Skinemax Uncut, The Rise and Legacy of Cinemax After Dark

Yes...I proudly state Christine Nguyen is one of my favorite actresses. I don't mumble when I say that, nor would I mumble in averring Veronica Lake, Kate Beckinsale, and Beverly Garland are also some of my favorite actresses. I know, I hear you. Ms. Nguyen was different, she has a number of softcore pieces on her resume. Right...and she does them well.  Those shower scenes when she is all alone and she takes her hand and...well, you know. Or when she's in bed and some babe walks in and...well, you saw the same movie. In 1990 this would have been a secret...in 2026, it brings a yawn for a reaction. Yesteryear is gone, and now we can proudly proclaim we were keyed in on Cinemax after 10pm. What an era, the 80s and 90s softcore smut! Thanks to B. Harrison Smith, in his new book, Skinemax Uncut (Bear Manor Media),  we can freely read all about Cinemax After Dark without hiding its cover from passengers sitting next to us on the airplane flight.

After a wonderful forward by Ms. Nguyen, Mr. Smith follows with the definitive work on softcore titillation that many of us grew up with.  Back then, we kept secret about it. Now we look back fondly, as the deviance of kids today includes rough, forbidden, and maybe illegal porn. Yes, you fans of what we got on Skinemax can claim the moral superiority. What lamebrain would not eagerly watch an Emmanuelle film, especially Skinemax' Krista Allen spectacular Emmanuelle in Space. The author tells us about many of Skinemax' shows and original programming.  The plots, reason for, history of, and offshoots of them are discussed.  Legends in our mind, leftover from out teens and twenties.. are babes like Monique Parent, Shannon Tweed, and Sylvia Kristel.  These after-hour vixens are frequent subjects in this one, as are the movie makers like Fred Olen Ray and David DeCoteau. 

So why did Skinemax take hold on a whole generation of adolescents and young men back in the day? The shifting morality and blurred lines between puritanical authority and the perverted id was occurring. Read all about that in this book. Also, Mr. Smith does a fine job in differentiating arousal and seduction with hardcore porn, or mere sexual intercourse. The seduction works on the thinking man.  It works on his imagination and creative senses.  It stimulates, inspires, and stokes a manly appreciation for beautiful female bodies. It also enhances the fantasies of both men and women. Porno-Sex is blunt, and a one-act slam-fest. Skinemax was seduction. The smut we watched back in the day was mild compared to today's available smut. Wait! It was different. We were into seduction...not online or streaming porn. We were about seduction, or building a relationship, or human interaction (physical and emotional)...not just watching a tally-whacker slam into womanhood. Again, yes, we students of Skinemax can indeed assert a moral superiority.

Christine Nguyen never had sex on the screen...she was an actress.  Today's deviants desire the act, close-up, with no relationship or seduction involved. Skinemax gave us this. It shaped us...not to be rapists, but to admire the human body.  Not into misogynists, but beings able to value modesty and the human condition.  Skinemax gave us plots (maybe thin, at times) and fantasies.  However thin the plots of some of the original programming might have been, it was far more mature and substantive than the latest Marvel or DC superhero nonsense. 

Eroticism is not bad...never has been...except from the peeps who are insanely angry that we may be enjoying ourselves.  Veronica Lake knew how to seduce.  Kate Beckinsale knew how to seduce.  Christine Nguyen, Krista Allen, and Sylvia Kristel knew how to seduce. Seduce requires thinking and unselfishness.  Mr. Smith's book is one of the best defenses for erotica in film or novels (Max Gunssler would be pleased).

Herald your affection for that old Skinemax after dark programming.  This book is the foremost piece on that era and the peeps that made it, ran it, appeared on it, and all us who enjoyed and were molded into adulthood with its help. The author puts in several biographical stories that will have you laughing hysterically, gasping, and rethinking the next time you order a pizza. Do yourself a favor, and conjure up some erotic images of Krista Allen seducing in space, or Sylvia Kristel seducing on the Riviera, and smile as you order this work by clicking on the Amazon link below.

SKINEMAX on Amazon 

Cyclone, Heather Thomas- Biker Chick

Heather Thomas! The sultry 80s bikini babe that graced our TV sets in shows like "The Fall Guy." Maybe not as popular as that other Heather, Heather Locklear, but seems to have less issues. Always a plus when men survey talent. Talent? Yep...quite the body and quick to wear a bikini. Pair her up with Ashley Ferrare, put them in a gratuitous sweaty cleavage scenes, and even in a catfight...and we have a classic Fred Olen Ray film, 1987's "Cyclone." Oh, did I mention Hammer Glamour Girl Martine Beswick as a heavily armed femme-fatale figure? How about Count Yorga (Robert Quarry) as a Man in Black? Martin Landau? Oh, Jeffrey Combs as a mad scientist? Yep...Heather Thomas outshines, out sweats, and and out seduces all of them!

