Paradise Exposed: Behind the Behinds

Porn filming reaches a fever pitch in the summer months; long, sunny days and nude-friendly temperatures make it ideal for shooting the de riguer two-part epics that studios release each fall and winter. The massive mobilization of crews (as well as the extra space available on additional discs) allows studios to get creative with their behind-the-scenes content.

"Making of" videos are rarely as hot as the movies themselves. Buckshot's Xposed, the making of the mega-hit Buckleroos was charming and swept film festivals; the extras with Dangerous Liaisons were glamorous and celeb-filled, but neither was quite jerk-off material. It wasn't until I watched Raging Stallion's Paradise Exposed that I realized that the behind-the-scenes could be as erotic as the actual behinds.

Paradise Exposed doesn't shy away from hardcore content. It's the making of a porno and like Raging Stallion's other featurettes Plexus Hardcore and the Making of Arabesque, it shows nitty gritty issues like performance anxiety alongside the hardcore action of the final video.

When I was on set for the Making of Arabesque, I found that the erotic was intensified, rather than diffused by seemingly mundane production issues. Knowing that Joey Russo was crushed out on Colin West or that Rod Barry is a molestory pervert by nature (on the set of Wet Palms), made the sex -- warts and all -- that much more real. The fantasy that gets us off on screen doesn't need to keep a distance; knowing that the actors are alternately bored, nervous, horny and self-absorbed makes the scene even hotter. As viewers, we don't just want sexy pictures; we want to know that actors are enjoying themselves. Otherwise, like a poorly acted Hollywood movie, our interest goes limp.

-- Mike