Known for his fine story movies (Dog Walker, Chameleons) and quality gonzo (series like "The Voyeur"), director John Leslie tries for fake-verite behind the scenes content showing a table read rehearsal of a porn movie project. Truffaut's classic "Day for Night" demonstrates the possibility of artistry in this vein, but Leslie comes up with porno slop, just filler posing as a feature.
Project is a lousy script (ultimately never produced) by Richard Pacheco titled "The Big Gulp", named after a drink. It concerns a daughter (beautiful French star Julia Channel) whose boyfriend (Joey Silvera) is rejected by her dad (played by Leslie himself). Its plot gimmick has Silvera winning millions on a tv game show hosted by Dick Nasty, which causes the dad to suck up to him, but be rejected for something of a pathos ending. Total crap.
After a silly intro of himself and assistant director Jamie Gillis (whose appearance on screen goes uncredited as a cameo) watching a tape of starlet Dyanna Lauren and making dumb comments, rehearsal unfolds as a table reading. Sex scenes in the script are enacted XXX style while the rest of the players merely watch, except for cast member Rocco Siffredi who has sex with eager female cast members, "spontaneously". This resembles the junk one sees on one of those thousands of BTS 'extras' padding out DVDs, none of which existed back in the VHS era when "The Rehearsal" was shot.
There are occasional yocks to be had watching these performers self-consciously not play "themselves" but porno stereotypes, but it's wearying to watch Leslie overdoing the fake directions and motivations he yells at his cast, coming off as an ego trip even if it was intended to be self-effacing (perhaps). Or most likely, just horsing around and handing in dumb footage and passing it off as a feature from big label (back then) VCA.