Benign mad scientist Rick (Combs) has invented a motorcycle which is bulletproof, fires guided missiles and laser beams, and has an infinity energy source. Nefarious forces in the government want to sell it to the highest bidder, but Rick won't sell...he's a good guy. His GF is Teri (Thomas). We first meet her in a wonderful sweaty cleavage gym scene with her bestie Carla (Ferrare). Teri and Rick go to a grunge club to dance where Rick is murdered by assassins who want his bike. Now Men in Black, who are corrupt, chase after Teri and Count Yorga is one of them. Now Teri is on the run because they believe Rick has left her the bike and its secrets...he did. On the run, Teri tries to find Rick's friend, a pure government spook (Troy Donahue), but as soon as she meets up with him, he's shredded by machinegun bullets.

Chases occur and Teri uses the bike's weapons to try to ward off henchmen and henchwomen.  Determined to keep the bike away from terrorists, Teri tries to find someone who is not corrupt. Her bestie, Carla? Well, see the film...they will either end up in a shower together or in a gratuitous and fiery catfight. Wait? Are all the bad guys...bad guys?  Waters (Beswick) gets an Uzi and comes looking for Teri...but to kill her or save her? Teri will fire guided missiles, shoot laser beams, jump over traffic, and look great in tight jeans as she does.  She even looks great when tortured with battery cables shoved in her groin.

Will Teri become one of Count Yorga's undead brides?  Will Carla and Teri swap spit, or punches?  Will the bikini blonde from 80s TV also have a catfight with the Hammer Glamour Girl? This is a fun one filled with gratuitous Heather Thomas scenes, car chases, explosions, and catfights. See "Cyclone" and enjoy one of Fred Olen Ray's best films, though not most well known. 

Money Plane, Casino in the Sky

Yep, Denise Richards is in this! So is Thomas Jane and Kelsey Grammer. However, stealing the show is the lovely Katrina Norman as the sexy but deadly stewardess. We have a heist one today, filled with sultry stewardesses, gunfights, double-crosses, and high-tech intrigue. Then, of course, Katrina Norman fighting off thugs with her shiny red stewardess stilettos. Yes, Denise Richards is in this...sadly, it is a yawner of a role. Our feature today is 2020's "Money Plane," directed by Andrew Lawrence.

Jack (Adam Copeland), who is married in this film to the irrelevant Denise Richards, and his gang are unsuccessful in stealing a $40 million painting. Also in the gang is killer Isabella (Norman), and IT guy Trey (Patrick Lamont, Jr.). There are more, and all played well.  Grouch (Grammer), hired the Jack to do the theft, holds Jack responsible for the failed mission. Grouch believes Jack owes him $40 million. Now Grouch gives Jack and his team a method to make things right...one last heist that, if successful, will secure the futures for everyone on the team. Jack has little choice as Grouch threatens to kill Denise Richards if Jack doesn't do the job. Enter Harry (Thomas Jane)...he's Jack's Plan B...you'll see, but no spoilers here. Now Jack masquerades as a ruthless human trafficker to get on the money plane for some high-stakes gambling.  Every passenger/gambler is one of the worst criminals in the world.

Isabella? She masquerades as a sultry stewardess and is assigned to look for the loot. Trey masquerades as Jack's assistant and is tasked to find the server and steal all the crypto-currency. The highlights of this film are when Isabella is found out and has fights to the death with some of the criminals and money plane crew. Jack is in charge of taking over the cockpit and piloting the plane to a secured location. Many bad guys will die, and Isabella will keep looking fine in her tight red stewardess uniform and stilettos. Grouch monitors this all from his mansion unaware that Jack has a Plan B.

Will the team successfully rob the money plane?  What is Jack's Plan B? Will Isabella also serve those little bags of peanuts to go with killing and carenage? I know, we are all hoping Jack dumps Denise Richards and takes up with the assassin Isabella...you'll have to watch the film to see if this plays out. For some fun exploitation and alluring stewardess carnage, see "Money Plane." 

Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw, Wonder Woman Naked

Wonder Woman naked? Yep. Lynda Carter helped a lot of adolescent boys through puberty in the 1970s in her TV portrayal of "Wonder Woman." The series ran from 1975 through 1979 and she put forth a wholesome image of an American superheroine. Kind of.  Her costume drew our eyes to certain assets that teenaged kids should not have been gawking at. Still, in the show, she never stripped...though in 1976, Lynda Carter did perform naked and in the throes of pre-marital sex in our film today. Yep, Wonder Woman, or Lynda Carter had a lot of sex scenes in which she was nude with...Marjoe Gortner? Yep. He was the pervert, psycho National Guardsman in "Earthquake," in sensurround! Today we look at a cross between "Bonnie and Clyde" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid."

It begins, Lyle (Gortner) steals a car and spots Bobbie Jo...and the two fall instantly in love. Now she and him hit the road as Lyle is a wanted man. They commit robberies, join up with Bobbie Jo's sister Pearl (Merrie Lynn Ross), a stripper and her psychopath BF Slick (Jesse Vint). Oh, Bobbie Jo's bestie, Essie (Belinda Balaski) joins them. Uh oh, Lyle and Slick try to rob a place and Lyle murders a security guard. The quintet skinny-dip, make passionate pre-marital sex, and skinny-dip some more.  After some more robberies and even a bank robbery, the cops gun down Essie.  Now the gang hits banks and even Bobbie Jo machineguns innocent people. The sheriff (Gene Drew) becomes obsessed and stops at nothing to catch them.  More shootouts occur and deputies keep getting killed.

