Thief of Hearts

Not altogether successful, "Thief of Hearts" is a sleeper from Wicked Pictures, far removed from assembly-line porn and worth discovering for its originality.

It plays more like a Non-Adult indie rom-com than porn, with unpredictable moves by its free spirit heroine Katie, very well-played with naturalism by actess newcomer Lena Anderson, who doesn't resemble any of the stereotypes of what a pornstar looks like.

Her pranks and impromptu antics are not humorous but merely strange and seemingly spontaneous, creating a "what will Katie do next?" mood that's both watchable and a pleasant diversion from the ossified porno format.

Problem here, which keeps this Hank Hoffman movie from both respectibility and true artistic achievement, is that crutch of pausing the requisite number (5 for Wicked releases) of times for a tedious 20-minute XXX sex scene. From the meet-cute scene with antihero Ryan Driller, Katie's odyssey to escape from the mundane routine of ordinary life ultimately is left unresolved and thereby unsatisfying -as if this was merely a pilot for a series rather than a stand-alone film.

And the sex interludes are as extraneous to the narrative as usual, though introducing a new lineup of starlets. In addition to recently crowned busy star Kendra Spade as Katie's ex-lover, we have busty and exotic Gia Milana (who I first discovered when she was known as Shay Evans), pretty blondes Nikki Peach and Bella Rose plus plain-jane Jaycee Starr.

But it is tall and lanky Lena, with instantly trademark bangs hairdo, that impresses, and clearly deserves roles in mainstream cinema.