Scandal: 15 Minutes of Fame

Also known as "15 Minutes of Fame", this Cinemax classic is on my short list of favorite sexy/erotica/soft-core movies.

The gist of the plot is as follows. Don't read all of it if you plan on sticking through the whole flick:

Three friends--an actress (Regina Russell, the red-haired vixen), a lawyer (Shauna O'Brien, getting better with each passing movie), and a reporter (Kira Reed, always a favorite of mine), are looking to break out of the monotony of their everyday lives and do something crazy, something scandalous. They devise a plan to get some attention for all of them and move up in the world. Here's the scheme: The actress tricks a high-profile senator into coming on to her, the reporter takes some quick snapshots, and the lawyer comes in to represent the poor, innocent "victim". Bing, bang, boom. Instant success. The reporter has her own byline. The lawyer becomes a partner at her law firm and is also dating the senator's son. The actress gets a seven-figure book deal.

That's just the first half on the movie. From there to the end, you see how their lives change and what happens to those around them. It's an interesting look at how fame and fortune can come and go in a blink of an eye. Throw in a heavy dose of sex and you've got yourself an awesome movie. See it on Cinemax when it's on in your neighborhood.

This film is another in a series of "vignettes" by Siritsky Productions. You can always tell when you are about to see one because the intro includes snippets from all of his similar productions (all involving scandal and revenge), not just the one you are about to watch. In any event, like all the others, this one is just a vehicle to show off the stunning bodies of Regina Russell, Shauna O'Brien, Kira Reed, and to some extent, Kim Dawson. Frankly, I was disappointed to see Kim Dawson in this, as she really does not look good in it (purposefully, I believe), and her acting abilities are more deserving. If you are interested, Regina does a sufficient job of describing the limited plot in the comment below this, but don't forget what the true purpose of this type of film really is.

Sure the acting was good! The Plot needs a lot of work. But hey, it all boils down to..."Sex Sells" This "movie" was all about sex, it seemed every five minutes there was someone having sex with someone! No REAL plot or character development at all. If you took out all your nude scenes you would have your "15 Minutes of Fame"! I am sorry to say this, but this "movie" was not worth my time. Plot-less nudy movies never really entertained me!

Not all movies are serious pieces of art. If you are in the mood for a sexy movie to enjoy with your boyfriend on a special night, this will make you laugh and turn you on, and is not as degrading to women as the majority of the genre. There were some good lines and all three actually was some real acting going on in the non-nudie scenes, much better than I expected. I thought the reporter was the best of the three, but the three of them had the appropriate chemistry together. My biggest criticism is that with the exception of the actor who played the agent, none of the men could act, and none of them had exceptional bodies either. Regina Russell's boyfriend, in particular, had a terribly scrawny body, and looked like he was reading word-for-word. The one playing the movie star wasn't too bad though. Have fun.

When a director sets out to make a soft-core porn flick, which this movie certainly is, there should be a realization that the movie is about showing the assets of the cast. This movie spoils the display of some stunningly beautiful women by trying to be more than a simple enjoyable porn flick. For example, one actress is featured in a bedroom scene with a horribly distracting and inappropriate vocal in the background. Kira Reed's charms are shown mainly in a swimming pool scene where at any given moment only half of her is showing - either above or below the water line. Regina Russell and Kira Reed are both lovely women but they are not effectively shown in any of the scenes.

Shauna O'Brien fares somewhat better. Her remarkable body is displayed fully but the poor camera work and excessive use of close-ups and partial images keeps you from ever getting drawn into her most erotic scenes. Kim Dawson, who has a single scene at the end of the movie, comes off better than any of the leading ladies simply because the camera seems to slow down, draw back and let the audience enjoy watching.

Given what the director had to work with the result is disappointing, but the four ladies are all so sexy themselves that the movie is still worth watching.