Having seen the two aforementioned films, we know that this is headed toward a brutal ending.  Even worse, during the first half of the film it was easy to see Lyle and Slick as the psychopathic influences in this film.  By the end, Bobbie Jo is the most psycho of them all.  Knowing Lynda Carter as "Wonder Woman," this is hard for us to see.  When she is dressed, she is in tight jeans, a tied-up blouse highlighting cleavage, and a bare midriff.  Lynda Carter and the camera, are good friends, no doubt. The film escalates in brutality and the killings get more and more twisted.  The ending?  Oh, my!  

Is Lynda Carter in tight jeans and a bare midriff, or even totally nude, too beautiful to get shot-gunned by a vindictive sheriff?   Was this role as a psycho-babe therapeutic to Lynda Carter who was in the midst of portraying a wholesome good-gal?  Does the fact that she skinny-dipped so often mean Bobbie Jo will die horribly...as it does in slasher films?  This is a sobering and alluring film.  Bloody erotica, if you must.  For a prurient good time, see "Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw." 

A Girl is a Gun, Denise Richards Does it All

Perhaps our feature today could be termed an "anti-love letter" to Charlie Sheen from Denise Richards. In it we have strippers, gratuitous shower scenes, lesbian make-out scenes featuring Denise Richards and other babes, lap dances, machineguns, vicious gang rape, bondage, spanking, BDSM, and a para-military force made up sultry dames. This 2017 series, compiled into a 2025 movie, might be what #MeToo should have been. Did I mention Denise Richards is in this one? It is doubtful many of you saw this exploitation series. It is low on social consciousness raising and heavy on gratuitous nudity, lesbian passion, bondage...okay, that's enough, you get it.  Let us look at "A Girl is a Gun," directed by a man (and probably made by mostly men), Mathieu Tonetti.  

The premise of the film is that our male dominated society exploits and commits violence against females. Men harass, rape, belittle, and humiliate women. So here we go...with some of the plot. Vegas (Fox Sinclair) escapes from mad scientists who were going to experiment on her. She is found by Nenuphar (Richards) and recruited into a para-military unit of babes who will murder misogynistic men. Vegas and Nenuphar seduce a mad scientist and bring him up to the hotel room. There, the two babes suck face and arouse Dr. Roberts (Ray Laska). Now they handcuff him after giving him some nice lap dances and pummel him to death. Let us meet pretty waitress Santa Fe (Nikki Leigh) and her new buddy Minnie (Charlotte McKinney). These two babes will be viciously gang raped and then rescued by Nenuphar and her girls. They are easily recruited to join the femme army.

The gals train in the desert, execute rapists, then go hunting for LA's power elite, all men, and murder them. Nenuphar leads the gals in operations and soon the power elite get smart and begin hunting the babes. This will not bode well for some of the babes and Nenuphar will end up chained and strung up, tortured, and forced to watch the execution of her girls...unless she can escape. Sweaty and bloodied, Nenuphar, as she is pummeled, must think fast or watch her entire team slaughtered.

Okay, I gave you 15% of the plot.  Basically, a feminist anthem, made by men.  Our babes look great in gratuitous shower scenes, stripping at an exotic dance club, doing lap dances, sharing lesbian passion, shooting machine guns, getting pummeled or raped, and yelling at the men who desire them harm. For some seedy and very gratuitous exploitation, see Denise Richards sweat and get chained up, in "A Girl is a Gun." This 2025 film was originally made as several episodes in 2017 as "Vigilante." Last year, the episodes were combined and released as a film.

Love Slaves of the Amazons, Jungle Babes Need Love

No film has ever captured the ethos, culture, and history of Brazil better than our film today.  Many forget that Wonder Woman came from the Amazons. So did Menudo. From watching Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman, and this film we can see that babes, scantily clad, dancing with powerful pelvic thrusts, and great big...er, smiles, is something Brazilians, especially babes from the Amazonian regions, are very proud of. Though Menudo has become a national embarrassment. Today we will look at the epic historical drama, 1957's "Love Slaves of the Amazons," in color, directed by Curt Siodmak.

The boring archaeologist, Dr. Peter Masters (Don Taylor) is a hunk and he arrives in the Brazilian Amazon city of Manaus. He needs to loosen up, and when he meets a lunatic archaeologist, Dr. Crespi (Eduardo Ciannelli), he will get this opportunity. Crespi has a solid gold statue of the Amazonian Queen Conori (Ana Maria Nabuco). Peter is excited as this is proof Crespi has found the legendary femme superhumans. The Amazons have remained hidden for centuries, except when Wonder Woman snuck away. Now Peter helps fund an expedition to find them and hires Crespi as his guide. A small crew go up the river and follow Crespi's navigation and soon must fend off deadly, machete wielding pirates. Now Peter and Crespi make it to the region and get separated. Peter gets sick and wakes up in the temple of these babes.

