From the semi-documentaries at the dawn of the '70s (PORNOGRAPHY IN DENMARK and HISTORY OF THE BLUE MOVIE) to his last narrative feature (1996's VIRGIN DREAMS, embedded within his churn 'em out "Rex Borsky" latter-day stage for the rectally fixated Rosebud company he co-founded), the late Alex De Renzy has crafted one of the most distinguished directorial careers in the dirty movie industry. In retrospect, the first half of the '80s represents something of a transitional period in his body of work, wedged between the untouchable classics of the previous decade (BABY FACE, FEMMES DE SADE, PRETTY PEACHES) and his post-1985 sequels/near-equals thereof. Transitional in a sense that he temporarily discarded all pretense at plot in favor of the facile "loop carrier" format, "merely" compiling a handful of hot sex scenes with a narrator supplying the connecting footage. The best of these endeavors are probably both WILD THINGS flicks and LET'S GET IT ON (WITH AMBER LYNN) with GIRLFRIENDS and DIRTY GIRLS a few rungs down the ladder, mixing superlative screws with random romps. BALL BUSTERS fits somewhere in-between with match-ups that range from simmering to scorching, all brought to the screen with the filmmaker's customary attention to arousal-enhancing erotic detail and smooth production values, his "you are there" eagle-eyed camera work deserving of special mention.
Arguably adult's most accomplished actor, John Leslie ties six sex-packed vignettes together, reminiscing about some of the hottest ladies he has encountered in the line of duty. A very '80s looking Lois Ayres (still billed as "Sondra Stillman"), complete with platinum Mohawk, kicks things off with dirty cops Jamie Gillis and Dan T. Mann presumably busting her for possession of narcotics as a ruse to get in her bikini briefs. Always a master of erotic contrasts, De Renzy puts voluptuous, milky-skinned redhead Jacqueline Lorians in a stunner of a Sapphic session with tanned, blond hard-body Gina Carrera next. Kelly Nichols seduces pretty Erica Idol (an obscure starlet best remembered for her deliciously dirty backseat b.j. on Billy Dee in Tim McDonald's otherwise trite BLONDE HEAT), bad hair day notwithstanding, with a master's hand. When they are joined by Kirk Wilder, a forgotten stud who was in several Charles De Santos movies including BEYOND TABOO and NIGHT ON THE WILD SIDE, the scene really explodes. Mann gets a return engagement (lucky bastard !) with superstar Ginger Lynn bringing him a refreshing drink to cool off yeah, fat chance ! on a hot Summer day. Best of show however must be Nina Hartley's naughty number on our host in an XRCO award-winning sequence with tons of tease making the explicit pay-off that much more satisfying still. Poor Joanna Storm's phone sex solo can't help but feel a tad anti-climactic following such an impressive line-up of lusty lasses, even disregarding the simple fact that a single girl set-up is just not a good way to end a movie. Actually, when I saw this film again a couple of weeks back, at the wonderful as in still operational ! ABC Theater in Brussels (on a double bill with Ron Sullivan's superlative BABYLON PINK, yes, I know, I am blessed !), the German Beate Uhse dub switched the two last scenes, Nina appropriately bringing up the rear on a high note, making for a vast improvement.