With the superb casting of Stephanie Swift in the title role, Michael Zen's "The Exhibiionist" is a near classic in the field of Erotica. For me it was an antidote to some real stinkers Zen directed in the "Taboo" series, so if versatility means the ability to craft both great works and garbage, Mr. Zen is versatile.
Even his interview comments on the DVD are enlightening. He describes his methodology in creating Adult Cinema and it conforms well to the actual results on screen, marrying careful planning with spontaneity.
Part 1 is nearly entirely a "six months earlier" flashback, after we've been introduced to Stephs' title website where she (back before the turn of this century) presages the current me-me-me craze of recording every moment of one's life and then broadcasting it to the public at large (recall in 1999 that Facebook and Twitter had yet to be invented and even Google had only a dozen or so employees).
Lesbians Nakita Kash and busty Rayne watch Steph on their computer screen and get sexually inspired, then we see how shy, rather inhibited Steph blossomed under the mysterious mentor-ship of Herschel Savage. A recurring image is a long-shot of nude Swift walking under an archway carrying a parasol, shown at the beginning as almost a flash-forward, and then organically revealed late in the flashback.
Part 1 gains strength from the suspense of how Savage will shape SS's future. Along the way there are stylish sex scenes spotlighting Anastasia Blue and a fetish-styled Sydnee Steele, while Zen's odd but dominant element of Steph's lover "Sebastian" is definitely outre: a mannequin who almost seems to come to life in fantasy content. Steph using the mannequin's hand for masturbation purposes, and the SPFX of the hand having a mechanical ability to move are highlights of this trope, but a crude, amateurish papier-mache face for Sebastian is the film's weakest element by far.
Swift is terrific as always, styled differently in various scenes and outfitted with strange wigs, best one being a Louise Brooks-bangs number that exactly matches one by the other SS in the cast, Ms. Steele. Part 2 has its own qualities, notably some sexy guest stars including ALexa Rae and Shawna Edwards (in a hot, anal lesbian encounter), but it's the build-up in Part 1 that counts.
Even his interview comments on the DVD are enlightening. He describes his methodology in creating Adult Cinema and it conforms well to the actual results on screen, marrying careful planning with spontaneity.
Part 1 is nearly entirely a "six months earlier" flashback, after we've been introduced to Stephs' title website where she (back before the turn of this century) presages the current me-me-me craze of recording every moment of one's life and then broadcasting it to the public at large (recall in 1999 that Facebook and Twitter had yet to be invented and even Google had only a dozen or so employees).
Lesbians Nakita Kash and busty Rayne watch Steph on their computer screen and get sexually inspired, then we see how shy, rather inhibited Steph blossomed under the mysterious mentor-ship of Herschel Savage. A recurring image is a long-shot of nude Swift walking under an archway carrying a parasol, shown at the beginning as almost a flash-forward, and then organically revealed late in the flashback.
Part 1 gains strength from the suspense of how Savage will shape SS's future. Along the way there are stylish sex scenes spotlighting Anastasia Blue and a fetish-styled Sydnee Steele, while Zen's odd but dominant element of Steph's lover "Sebastian" is definitely outre: a mannequin who almost seems to come to life in fantasy content. Steph using the mannequin's hand for masturbation purposes, and the SPFX of the hand having a mechanical ability to move are highlights of this trope, but a crude, amateurish papier-mache face for Sebastian is the film's weakest element by far.
Swift is terrific as always, styled differently in various scenes and outfitted with strange wigs, best one being a Louise Brooks-bangs number that exactly matches one by the other SS in the cast, Ms. Steele. Part 2 has its own qualities, notably some sexy guest stars including ALexa Rae and Shawna Edwards (in a hot, anal lesbian encounter), but it's the build-up in Part 1 that counts.