Enter the sultry botanist, Dr. Gina Vanni (Gianna Segale). She and her expedition went missing four years ago, but now she resides with these jungle beauties. The lovelies strip Peter, bathe him, dance for him, and give him mood enhancing incense.  They seek to mate with him. Mario (Tom Payne) was their sperm donor, but he got tiresome and exhausted and probably wanted to be appreciated for his scientific accomplishments. Now Peter will be asked to impregnate each and every one of these beauties, as Queen Canori presides. The gals will gyrate, dance, flirt, and allow him to seduce them. Gina wants to escape as she knows what being enslaved by the Amazons means. I gotta say Gina may be turned off by the sexy jungle babes, but Peter seems to have a better deal. No matter, Gina is a babe, and now Peter is seeking to escape with her. Uh oh, the pirates arrive and war wages. Oh, I should mention some nice catfights...babes will be babes, after all.

However enslaved he is, should Peter stay with the tribe and enjoy the fruits of passion and the shows they put on?  Is Gina merely jealous that the Amazons have a wild animalistic appeal that she could never match, as far as Peter is concerned? Will Gina and Queen Conori engage in a catfight that entails ripping one another's clothes off, pulling their hair, and rolling around in the mud? For the best film ever about Brazil and its identity, see "Love Slaves of the Amazons." 

   

Barracuda, Pedophiles and Other Perverts Beware

With the unsurprising revelation that Bill Clinton is a pedophile, many elites are trying to downplay the evilness of pedophilia. Not this film. 2013's "Barracuda" is an anthem to those who have been raped as children...perhaps a fantasy tale of a world where perverts get what they deserve. 2013's "Barracuda" may draw comparisons to "I Spit on Your Grave," and those would be fair ones. Directed by Christy Oldham and Shane Woodson... "Barracuda" is a film in which the Bill Clintons of the world will not fare well.

Summer (Oldham) is a phone sex operator who lives on a houseboat in Venice. She fulfills the fantasies of perverts all across America. She realizes, through her callers' role-playing, that she is often talking to pedophiles. She begins compiling a notebook and becomes jaded to believe all men are scoundrels and perverts. Now she is armed with the addresses of perverts and pedophiles...but what will she do with it? After her best friend's husband (Will Beinbrink) sneaks into her drawers and tries on and sniffs her underwear, Summer goes on the warpath. She'll ruin her best friend's marriage with a surveillance video and hop in her Plymouth Barracuda.

Summer begins a road trip showing up at the doorsteps of many of her pervert customers. She'll have tape recordings in hand and eagerly chat with the pervert's family members. This leads to many divorces and even a castration. After hanging the testicles of one of her clients on her rear view, the game will get bloodier. A death makes her a wanted woman. Not deterred by warrants, she still has perverts to visit including an Elvis wannabe...and her pedophile stepdad. Uh oh...a man? Yep, the non perverted Harrison (Kaden Graves) just may emerge as a love interest through this carnage tour.

Does Summer's bloody warpath make her as bad as the perverts she's ruining? No!!!  Does Summer have any special plans for the stepfather that molested her? Will the seemingly sweet Harrison hold true or will he be put on Summer's castration list? Ms. Oldham is terrific as a 'Dirty Harriett' type avenger slaying the disgusting among us. For some gratuitous fun about a bikini clad phone-sex operator, driving an old Plymouth, with justice in mind, see "Barracuda."

The Protege, Maggie Q Does the John Wick Thing

Perhaps not an original plot, but we do have Maggie Q in tight leather catsuits, evening gown, all wet and sweaty, in the throes of pre-marital sex, and quick to murder with some type of firearm or trick phone. Yes! Where John Wick sweated and grunted, Maggie Q seduces and murders.  Oh, how about this for a quote from our Maggie Q protagonist, "Make up your mind, kill me, or f*** me!" Which would you choose? Our feature today is the uber violent assassin epic, 2021's "The Protege," directed by Martin Campbell.

What a backstory we have. Vicious, seductive, and interesting. See the movie, no spoilers here. Present day, Anna (Q) is an antique book store owner. Her best buddy is Moody (Samuel L. Jackson). The two have a gig going, find people who don't want to be found, then murder them. Payday is always several million Euros...and the vermin they kill, are indeed vermin. Uh oh, Moody is dying and he asks Anna to find an old...well, associate, an Edward Hayes (David Rintoul). Problem, everyone who looks for Hayes, dies horribly in either a hail of bullets or an explosion. Enter the suave Rembrandt (Michael Keaton). Easy to figure out that he was sent by Hayes to murder Anna. His men do murder Moody, but now Anna is ticked! Anna is now more than determined to find Hayes and now Rembrandt is on her tail. Anna and Rembrandt will shoot at one another and even have pre-marital sex (hence, the above mentioned quote).

Okay, Hayes' boys capture Anna, torture her, pummel her, torture her some more, then die horribly when they underestimate the babe's abilities. Now Anna is in Vietnam hunting this Hayes guy...but exactly who is he? Rembrandt will share an elegant dinner with the evening gown clad Anna, as well as a few shootouts. Both will murder dozens of henchmen, for different reasons. Now Rembrandt is tasked with doing anything he has to to keep Hayes alive. This is just what Anna is counting on.

