The Movie:

In writer/director Veronika Rocket's 1983 ode to bondage, the legendary Sharon Mitchell plays a Madame Suque, a woman who runs a sex shop but who has rather unorthodox political leanings. She accidentally sells a vibrator that secretly contained a high powered explosive to a customer named Angie (Torye Lane) who gives it to her lesbian lover, Sophie (Diane Sloan). The girls, excited by their new toy, try it out on one another while their creepy pervert of a landlord, Howard (Davis Christopher), peers in on their private playtime.

When the ladies finish up, they decide to head out for some food and once they're gone, Howard breaks in, steals the vibrator, tries on a bunch of their clothes and gets a little freaky. Suque, who has been trying to track down the explosive vibrator, isn't far behind and will do whatever she needs to stop her secret from getting out and to get that vibrator back, no matter what the cost. While all of this is going on, a private eye (John Leslie) is running around trying to sort things out while Suque's assistant (Ron Jeremy) aids her in her quest.

Scene One - Sharon Mitchell, Eric Edwards: When this scene starts, Eric is on the floor and Sharon is riding him cowgirl style. She rolls over and he fucks her missionary style for a minute as the opening credits flicker past. This quick scene ends without a money shot.

Scene Two - Troye Lane, Diane Sloan: The girls start kissing and tonguing one another and then Diane uses the vibrator on Troye who rubs her clit while she gets fucked by the toy. This scene is also fairly brief. Davis Christopher jerks off while the two ladies go at it - you can't really blame the guy.

Scene Three - Troye Lane, Sharon Mitchell, Ron Jeremy, Eric Edwards And Some Other People: Troye gets tied up in the basement while Edwards and Jeremy rub her up and take turns fucking her. Sharon Mitchell, enjoying a cigarette, pokes her finger into Lane's pussy... and then the scene ends indicating that it's heavily cut as in the uncut version (grey market copies are around if you know where to look) Troye gets DP'd.

Scene Four - Diane Sloan, John Leslie: Storm sucks Leslie's cock while he sits on her bed and she rubs her pussy while she goes down on him. Davis Christopher watches and jerks off again. She lies on the bed and Leslie fucks her cunt missionary style, and then she rides him cowgirls style, naked except for some red stockings. He finishes by pulling out and coming onto her tits.

Scene Fivex - Joanna Storm And John Leslie: Joanna, naked on the table, lets Leslie fuck her missionary style while she wraps her legs around him. He bends her over and fucks her doggy style while she looks through the fridge and then she gives him head. He lies her on the stove top and fucks her some more, and then he moves her onto the floor for more of the same. He pulls off and jerks onto her tits.

Scene Six - Sharon Mitchell, Ron Jeremy: Ron finds Sharon tied up in the basement... and that's it. This scene is missing almost in its entirity as is the lead up where Mitchell gets fucked with a dildo by Lesie and company.

Scene Seven - Joanna Storm, David Christopher: David starts the scene off by eating Joanna's pussy. He sits down and she rides him cowgirl style and then he bends her over and fucks her from behind. He sits down and she sucks his cock for a bit and he pulls out and spunks all over the mirror just before the end credits roll.

Now, with all that said, here's the issue with this release - it's cut. It's very cut. It runs roughly seventy-five minutes in length (this includes some VCA logos and copyright information before and after the film plays) and has much of the bondage removed. This is a film that has a sizeable cult following and for good reason. Despite some bad lighting and questionable cinematography in spots, it's a clever, sexy, funny movie with a great cast, some memorable set pieces and an interesting tone that sets it apart from a lot of other porno movies of the era. It has solid production values and a genuinely interesting script that mixes some quirky politics with a fun plot and steamy sex. Why VCA would go to the effort of releasing this film in a truncated version such as this is anyone's guess - likely to eliminate any material that might be considered objectionable in today's more politically correct climate - but the fact is that this is a heavily edited version.

The DVD

Video:

This feature was shot on film and is presented on this DVD fullframe. For a movie that's roughly twenty-five years old, Smoker doesn't look terrible here though the lighting in the film is pretty poor and as such, it's a little on the dark side. The colors are a little faded and there's some aliasing in some scenes and there are minor problems with the contrast but the picture is clean and clear and stable for the most part. It's far from reference quality but for an older production, it's perfectly watchable.

Sound:

The Dolby Digital 2.0 sound mix is in English and is pretty standard stuff, no better, no worse. Dialogue comes through clear enough and there I didn't notice any problems as far as synching or levels are concerned. It's hardly an Earth shattering mix in any way, but it serves the film just fine and the cheesy Casio soundtrack sounds alright.

Extras:

Extras are limited to trailers for seven other VCA/Hustler DVD titles, a still gallery of a few hardcore images set to music from the movie, an internet link, phone sex ads, still menus and chapter selection for the feature.

Final Thoughts:

It's a shame that Smoker is cut because it's a fun movie with a great cast and some solid, steamy sex. VCA's DVD looks and sounds alright and the presentation is fine despite any substantial extras, but the edits are hard to ignore and with most of the bondage cut out of the film, the picture loses much of its impact. Rent it.