4.25
out of 5.00 -
Film:
5
Extras:
3
Video:
5
Audio:
4
-
1/30/2009
TOP SHELF, at first glance, appears to be yet another compilation title boasting an embarrassment of riches when it comes to the starring talent. To see Jenna Haze, Courtney Cummz and Briana Love in a single Blu-ray title struck me as being too good to be true. Yet, lo and behold, director Sid Knox earns big points for giving us all three titanic talents in one package (albeit in separate scenes), truly worthy of the term "Top Shelf." I've been a fan of Diabolic and Anabolic productions since porn first appeared on digital video, and though many, many studios have essentially copied (and improved upon) their look and style over the years, it's great to see that the studio still produces high quality material.
It goes without saying that all three girls at the very, very least, deliver performances which are worthy of their reputation and fan-following. Jenna, Brianna and Courtney make up the first triple crown scenes, and kick off the flick to a rousing start. Miss Haze looks as delectable as ever in a long sleeve collared shirt, tight black shorts, and black heels. We first find her outdoors, explaining on the telephone that she's stressed out and needs to see Tommy Gunn, her personal masseuse and trainer (who hit the client jackpot when it comes to having Jenna under his physical direction). A foot massage worthy of a "Pulp Fiction" description allows us to stare at Jenna's incredible gams for some time (Miss Haze has the best legs in the business, or at least easily matching those of Racquel Darrian, Briana Banks, Julia Ashton and Misty Rain). Of course, he eats her, she sucks him, and they fuck for a good long time before doing it anally. The close-up of Jenna swallowing caps off what is definitely yet another great scene from Miss Haze.
Blonde and curvy Brianna Love is presented next, and we are treated to long and lingering shots of her body climbing out of bed (while Talon sleeps), taking a shower, then dressing up for work. Of course, all this preparation is for naught, because her guy wakes up and convinces her to stay for a morning session. Her passionate blowjobs and anal work are the obvious highlights, but it's disappointing to see the money shot land only on her stomach after they bang vaginally in doggy.
Courtney Cummz (wearing almost the exact same outfit as Miss Haze) welcomes Mick Blue to a country club by sucking and fucking him silly. Let me just say that this is probably the best scene in TOP SHELF, and rarely have I witnessed Miss Cummz perform so naturally yet so wildly. Superb oral work, and even better schtupping action proves that even a stand-out performer like Jenna Haze can be out-classed. Courtney doesn't do anal here, but she swallows him with a sly grin after he spills his man-milk into her mouth.
The rest of the girls are at least average when it comes to gonzo-standards (Amy Reid is especially arousing when matched with Evan Stone, and impresses with her finger-lickin' good cum-eating after he spills his load on her chest), but Sarah Vandella and Shawna Lenee don't generate enough chemistry with each other nor with their male partner Jenner to make the threesome anything special. The pop shot is weak, but the girls are even weaker when it comes to showing any interest in receiving a dual facial, never mind any hope of cum-swapping.
The concluding scene features Audrey Bitoni, who is quite easy on the eyes when she walks around a sprawling porch dressed in a black outfit which matches her raven hair. She greets a relaxing Mark Davis, and the two do it by a lounge chair outside. However, the sex is pretty standard: cunnilingus, fellatio, standing doggy, cowgirl positions and then a pop shot to her massive chest. It's almost like watching a textbook porn scene with little imagination or enthusiasm. Fortunately, the first three scenes remain fresh in my mind, and more than make up for this weak finale.
The box cover itself is a sexy, yet understated presentation of the disc's contents. Instead of showing a photoshopped mishmash of the girls in compromising positions using hardcore stills, or just focusing on a single talent, Diabolic offers a simple "PG-13" rated snapshot of the girls posing on a couch and fully clothed (although Aubrey Bitoni looks like she's about to burst out of her black bikini top). It should be noted for you fashionistas out there that none of the girls wear the same outfits in the movie itself, but I admire Diabolic for putting an actual photo of the nearly all the girls (Sarah Vandella and Shawna Lenee aren't pictured) on the box cover. Little details like this really elevate the value of the product and set it apart from being just another slapped-together gonzo title.
More importantly and definitely worth watching is the forty minute Behind The Scenes featurette which presents photoshoots, extra footage and interviews with the girls (though be aware that miking problems during the video shoot means you have to raise the volume up to "11" in order to hear them speak). The photo gallery contains some nicely composed hardcore photos (and not just random stills off the video), and the Blu-ray chapter selection offers scenes based on girls and positioning. As far as video quality is concerned, the picture looks great for a gonzo video. Assuming you can turn your attention from the eye-candy, the viewer will notice lush natural colors in the background during the outdoor scenes, though the high definition video isn't as stunningly eye-popping due to the slightly softer focus. (Yet, check out Amy Reid's body at the beginning of her scene, and you'll see fine details like the peach fuzz on her ass.) Audio is presented in straight two-channel stereo, where any problems in dialogue intelligibility are probably from the production itself.