Just who is Hayes and how did Moody know him?  Will Rembrandt end up murdering Anna or will Anna end up murdering Rembrandt?  How many dozens of schmucks will Anna murder on her way to Hayes? Maggie Q is seductive and lethal, just the way we want her.  Michael Keaton is miscast, but hey, he's Batman, and that's okay.  For a very seductive and sexy John Wick type film, see "The Protege." 

She Walks by Night, A Prurient True Story

Belinda Lee, a sultry actress through the 1950s. Alas, by unnatural and violent means, she was killed at the age of 25 in 1961.  Just before she died, the sultry blonde portrayed Rosemarie Nitribitt.  This becomes weird as Miss Nitribitt died at the age of 24 in 1957. Yep, she died by most violent means.  The German  beauty had the life viciously strangled out of her in what is still the most famous, or infamous, cold case in European history. Rosemarie was screwing a member of the Royal Family during the months leading up to her murder.  Miss Lee was screwing an Italian prince at the time of her suspicious car wreck. Miss Nitribitt caused scandal, for awhile, in the British Royal Family.  Miss Lee caused scandal in the halls of The Vatican. Let us look at 1959's "She Walks by Night," a Hugo Grimaldi film directed by Rudolf Jugert.

With no way to earn a living, what is a young single babe to do?  In Berlin, Rosemary Nitribitt becomes a prostitute.  A good one.  She even enjoys it. Quickly she finds a, for lack of a better term, sugar daddy. The very wealthy and very much older Alexander (Walter Rilla) finds her, saves her from arrest, and moves her into his luxury flat. She screws around on him any chance she gets.  Though she promised never to be a prostitute again, she likes doing it too much. Eventually, Alexander throws her out. Now she goes full force finding wealthy guys and screwing them.  She actually finds her tricks, no pimp involved. Uh oh, an opportunistic pimp (Karl Lieffen) shows up. He tries to tough talk Rosemarie into working for him.  Rosemarie turns the tables, infatuates him, and she merely strings him along as a drooling admirer.

Rosemarie abuses everyone in her life including her housekeepers.  Then she finds a hunk fur dealer named Frank (Claus Wilcke).  He will be a tough conquest, but Rosemarie has assets and ultimately even the good-souled Frank is corrupted.  Now the film turns on the dread.  Rosemarie is visited by a mysterious sort.  Is he an angel?  Is he her own conscience? Rosemarie is faced with the reality that she has never loved anyone.  All that she does love are material things that will not last.  Then, with a million souls in Berlin, male and female, who would like to strangle her to death, Rosemarie becomes an almost insane paranoic.  The sultry lady of the night in gowns, lingerie, negligees, and other alluring costumes may have seemed to have had it all, especially with money, but will that be enough?

Who did murder Rosemarie Nitribitt? Is the fact that the case is still unsolved a suggestion that is was a member of the Royal Family that murdered her?  Is the mindset of Rosemarie Nitribitt now the prevailing mindset of today's youngsters?  This is a morality tale indeed.  Miss Lee is sultry and seductive in every frame of the film.  Gritty, horrific, and ominous, the beauty of Rosemarie Nitribitt (and of Belinda Lee) provide great contrast to what we see on the screen.  For a sad, horrific, and sometimes hard to watch thriller, see "She Walks by Night."  

Code Name: Dancer, Kate Capshaw as a Secret Agent

The U.S. and Cuba insist on living in the past. The 1960s are gone, thank God! Still U.S. Neo-Cons hang onto the myth that the Cubans will host an initial Communist invasion of the Florida keys. The Cubans still think Communism is a good idea even though the Russian threw it out with the trash. Then there is Kate Capshaw, a sultry dame, with some gratuitous swimsuit scenes, baring lots of cleavage, and playing a secret agent. Set in 1987, our feature today was made before the end of the Cold War.  Let us look at 1987's "Code Name: Dancer," a TV movie directed by Buzz Kulik.

She has a perfect life.  Annie (Capshaw) is a sultry schoolteacher with a rich, handsome, and doting husband (Cliff De Young). Paul and Annie even have a great kid in mind they are talking about adopting. Then Annie gets a mysterious phone call, "The Dancer is locked in the candy store and only you have the key." What does that mean? Annie's past, and very secret life has caught up to her. She flees her comfortable and loving California life, and sneaks into Cuba. Yep, her old CIA buddy, Vic (Gregory Sierra) apparently has been captured by Fidel Castro's forces. Now back in Cuba, reactivated CIA agent Annie contacts a hunk, Malarin (Jeroen Krabbe). The Cuban hunk is Castro's best buddy and Annie seduced him eight years earlier in order to gain information of Soviet troop deployments in Cuba. They had a lot of pre-marital sex and legitimately fell in love before Annie had to betray him.

