Skin on Skin

James Avalon took a flyer at the abstract erotica genre most often associated with "Andrew Blake", with a more experimental approach in "Skin on Skin". I found it rewarding for several reasons, though most porn followers will likely be turned off.

Roadblock to acceptance is that it more closely resembles an Underground Movie than Adult Entertainment. In the '60s I saw hundreds of underground films, generally shorts, at midnight movies and was motivated to take cinema seriously. "Skin on Skin" is hardly nostalgic but did remind me a bit of the glory days of Stan Brakhage, Ed Emshwiller, etc.

But the chief reason to watch is that Avalon has chosen Ann Marie Rios as his centerpiece, much in the way Blake became fixated on Dahlia Grey. Rios is a favorite of mine and terrific here.

The style is constant edits, as if ADD had taken hold in the editing suite, and the camera moves restlessly and in jittery fashion. Some of the scenes are shot in Super 8mm, and most of the lead players (including Rios) get camera credits for their contribution.

The content is explicit sex, of course, and it tends toward the kinky end of the spectrum. Color and black & white footage is interspersed, and in place of narrative is just the pairings or groupings of sexy actresses and actors. Recall that this was the period of Stagliano's influential "Fashionistas", and a movement away from narrative to elaborate set-pieces is evident.

Besides Rios, Avy Scott is a standout and Monique Alexander is also a prime asset to the production. Avalon delivers his package on a take it or leave it basis, and I would be curious about the reaction of a current audience, should folks (as I am doing) expose themselves to the scores of hidden gems already forgotten, released at the turn of this century.