Corporate Assets

Released by: Vinegar Syndrome
Released on: July 26th, 2016.
Director: Thomas Paine
Cast: Tish Ambrose, Eric Edwards, Robert Kerman, Rachel Ashley, Amber Lynn
Year: 1985
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The Movie:

Thomas Paine's directorial debut was this glossy 35mm feature introduces us to a business woman named Jill (Tish Ambrose) who is, in fact, a madame - but at least she's a madame at the corporate level! She watches over a small army of prostitutes (Rachel Ashley, Amber Lynn and a couple of others) who are in the regular employ of a shady businessman named Sheeves (Robert Kerman). For what purpose does he employ these lovely and willing ladies? Blackmail!

A new female employee is brought on, Babette (Sheri St. Claire), only to learn the truth about Sheeves' organization and what she's expected to do, while Jill becomes increasingly unimpressed with life at the office, finding love in the arms of a dreamy park ranger named Winston Fields (Eric Edwards). But Winston's got problems of his own, he's haunted by his military past and what his country has asked of him. But Jill's attempts to get out from under Sheeves's control won't come without a cost.

Presented completely uncut (was the scene where Herschel Savage rapes Sheri St. Claire previously cut? It might have been…), this is a glossy, engaging soap opera that comes complete with decent characterizations, a few solid plot twists, romance, action and intrigue aplenty. The cinematography is excellent and the production values really strong. The lighting, the set design and the costumes/wardrobe are all impressive, even if the fashions on display indicate that, yes, this is very much a product of its time.

Of course, the cast and what they do to each other is clearly going to be the big draw here. Tish Ambrose is pretty convincing in the more dramatic aspects of the film, sharing some genuine tenderness with Edwards' Vietnam vet turned park ranger. Edwards is pretty much always reliable from an acting standpoint, he's as good here as he is anywhere else. Sheri St. Claire as the naí¯ve hooker in training is not only very attractive but actually quite sympathetic while Robert Kerman nails it as the heavy, playing his abusive and sleazy character to the hilt. The supporting cast is made up of some A-listers as well, so be on the lookout for Jamie Gillis, Harry Reems and Paul Thomas as a few of the johns that get involved in some of the dirty dealings, and as was previously mentioned Rachel Ashley and Amber Lynn, both in very fine form here, are well cast as some of the call girls. Herschel Savage plays Kerman's muscle in the film, and he too is surprisingly convincing in a particularly despicable turn. Bill Margold has a small role in the film as a cop.

Briskly paced, technically quite well made and surprisingly engaging in terms of its storytelling ambitions, Corporate Assets is good stuff.

Video/Audio/Extras:

Corporate Assets arrives on DVD in a new 2k scan that has been restored from the original 35mm negative and it looks great. The image is consistently crisp, clean, nicely detailed and very colorful. There are no obvious compression artifacts nor are there any problems with noise reduction. Fans of the film should be quite pleased with how nice this presentation is, the colors in particular really shine quite nicely here.

Audio chores are handled easily enough by the English language Dolby Digital Mono track on the disc. There are no alternate language options or subtitles provided. Clarity and balance are strong throughout and there are no problems with any hiss or distortion.

Aside from a trailer for the feature, static menus and chapter selection the disc also includes an on camera interview with Eric Edwards. He looks back on the picture pretty fondly, talking about some of the camaraderie that existed between the cast members and offering up his thoughts on the quality of the film.

The Final Word:

Corporate Assets is a well-made soap opera style feature for grownups! The movie has a solid plot, slick direction, nice production values and a strong cast making this one a solid slice of sexy entertainment. Vinegar Syndrome's DVD looks and sounds great and the interview with Edwards is a nice addition. Recommended!