Now eight years later Annie shows up at Malarin's mansion to beg him to spare Vic's life. Hey, it's Kate Capshaw showing a lot of cleavage, Malarin immediately has more pre-marital sex with her. However much he was betrayed by this CIA operative, he still loves her.  Hey, it's Kate Capshaw! Uh oh...yep, you guessed it.  The CIA and the Soviets are involved and we know what that means.  Not all is what it appears.  It also means that Annie's allies may not be allies.  Now Annie is on the run in Cuba, and to make matters worse, her lover has been arrested by Fidel Castro's security forces. 

Kate Capshaw is stunning in every moment she is on screen.  Sadly, this is not the feel good movie of 1987, as the Cold War was not the feel good story spanning four decades. The allure of Annie in a swimsuit or sweating in the Cuban heat is matched by danger at every turn and betrayal is also lurking.  For a great Cold War film with a very alluring performance by Ms. Capshaw, see "Code Name: Dancer" and see how it plays so well here in 2025.

No Contest II, Shannon Tweed Returns

Carnage at a beauty pageant was such a beautiful plot device. Evening gown clad beauties in much peril played well on the silver screen in the 1995 "No Contest" (aka "Face the Evil") starring Shannon Tweed. Ms. Tweed's character killed a lot of terrorists and saved some of the beauty contestants...alas, not all. You can't keep a good babe down and in 1996 Ms. Tweed made "No Contest II," also directed by Paul Lynch. Would our blonde Kung Fu babe return with a machinegun and an attitude? Yep!

Sharon Bell (Tweed) is making a Kung Fu film. Between shoots, she takes her director, Jack (Bruce Payne) and male lead, Steve (Jeffrey Max Nicholls) to go scouting for a location. Sharon takes them to a artsy-fartsy museum. Sharon's babe sister, Bobbi (Jayne Heitmeyer) is assistant curator there. Sharon hopes to rekindle a relationship with Bobbi. Over the years, Bobbi developed much resentment to Sharon. Just by coincidence, Eric (Lance Henriksen) arrives. He is donating a priceless statue he managed to buy in Moscow. The priceless statue was originally stolen by the Nazis during the war and ended up buried in Moscow after the war. The thing is priceless. As Sharon arrives with her crew, the statue arrives.

Uh oh! Bobbi is not happy to see Sharon. Even worse, Eric's men and babe femme-fatale, Lisette (Fiona Highet) start killing museum personnel. Now Eric has everyone locked in the museum as his people cut into the statue to find a Nazi formula for a nerve gas that can wipe out an entire country. As Eric and crew make the nerve agent and kill some more, Sharon fights back. Of course she will get into a catfight to the death with Lisette. Kung Fu and Uzis will prevail and now Sharon must free her sister, her co-star, and her director and foil Eric's plans to export the nerve gas to rogue nations. Oh yeah, some of the nerve gas gets loose and it actually melts people...you'll see. 

Why is Bobbi hostile to Sharon and will Sharon's Kung Fu efforts change their relationship? What does Eric want to do with the nerve gas bombs? Will Sharon or Eric end up melting by the end of this sequel? Gunfights, beautiful women, an evil mad-scientist, and melting victims provide some good entertainment. Ms. Tweed is stunning and her martial arts ability does present a great action hero. For a great time, and some nice Shannon Tweed cheese, see "No Contest II." 

The Wild Women of Wongo, Sultry Babes in Togas Want Hunks

As wokeness begins dying, thank God, perhaps more films like our feature today will be made.  Back in 1959, we did not have to worry about nauseating plots featuring "strong, independent women shattering the glass ceiling."  We didn't have to listen to the mindless drivel about women working twice as hard to have to prove herself in a male dominated society.  We didn't have to pretend ugly women were women of true beauty.  Today, with wokeness, obesity, purple hair, septum rings, and tattoos are forced on us. Well, times are changing again...ugly women get away!  Bring on the sultry dames that we actually want to look at.  So, let us take a look at 1959's "The Wild Women of Wongo," directed by James L. Wolcott.

Omoo (Jean Hawkshaw), the king of Wongo's daughter, is promised to a man she does not find attractive.  Omoo is a babe and wears a leopard-print toga around.  The other maidens of Wongo, all babes, are also dressed in revealing togas. Mona (Mary Ann Webb) has a nice leather one, and the perky blonde Wana (Adrienne Bourbeau) is my favorite. There are several others. The dragon god, an alligator, will pick their mates. One day a hunk visitor comes to Wonga, the handsome Engor (Johnny Walsh).  He's never seen beautiful women before.  All the women on his island are right out of 2020 woke-America...ugly! Omoo and Engor lust for one another, but the king makes it clear, Omoo is promised to a local milquetoast man. On his exit, the king orders Engor killed, but Omoo and the other awestruck maidens save him. 

Engor escapes, but the maidens will be punished by spending a month in the wilderness until the dragon god eats one of them. The babes bicker and dance.  Ahtee (Cande Gerrard) asserts herself as Omoo's rival. Ape men and alligators attack, and the babes fight them off with spears. Now the babes get bold and take canoes to Engor's island.  Engor and his mates are all promised to the local beast-women of his tribe. Omoo and her buddies act and capture all the men from Engor's tribe in nets.  The men are upset at this but we wonder how upset they are given the women of their own tribe are...UGLY! Fat, too!

