I wanted to love this movie so much. When it arrived, I was totally captivated by the packaging, and I felt this just had to be a really unique experience based on that alone. The package that the discs come in is just beautiful Add to that the facts that the executive producer is Eddie Van Halen, that he had written all the music for this movie, and that artwork was provided by 1019, and I could tell this was no ordinary XXX video.

Well, sad to report, I did not love the movie. It is a very ambitious attempt to make a dark, Gothic art piece that also features XXX scenes. The areas where this movie succeeds in doing that are in costumes and settings. In spite of the faux pas of showing thong panties and dresses with zippers in the Victorian scene, the costumes were wonderful. The music was excellent, unique and totally unexpected for a XXX video.

The main problem from my viewpoint is that is very difficult to find porn stars who can actually act. If there were real actors in this movie, who just happened to have real sex on camera, this movie might be a masterpiece. But the acting is so terrible that in spots, it actually makes you laugh out loud. In one scene, when the police inspector is questioning people after a man's wife simply vanishes into thin air, you can only think of Homer Simpson doing Hamlet. It's just that bad.

Another major problem for me was the scene where the priest is tortured. His eyes and mouth are sewn shut, and the scene is very, very graphic, bloody and disturbing. The scene is drawn out, not just a shot or two, and it is very well done for a horror movie, but this is supposed to be an erotic XXX movie! Turning my stomach, forcing me to cover my eyes and my husband to have to fast forward through the scene is as about as far from a turn-on as you can get.

They came close in a couple of scenes to making something remarkable. There is a scene where the woman who was snatched from the bar is confronted by a huge demon. The make-up on the demon is fantastic, and the actor playing it was perfect for the role: he is huge, rough-looking and has a very large cock. When he is released from his chains and given the woman, you naturally have some expectations. But all you get is a regular porn sex scene. She does oral on him, they fuck and he comes in her mouth. That could have been one erotic and memorable scene. As it is, the only thing memorable is his make-up.

The bonus CD included in the package has a wonderful set of 250 still photos, a few scenes that are good, and some extra music.