Goddess of Love

"Goddess of Love" was far better than I was expecting, especially since it was on ScreamBox. And I wish I could rate it higher, but there is slow burn...and way too slow burn. This is the latter.

Alexis Kendra plays stripper Venus, who quickly falls for a recently widowed Australian she meets at the club. It doesn't take long before he's ready to move on and start seeing someone else and she spirals into a manic state. When the new girlfriend brings her stuff that she left at the ex's place, they get into a confrontation. It gets worse when Venus looks through her stuff and finds a busted statue of Venus with a card saying "love" attached. Now she REALLY goes over the bend and after finding the new girlfriend's house, leaves a gift of her own which is really disturbing if you're an animal lover. From that point on it's pretty violent, and the ending is somewhat, "huh?"

Overall, the acting is pretty good, and Kendra is particularly fascinating to watch. Her eyes are beautiful and I could see how she could seduce men easily. She handled the dramatic scenes well and real cried instead of fake cried, so extra points there. The cinematography was quite good, sometimes so stunning it overwhelmed the scenes. The pacing, however, was problematic, and the first two acts are kind of boring while you're waiting for something to happen other than Venus pining over a man who isn't serious about her. You just want to have a heart to heart and say, "Kiddo, you're a stripper. You are never going to be marriage material to him." Of course, she might stab you to death for saying that, as she IS crazy. But was she crazy before Mr. Australia rocked her world? And I'll be honest, I don't recall hearing a soundtrack. If there was one it was apparently incredibly unobtrusive.

Truly, for a relatively low budget film, it doesn't really look that way. And if it wasn't for the dullness of the first part, I think this would have been a far superior film. I think there's a lot of talent here, and I'm hopeful that Kendra has more opportunities.

Since the essential plot elements are mentioned by the other reviewers, all I want to point out is that Goddess of Love is a good-looking little film, with an aura of authenticity. The plot seems to be secondary, making the film an acting showcase for its star, Alexis Kendra, playing the role of a young and mentally unstable stripper named Venus. And what a showcase it is! Helping along is Woody Naismith, in the role of Brian, a photographer and a love interest, playing the character with wonderfully nuanced performance. Once in a while, a film like this one pops out, head and shoulders above films with similar budgets. Beautifully shot and directed by Jon Knautz. Pleasure to watch!

Holy crap, what an awesomely entertaining film. I purposely knew nothing about it, other than the written synopsis, and the film ended up being of the most well-made American films I have seen in a long time. The premise starts off simple enough; a very pretty girl meets a man at a strip club and a relationship blooms. Unfortunately, things start to go south very quickly. The level of crazy in this is commendable, and I found myself chuckling at how disturbingly psychotic the female lead became, and by the time the credits start to roll, you are left with a sense of satisfaction that no loose ends were left, which in itself is a success. Coupled with a talented cast, great use of practical special effects, and some amazingly beautiful cinematography (seriously, there were times when I paused the film and thought to myself, "That would make a beautiful painting"), this film is an achievement in cinematic excellence, as far as I am concerned. The people responsible for this should be commended for not only showing the world what films can become at the hands of competent people, but also what a love for the craft embeds into the final product. A treat from start to finish, the writer/director has a new fan and I look forward to what this creative team does next.

Surprisingly entertaining given the announced topic. It could have fell all over with boring notes and moody development (trying not to give up anything, here - no spoilers). But no: we delve into this woman's psyche and it's fun, it's a wild trip.

The ending is a bit easy and therefore, disappointing. But only the very end.

In terms of cinematography, it's pretty well made. Photography is good, so is the editing. But it falls a bit short. It's a tiny bit... raw, a little thin. It shows its small budget through the manner it's done, imo.

Actors are good. It's a sexy flick you tend to follow with interest all the way through the end. Personally, I liked it. It was a good 90-something minutes. Really enjoyable. I rate it 5 a bit unfairly. I think it's probably worth something closer to a 6, but it does fall short of it. (6: entertaining; 5: entertaining with reservations).

In GODDESS OF LOVE, exotic dancer, Venus (Alexis Kendra) falls for a man (Woody Naismith) in the club where she performs, leading to a whirlwind romance. Unfortunately for Venus, the relationship doesn't quite go as she had hoped, causing her to become increasingly jealous, desperate, and suspicious.

Director Jon Knautz does a great job of slowly building the mania, and dialing up the psychotic tension. Ms. Kendra plays her unbalanced role as a somewhat sympathetic character, that is, until it all hits the fan. Venus is a driven force of nature who simply cannot handle disappointment.

The result is a superior horror-thriller fueled by vengeance. It also has a wonderful twist at the end...