Just what will Omoo and the other babe maidens do with the captured hunks?  Will the ape-women of Engor's tribe mount a counteroffensive and catfight with the Wongo dames?  Will any ape men capture a maiden and have their way with her?  There will be catfights, nice ones!  Skinny-dipping!  More catfights!  There will also be aroused maidens doing alluring dances fit for exotic dance clubs.  This is an alluring one that celebrates beauty and manhood.  For an anti-woke film to combat Hollywood's current releases, see "The Wild Women of Wongo."  

Angel of Vengeance, Babe Hunted by Survivalists

Jannina Poynter is known only for one film...the one I'm reviewing now.  Sultry and quite fit, the actress will be put through the grinder in this one. She'll also do something that many actresses refuse to do...she'll be gang raped as part of her portrayal. Miss Poynter is not an atypical actress to appear in a Ted V. Mikels film.  He finds babes, who can act, and who will do what most won't.  Tortured, humiliated, and violated, Miss Poynter will come through just fine in our exploitation gem today, the 1987 Ted V. Mikels spectacular, "Angel of Vengeance."

The sultry Tina (Poynter) is back in the town she grew up in. Now she is all grown up and has quite a shape. She rents a cabin in the woods with a plan to write a book about her dad...I know...yawn! A group of ne'er-do-well survivalists notice her and feel compelled to rape her. These survivalists first introduce themselves to Tina when Manny (Macka Foley) heads over to her cabin to rape her. Tina beats him up, calls the cops, but doesn't press charges. Major Hargrove (David O'Hara) leads the survivalists inside a desert compound.  He hates women...all of them are trouble.  He has no idea.  He brings his survivalists into battle with a neer-do-well biker gang and they massacre the bikers.  A sultry biker babe, Linda (Linda Eden) is taken prisoner..  She'll be raped a lot by Manny.

Then Tina is captured.  She is beaten up, tied up, strung up upside down, and humiliated.  She'll be put in the same cell as Linda.  Manny comes by and promises to rape her.  Unfortunately for Tina, she will be raped one by one by all the survivalists.  Now the Major wants to slit her throat.  When Tina gives him sass, he decides to let her loose in the wilderness and allow his men to hunt her down.  Oops...he did not know Tina also has a survivalist background...he'll find out.  Crossbows, grenades, machineguns, daggers, booby-traps, and sticks will all assume the role of weapons of choice.  As hordes of survivalists begin the hunt, they have no clue they are the underdogs.

Will the gang rape of Tina make the deaths of the hulking survivalists bloodier?  Is there a chance that Major Hargrove can prevail in his plans to cut Tina's throat?  Is this the greatest feminist anthem, as far as film goes, since "I Spit on Your Grave"?  Ms. Poynter gives an energetic performance and we love watching her run, sweat, being tortured, and prevailing.  For some gratuitous revenge exploitation, see "Angel of Vengeance." 

Paranoia, Restricted X Action

Giallo! Italian horror (thriller, actually) with some deviant sex and a lot of it. Now, to be honest...only a prude would see this film as Rated X. That is...a prude or the people marketing this Umberto Lenzi film. Still, we can agree this is at least a hard R rating...still good. Shower sex, threesomes in bed, lesbian passion...and of course, heterosexual sex. This is Italian and we can even say Euro-trash so throw in some brother-sister carnal relations...oh, those Europeans...everyone is related over there in that continent. Our feature today is the Carroll Baker film, 1969's "Paranoia" (aka "Orgasmo").

Kathryn (Baker) is a hot widow. Her older husband died and left her half the world's wealth. She comes to Italy to take possession of a mansion, now hers. An over-fawning old lawyer, Brian (Tino Carraro) helps her settle the affairs of the estate. She is a bit of a boozer and as we find out...a nymphomaniac. By chance (yeah, right) a stranded motorist, Peter (Lou Castel), breaks down in front of her estate. He's quite handsome...looks like Steve McQueen. Of course, he invades her shower and the two will have a long sex scene as the steaming hot water enhances the moment. He, apparently, hates wealth and wants nothing to do with money. She loves sex with this younger man. He keeps sneaking onto her estate and eventually is invited to move in. Guess who he brings? His hot sister, Eva (Colette Descombes).

Eva is actually part of a nefarious plan. She will seduce Kathryn and addict her to booze and pills. Now Kathryn joins the Rome nightclub scene with her two new friends. There will be threesomes and Eva will have more personal sex with her brother...and Kathryn. Uh oh again...our brother-sister duo begin their evil plan. After addicting Kathryn to pills and booze, they keep her captive. Eva and Kathryn will have a nice cat-fight and Peter will whip and slap her senseless. All this leads to more sex. It is apparent that Kathryn is in mortal danger. Our two amorous invaders claim they don't want her money. As Kathryn falls into an abyss of helplessness and peril, Eva and Peter get more aggressive and violent.

