MY PORNO COLLECTION:Girlfriends (2002)

Girlfriends is probably my favourite of all the Andrew Blake films in my collection. Genuinely all-girl (no unexpected cock intrusions), it has an alluring cast headlined by the ever-elegant Justine and the almost absurdly voluptuous Aria Giovanni. More importantly, it tones down the wilder fetishistic elements, concentrating on the core Blake obsessions of kinky costumes, legs & feet, and rather mild spanking (in this case via riding-crop).

Familiar visual elements inlcude glass dildoes, smeary kisses and opulent, if slightly sterile, surroundings - indeed, there's more than a hint of the Starliner Complex from David Cronenberg's Shivers in the locations used here. As ever, Raoul Valve's insistent, slightly alien score adds to the sense of stylised unreality.

The individual sequences fluctuate between red-hot and downright bizarre: Justine sucking on her own toes is more disturbing than erotic, but it does lead into the film's unquestioned highlight - Justine & Vanity indulging in some scorching foot-play in a room filled with mirrors. Elsewhere, there's a lot of breat-worship, much of it inevitably focussed on Aria Giovanni - at one point she is being simultaneously suckled by two adoring acolytes in a very highly-charged sequence. In a couple of scenes Giovanni is teamed with the equally curvaceous Monica Mendes, in what can only be termed 'boob overload'.

Girlfriends showcases both the plusses and minuses of the Blake style: it's gorgeous to look at, and as much intellectually as erotically stimulating. On the other hand, there's no sense of intimacy to any of the scenes, and for something so clearly identifiable as 'porn' they are surprisingly non-explicit. The playful affection of a Viv Thomas-style production is wholly absent, replaced by something that is unquestionably objectification, but so stylishly executed that it's impossible to get angry at. If you're looking for a concise definition of 'art-porn', then Girlfriends is a good place to start.