The only thing missing from the movie is an actual all-girl orgy of all five cover girls, but you can't have everything. TOP SHELF is a top-notch Blu-ray porno disc and one of the best I've seen.
By:
Diesel
4
out of 5.00 -
Film:
4
Extras:
3
Video:
5
Audio:
4
-
4/22/2008
If there was any doubt in your mind about whether or not you should add
Top Shelf to your DVD shelf, just take a look at the cast list: Jenna Haze, Courtney Cummz, Amy Ried, Brianna Love, and Audrey Bitoni. And while all those names should certainly light up the eyes of porn fans everywhere, it's actually the two "newbies" here - Shawna Lenee and Sarah Vandella in a sexy threesome that "hot wife" lovers everywhere should enjoy. But more about that later....
Top Shelf begins with Jenna Haze getting out of her car and calling work from her cell phone, asking them to hold all calls for her. She's anxious to relax a little with Tommy Gunn, and in the world of porn "relax" translates to "fuck like rabbits". Jenna looks hot here in a black mini-skirt and white top, and soon Tommy has her relaxing on his couch while he tries to relieve some of Jenna's stress by massaging her feet. It isn't long before he's performing oral on her, and once the penetration begins, we get to see Jenna vaginally penetrated in the missionary and spoon positions, then get anal reverse cowgirl and doggy style. When Tommy climaxes, he jerks into her mouth and onto her outstretched tongue, with Jenna hungrily swallowing down all she can get.
As Brianna Love's scene begins, we see her waking up in bed next to Talon. She leaves the room and jumps in the shower, returning afterwards to get ready for work. When she asks Talon to help her with her zipper, he actually helps Brianna
out of her clothes, although we get to see her wear black thigh highs and garters throughout the sexual action. Like many of Brianna's scenes, she takes it up the ass here - getting backdoor action in the reverse cowgirl and doggy positions. The final position has her getting slammed missionary style, with Talon jerking off onto her body.
Courtney Cummz is the hostess at an exclusive Country Club and is welcoming new member Mick Blue into the fold. She pours his a drink and then offers herself up to him on a couch. There's no anal for Courtney in this segment, but the duo does cover the cowgirl, missionary and doggy positions before Mick pops his load down into her mouth.
Now we get to the best scene on the disc, as Sarah Vandella plays the wife of Jenner, with Shawna Lenee as a lesbian lover of Sarah's that she doesn't want her husband to know about. When Jenner leaves for work, Sarah and Shawna go to the bedroom, where Shawna begins to perform oral on Sarah. But Jenner forgot his cell phone and comes back to the house, only to find his wife being eaten out by another girl (a fantasy most of us married men have...just for all you attached gals out there). Jenner is shocked at first, then starts to join in. He fingers and licks Shawna's pussy as she's doing the same to Sarah, and later we get to see him penetrate Shawna as his wife looks on and encourages him. Sarah gets penetrated too during this scene, which ends with Jenner shooting into both girls' faces, including some that goes onto Sarah's left eyelid (which Shawna graciously licks off).
If Jenna looked good in her mini-skirt in Scene 1, the one worn by Amy Ried in Scene 5 is absolutely smokin'. She returns home from work to find boyfriend Evan Stone slacking around on the couch, after having spending a day doing absolutely nothing. Amy attempts to chastise Evan for his laziness, but he soon distracts her by going down on her pussy. When Amy returns the favor with a blowjob, we also get to see Evan slide his cock in between Amy's ample cleavage. After having sex on a couch in several different positions (including one with Evan lying back so his shoulders are on the floor, with his legs up on the couch and Amy riding him cowgirl), Evan unloads onto her tits - with Amy scooping up a lot of the cum with her fingers to eat it.
The final scene has brunette Audrey Bitoni in black thigh highs and a black overcoat walking around the outside of a house and looking in the windows. Going around back, she discovers Mark Davis relaxing in a lawn chair. Audrey removes the coat to reveal her perfect form, but Mark is nervous, since his wife is inside the house. Still, that doesn't stop him from doing Audrey right then and there, in a scene that includes standing doggy, reverse cowgirl, cowgirl and a nice pop-shot onto Audrey's chest.
Top Shelf is presented in anamorphic widescreen, and looks great on DVD (a Blu-ray version is also available). The audio is 2.0 Dolby, and solid in most scenes, although not always consistent in levels when comparing one scene to another.
The highlight of the bonus features is a 36-minute behind the scenes featurette, which is also anamorphic, but contains much more inconsistent audio than the main presentation. Here, sometimes the audio is so low you have trouble hearing the performers, while at other points, the audio seems normal. Rounding out the bonus materials are a pop-shot recap option and a slide show.
While Diabolic used to be the studio for edgy, rougher gonzo like material,
Top Shelf (which actually falls into the "All Sex" genre) is more erotic and couples' friendly than the typical kind of title put out by this studio. That should mean a bigger porn audience for this release, which I enjoyed quite a bit and recommend picking up.
By:
Spooky