If not money, what do Eva and Peter want from their new sex-slave? With her continued fall into addiction and vicious torture, does Kathryn have a prayer at surviving? As far as deviant sex moves...who has the most to teach...the older Kathryn, or the two young perverts? This is a gratuitous and salacious one. Not the feel good film of 1969, and you will need a shower after seeing it. For some prurient fun see "Paranoia."  

008: Operation Exterminate, A Sultry Spy Frolics

Ingrid Schoeller is a sultry German actress and the star of our film. In this James Bond rip-off, the sexy actress dominates the screen and even when she is not on it, we long for her entrance into the scene.  She'll be clad in revealing evening gowns, perky and fashionable dresses, swimsuits, ski outfits, and other formal wear.  Sequins or satin, the dame looks like she belongs in them.  Yep, today we have a James Bond rip-off from Italy, "008: Operation Exterminate," directed by Umberto Lenzi.  

An anti-radar invention has been stolen and if it comes under the wrong hands, the free world will be endangered! Don't ask. The Brits send their best agent, Frank (Alberto Lupo), aka Agent 606.  He meets the American superspy, Agent 008 (Schoeller) in Cairo where the plans for the invention were stolen. The two sexy beings team up and sexual tension erupts. 008's cover is the nightclub singer Piper Astor, and she wears the sexiest gowns while performing.  606's cover is gambler/playboy.  The duo stick out and the seediest of Egyptian thugs move in to try to kill them. 008 is swept off her feet by the Japanese baddie, Tanaka (George Wang)...this won't go well for Tanaka.  606 is almost thrown off a tower, but kills his would-be assailant instead.

008 and 606 realize they are getting close to the man who stole the invention. Soon they realize the evil hotel manager, Kemp (Ivano Staccioli), is the culprit. He's very capable and arranges for 008 to be offed at a beauty institute...catfights will ensue.  008 has a plethora of gadgets including the obligatory lipstick tubes that spray nerve gas, and other deadly accessories.  Frank battles his own would-be killers and prevails.  The two manage to save one another's behinds and they eventually swap a lot of spit. Oh no!  Surprises abound and the pretty 008 will be imperiled from surprising forces.  As Frank gets beat up, and 008 is put under a spell to make her vulnerable to the advances of the bad guys, both spies need a bit of luck or they'll perish.

Will the Egyptian thugs and Kemp turn the tables on 008 and have their way with her?  Will Frank break out of his binds and save the nubile spy?  Can two spies, who make a living at deception and lies, trust one another?  This film is the magnum opus for Ms. Schoeller and her presence on the screen is 99% of the enjoyment one would glean watching this Bond rip-off.  For a highly seductive movie night, watch the beautiful Ingrid Schoeller in "008: Operation Exterminate."   

The Adventures of Paula Peril, The Comic Book Babe in Peril

I figured it out.  The dame in this film is a cross between Ada Wong and Jill Valentine from the "Resident Evil" franchise. Clad in red and black, with some shiny boots (heels), big...er, smile...leather belt, tight turtleneck...exquisite. Yep, Valerie Perez in the title role has the look.  Sultry and full of fire and desire.  Taken from the comic book, Paula Perillo, aka Paula Peril, will indeed be in much peril.  Strung up, tied to a chair, gagged, chloroformed, hung from a beam, manhandled by brute thugs, chloroformed again, strung up again...our sultry protagonist will indeed be in peril from dangerous brutes and other sultry dames. Let us take a look at 2014's "The Adventures of Paula Peril," directed by Jason Winn, Benjamin Barak, and Savvy Lorestani. 

As our pulp exploitation tale begins, the sultry Paula Peril, an investigative reporter, is battling several thugs.  She will be knocked out, strung up, gagged, and at their mercy. She will be wearing black heeled boots, black stockings, a tight black miniskirt, a tight red top, and have her great big...smile, on display. This is the life of Paula Peril in her efforts to clean up the city as the beat reporter for the Gazette. Then she will be all decked out in a tight red evening gown showing amazing cleavage.  The formal cocktail party is also attended by her paper's society page reporter, Veronica (Marla Malcom), in her shiny blue, revealing evening gown. Veronica will be wooed by a handsome cult leader, chloroformed, tied to an altar and prepped for sacrifice. Paula to the rescue, in her evening gown.  She too will be overpowered, and look good at it.

Yep, Paula and Veronica have a love/hate relationship. The two babes are rivals but ultimately are fighting the same foes. Again, Paula will be snared, this time by evil lady crime boss Irene (Stacey Turner).  Lucky for the tied up and gagged Paula, and may I say she looks so good in her tight outfit all tied up and in peril, her cub reporter Jimmy (Stephen Hanthorn) is there to save the day.  Being chloroformed, knocked on the noggin, gagged, tied up, and even tied to railroad tracks, always clad in her tight red and black outfit and boots, is a staple of this film. Take my word for it, the comic book plot works, though we won't go into it too much here. 

If you like sultry dames, clad in tight get-ups and boots, in peril...gagged, chloroformed, tied up, hanging from a beam, with bombs or henchmen nearby, this is the film for you.  Yep, a hybrid of Jill Valentine and Ada Wong works very well.  For an alluring and fun movie night, and for comic book fans, see "The Adventures of Paula Peril."