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Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
Released on: January 19th, 2016.
Director: Howard Ziehm
Cast: Kari Klark, Hillary Summers, Mike Ranger, Tantala Ray
Year: 1979
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The Movie:
Star Virgin, made in 1979, is a loop carrier directed by Howard Ziehm, the man who gave us Flesh Gordon. As such, there isn't a whole lot of plot here, but rather the feature is based around four separate, previously shot scenes now linked together (sort of) through what was then newly shot footage starring Kari Klark as the titular tart.
When the movie begins, the Star Virgin is strutting about her space ship hanging out with her robot companion Mentor. She is experiencing a sexual awakening and as she does, she sees the first of four scenes play out. It's then that we take a trip back in time to the 1950s where a high school greaser with a cool car named Adam (Bud Wise) hooks up with a beautiful girl named Eve (Tracy Walton). They head out into the woods and use pieces of fruit on one another in very inappropriate ways. You do the math. But are these woods the Garden Of Eden itself?
Back in outer space, our Star Virgin grows increasingly curious about sex, which segues into the second loop which starts out (quite intentionally) as an homage to the Rocky Horror Picture Show - a young man and his new bride drive through a rainy night only to run into car trouble and seek shelter at a nearby mansion. The mansion is inhabited not by Dr. Frank-n-furter but by Dracula (Johnny Harden) himself! Also along for the ride is his assistant Igor, who sports a Richard Nixon mask. When the husband has too much to drink and passes out, Dracula gets it on with his new lady friend, Igor getting in on the fun himself. Shot fullframe and in black and white, this one is quirky to say the least.
Still wanting to know more about sex, Star Virgin then witnesses two high school cheerleaders (Hillary Summers and Terri Dolan) who seduce the football team's quarterback (Mike Ranger) in the locker room. It plays out pretty much exactly as you'd expect it to, but the girls sure are fun to look at.
No about as horny as horny can get, Star Virgin is witness to the fourth and final loop wherein a stripper (Tantala Ray) does a bizarre dance where she puts out flames with her lady bits. This then segues into an orgy in the back room of the strip club with plenty of shenanigans going on to get our heroine all hot and bothered. Once she's there, she masturbates and then the movie just sort of ends.
Star Virgin isn't very good, but it is pretty interesting. The scenes shot with Klark are goofy enough to be funny and the one time Penthouse Pet certainly looks incredibly fine on camera, even if her outfit is ridiculous. The four loops that make up the bulk of the feature are of varying quality. If you're into fruit you'll appreciate the first, the second one goes for kinky camp, the third plays off of the typical male 'two girls at a time' fantasy and the fourth combines odd strip tease work and orgies in a big way. So there's a bit of variety here, even if the movie is basically plotless.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Star Virgin arrives on DVD from Vinegar Syndrome in a new 2k scan from the original 35mm blow up negative framed at 1.78.1 anamorphic widescreen except for the Dracula scene which is presented in 1.33.1 fullframe. As this was shot on 16mm and then blown up for theatrical release, it's a pretty grainy looking picture but the detail you'd want is definitely there. Colors look good, the black and white sequence has decent contrast and although minimal print damage does appear from time to time it's never distracting or irritating. There are some visible scratches, but it's not a big deal and the disc is well authored so there are no problems with compression artifacts.
The English language Dolby Digital Mono sound mix, the only one available on the disc, sounds fine. You might notice the occasional pop in the mix if you're listening for it but aside from that the levels are properly balanced, dialogue is easy to understand and the score and sound effects are mixed in effectively enough. There are no subtitles provided on this DVD.
The only extra on the disc is a commentary track from director Howard Ziehm who is joined by Vinegar Syndrome's Joe Rubin and adult film performer Bill Margold. Ziehm's got a good memory as to the technical specifics of the feature but doesn't have a lot to say about many of the performers involved in the production. Margold, being Margold, likes to talk about Margold and so he does that often, frequently talking over both Rubin and Ziehm and going off topic, but it's still interesting enough that you probably won't mind so much. There are some interesting tidbits in here, such as who the actor behind the Nixon mask is, where some of the talent came from in terms of casting agencies, why the movie was shot the way it was shot, how loop carriers were frequently put together fast and cheap to fill a niche and quite a bit more.
Static menus and chapter selection are also provided.
The Final Word:
Star Virgin isn't an essential piece of vintage adult cinema, but it is an amusing diversion with some interesting cast members and a lovely leading lady to its credit. Vinegar Syndrome have done their typically solid job bringing it to DVD and if the commentary is occasionally chaotic and disjointed, more often than not it's also pretty interesting.
