Twist of Fate

In a cute "Bubbly Interview" with Kylie Ireland (taking a bubble bath) on the 2001 DVD reissue of this fine Wicked feature, the superstar makes it clear that this is not autobiographical, but that does not detract from the sincerity of the star and writer of a durable bit of Adult Cinema. Kudos to Bud Lee for his sensitive direction, as usual, of top female talent.

The theme here, quite familiar from scores of self-serving porn movies but far more convincing this time, is that the Adult industry is in key ways superior to mainstream cinema, particularly in the way talent is treated and most notably in the lack of sexual harassment compared to the casting couch (Weinstein as current poster child) approach of sleazy Hollywood types.

But what is most interesting is that while Kylie ends up in a heartfelt letter to her parents back home in Colorado that she has given up on dreams of Hollywood stardom and instead become a successful porn star (using the Ireland moniker) all the action consists in her adventures dealing with mainstream types.

So the posters on the wall as she (and other women) are molested by not only Lee in an effective cameo (in which Kylie seems to really slap him down when he starts groping her) but also Tony Tedeschi and others consist of mainstream movie one-sheets, like Rosanna Arquette in "...Almost" or Jimmy Dean in "Big Bad John".

She's visiting her BFF Juli Ashton (mimicking real-life, though not in any story accuracy) in Hollywood but Juli's merely a waitress, not the actress Kylie thought she'd succeeded in becoming. Despite Juli's warnings, Kylie goes to unscrupulous agents and producers with predictably bad results.

This was certainly a labor of love, as Kylie admits five years later that she even waived her salary in order to create "quality product" and that quality shows through. She's a blonde at this point (iconic redhead in the 2001 bathtub), and delivers her first anal scenes on camera, as well as a lesbian-run d.p. with Juli and the delectable Anna Malle. It adds up to one of Wicked's better releases from the label's early (pre-condom) years.