Gods & Sinners

Wicked Pictures still sort of exists, but the great label dating back to the '90s was sold during last year's Covid-19 crisis to the Gamma Entertainment conglomerate. Like so many other porn companies, DVDs are a thing of the past, and economics making new releases seem like those old One-Day Wonders is quite evident with this new Francois Clousot feature.

It's styled as a film noir, starring Seth Gamble as a down and out anti-hero, befriended by busty beauty Bella Rolland. He can't remember his past, but out of the past comes a motley group of Greek gods and goddesses, with no costume budget available to make them look regal or glamorous.

Melissa Monet's screenplay is not among her best, mixing in lots of Greek names (most of which I couldn't spell -see the pidgin credits I've submitted for the IMDb listing) with some silly dialogue. Example: goddess Bella Rolland says to goddess Jane Wilde: "You better suck it up, buttercup". And when at the end, after all the XXX sex has subsided, Gamble declares "I still don't understand what happened here" I felt a me, too moment.

In the press materials announcing this release, statuesque star Bella Rolland mentions it's the first time she had to memorize dialogue for a main role, and it's her first attempt at real acting -quite a commentary on how Gonzo content has come to dominate Adult Cinema.

Not auguring well for the new Wicked, a scene of Jay Romero having sex with Jane Wilde has the voice of the director loudly telling them to change positions, and this flub -left in the final print - goes on for some time, not just a momentary mistake. I've seen perhaps a thousand Wicked movies over the years and can't recall one with such amateurish post-production. Atta-boy Axel Braun, who's now in charge.