Genre: Classic, Vintage, Feature

Cast: Annette Haven, Kelly Nichols, Annette Heinz, Chelsea Blake, Darla Davies, Cassandra Leigh, Michelle Marin, Paul Thomas, R. Bolla, Joey Silvera, George Payne, David Sandler

Director: Henri Pachard

Year Of Release: 1983

Length: 81 min.

Condoms: None

Extras: New interview with co-writer Joyce Snyder and a 90 min. audio interview with Annette Heinz

When it comes to reviewing classic vintage titles most reviewers shy away from it. Not because of the quality of the picture but usually from the shoddily made releases from third rate video companies that are only trying to make a cheap buck from nostalgia nerds like me. Thankfully though there is a company that still sees the value of physical media when it comes to classic adult titles. And that company is Vinegar Syndrome, the Criterion Collection of classic exploitation and adult reissue labels. These fine people work tirelessly to preserve and restore these precious memories in a deluxe high-quality fashion. One of the titles is the classic 1983 political comedy Public Affairs, directed by the legendary Henri Pachard and co-starring one of my dearest friends Annette Heinz who sent me an autographed copy of this great film, completely restored by Vinegar Syndrome from the original 35 mm camera negative to 2k quality and presented in a deluxe DVD/Blu-ray combo pack.

Public Affairs tells the story of crooked politician Paul Thomas who's running for the Senate on the platform of conservative, “anti-smut” values. Of course, you know he's just a hypocrite, fucking anything with three holes and a heartbeat while being backed by German real estate mogul R. Bolla and his wife, oil tycoon heiress Kelly Nichols. When investigative reporter Annette Haven begins running a story on the campaign and the dirty under-dealings it conducts with unsavory foreign influencers, he begins to panic. Especially when his ex-con campaign manager Joey Silvera and his doting assistant Annette Heinz start to see who Paul truly is and partner up with Annette to take him down.

The first thing that truly struck me about this film is how timely it is. Even in 1983, Pachard with co-writer Joyce Snyder foresaw a businessman turned politician who gains political power from unsavory foreign aid. It's no shock though since Pachard was one of the best storytellers of his time. Indeed, apart from this classic, his “American Taboo” series, also starring Paul Thomas, was one of the best the '80's ever offered. The dialog is fresh and exhilarating, with the great Paul Thomas delivering a stellar performance. Some may argue he's a better director than an actor, but I'll let the viewer decide. It helps that he's supported by an amazing cast. Annette Haven, definitely the most photogenic star of her time, was always the consummate performer.

Her angelic features made every screen she was on melt with desire and displaying top-notch acting skills to boot. Her two sex scenes with Joey Silvera, in which she blows, 69's and fucks him doggy style, and her news producer George Payne who fucks her in the shower before bending her over a sink and cumming in her pussy, shows so much sensuousness and beauty that it's no wonder why she's considered one of the all-time greats.

Also of note is the amazing Kelly Nichols. For nearly 30 years this exotic legendary superstar thrilled millions with her passionate and energetic performances kept every man or woman or who witnessed her drained. Playing as his high society wife she gives R. Bolla a blowjob, Bolla fucking her face and cumming in her mouth, and then furiously fucking ex-fling Paul Thomas, sucking him, riding him before the ass obsessed Thomas fucks her doggy style, all of which leads to his downfall. It's a fantastic performance from the curly-haired brunette legend with lots of passion and great acting.

And then it all comes down to my good friend, the wonderful and very talented Annette Heinz. In this co-starring role, the beautiful blond dancer turned actress from Kentucky gives us a terrific performance as the doting assistant who is so enamored by Paul's hypocritical rhetoric that she's willing to do ANYTHING for this man so desires, including be fucked in her virgin ass for the first time. She completely believes his false narrative until she attends a fundraising party put together Paul and Joey to sway some Arab bucks his way. The party is filled with prostitutes and Paul makes one of them (Michelle Marin) go down on Annette. This is all well in good in Annette's eyes until they start blowing Paul and R. Bolla.

The look of disgust on Annette's face is downright frightening as she witnesses David Sandler as the Arab fuck Cassandra Leigh from behind while Paul wraps her long blond hair around his cock and jacks off in it. Oh, and Darla Davies sucks off R. Bolla. It's at this point that Annette begins to doubt Paul's intentions. Annette is just fantastic in this film. While she doesn't have a lot of sex, she still plays a huge part in showing off her acting skills and proving to the world that porn stars can act too. Everyone here does as well. It's a tremendous cast that Henri Pachard put together, with top-notch performances from them all.

This is an extravagant big budget adult film from a time when the art was truly respected. They were red carpet events, with premiers that rivaled some of the Hollywood blockbusters at the time. I've always called it the time of high-class sleaze, when porn stars were real stars and the films were of equal quality of anything the mainstream was submitting to us. That time is all but a memory now, as the stars of these films have reflections of much happier times. This is proven by the wonderful 90 min. audio interview with Annette Heinz that's included on this DVD/Blu-ray release. The woman has lived such an incredible life which many of her fans such as myself can only dream, with so many fascinating stories, or as many as she can fit into 90 min. It's my favorite extra, with the interview with Joyce Snyder being more technical.

So, in conclusion, if you grew up watching porn during this era then this is definitely a must-have. What Vinegar Syndrome has done with this print is nothing short of breathtaking. It's crystal clear full screen in it's fully restored form with sweet audio mastered in DTS-HD mono. A fitting release to one of the '80's finest storyteller's best films. Highly Recommended