Review of Body Shots

Introduction

When I signed up to be one of DVD Reviewers pool of film reviewers, little did I know that I`d be reviewing a film containing amongst other things bondage, rimming, a blow-job school and date-rape.

Now that I`ve set the scene - I must explain that this is a serious film in places - or probably the last third - and a light-hearted look at twenty-something life at the beginning.

The film features four girls and four guys and starts off with Sarah (Tara Reid - also starred in American Pie) arriving at her friend Jane`s (Amanda Peet) house saying she has been raped. We are then taken back to the previous day and see the eight preparing for a big night out.

The first part of the movie concentrates on the night out and we are introduced to each character, with them all giving us some idea of what they are looking for during this night out. There are some hilarious one-liners here, along with the afore-mentioned blow-job school scene which is quite amusing. There`s plenty here to make you cringe if you`re watching with your mother!

Action then centres on the time spent in a nightclub which leads to amongst other things, two of the characters having sex in a car park, one fighting a bouncer and going off with someone else`s girlfriend, one walking home, finding his way to another`s apartment leading to a fantastic scene about condoms etc etc.

The serious element of the film starts with Michael (Jerry O`Connell - from Sliders and Scream 2) being accused of rape by Sarah - occuping the second half of the film. The film looks at the date-rape issue from both sides and takes the matter very seriously and looks at the attidudes each of the friends has about the situation.

Interested? Then read on!

Video

Video is presented in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen and is of a high standard throughout.

There are no compression problems, no artefacts and no grain and no noise.

The location used are not especially exciting, but are well shot and help to present the story.

Audio

This movie is mainly dialogue based and whilst the focus of the soundtrack is on speech, the 5.1 mix is well done.

Certain scenes, for example inside the night club sound fantastic - all channels and subwoofer are used to create a very realistic effect.

Features

Very basic stuff here - a trailer, scene selection and cast/crew info (not very exciting, but better put together and easier to navigate than most).

The menus are well presented and there are no confusing buttons! (others please take note!)

Conclusion

When Reviewer sent me this film to look at and I read the box, I was expecting a sexy film, with some comedy elements thrown in.

However, the film is not this at all - its really a very honest look at the lives of twenty-something Americans, with some humour and memorable scenes, but a serious side as well.

All the characters are very well acted and the performances give the film an edge over similar types of movie where weak acting is made up for by more sex scenes - actually, despite what you might think when reading the cover notes, there isn`t much sex in the film - the emphasis is on the plot and acting.

Overall, this was a good film which I enjoyed watching. Good video and sound along with the excellent cast and performances make up for the lack of extras.