toned setting, Vinni, Lane and complete newcomer Helene give pleasure to spread-winged angel Antonio Valentino orally, vaginally, anally - multi-positionally and heavenly! Just watching the women rub their luscious bodies against Valentino will probalby get you off.

Then there's LaMarca's seduction of Jon, filmed in glorious black-and-white. His toes massaging her pussy is only teh beginning. She reides his cock front- and rear-facing; he takes her pussy from behind and in mish posih; and the climax, which includes a post-cum b.j., is intercut with the apri frolicking playfully in a pool - the perfect end to perfect sex.

next, Vinni and Nikie St. Gilles (you rmember: the blonde star of the excelelent imported CD-ROM game, CyberXperience) are the denizens of an ice grotto, whith Vinni sedcutively pelasureing St. Gilles and removing her transparent vinayl jmermaild's outfit, all while floating on a large, cushiony silver star (the background of uor December cover). Look for some first-class editing that caputres the action seemingly from several angles at once.

Finally, Romeo appears as the devil, p[ractically dripping fire as she first has Vinni pleasure her orally in a dream sequence, then does a sensual dance before drwing latex-clad stud Kevin james literally out of the woodwork. (Belive me, you won't know it's James until Mond wants you to know.) James and drew Reese screw Romeo in mish-anal aned doggie-anal postions before she gets d.p.'d (sandwich and double anal) by the hot 'n' horny studs as animated fire bruns around them. yeah, I know what you're thinking: double anal equals ultra-nasty. Well, not in this case. In fact, this mayb the only sensual double-anal you'll ever see.

I left the screening exhausted and a bit dazed. Your rental customers will probably be in the same codition when they return the tape... if they don't insist on buying it on the spot. Adult film just doesnt get any better than this.