Genre: Lesbian Feature

Main Cast: Kristen Scott: Kenna James, Alina Lopez, Whitney Wright, Gianna Dior, Aidra Fox, Kendra Spade, Casey Calvert, Dee Williams, Tommy Pistol, Wolf Hudson and Brad Armstrong

Writer/Director: Bree Mills

Release Date: Sept. 19, 2019

Length: Shorter version: 90 min., Uncut Version: 3 hrs. 6 min

A couple of weeks ago I had the honor of collaborating on the XCritic review of Bree Mills' amazing Perspective with my fellow reviewers. In it, I claimed that we are in a new renaissance in adult filmmaking. And that one of its leaders is the incredibly talented visionary Bree Mills. She proves this claim again with her beautifully narrative and highly personal autobiographical Teenage Lesbian. With the edited version released a week before Perspective, this makes this film her first official foray into mainstream cinema, and it's another example of her being one of the gutsiest and bravest filmmakers in the industry today. Because of the structure of this film, I can't review it in my normal fashion with typical scene breakdowns. It's a film that, in my mind, transcends any typical porn film to the point where it can't be classified as pornography, but instead as a highly erotic lesbian art film that can still be ingested by a mainstream audience. And for that, it should be applauded.

Set in the 1990s, the film is about Sam, played with amazing emotional power by the very talented Kristen Scott. Sam is a high school lesbian who's trying to find her voice in the world, only to be hurt again and again through prejudice and misunderstandings. She believes she finds love in the form of Nicole, played by Aidra Fox, whom she has her first awkward sexual encounter with but only to find her using Sam for her own enjoyment. Once Sam makes a move on her as Nicole has, Nicole's true colors come out creating one of several heartbreaking moments for Sam. At a party, she witnesses a tryst between two straight girls played by Gianna Dior and Emily Willis who mock her as she fakes sleeps with one eye open. And as she watches the two eat each other's pussies out she realizes that this is wrong. That while she doesn't quite know what she's looking for, she positive that this isn't it.

She even goes to a rave disguised as a boy, which actually I found to be a bit of a stretch. No matter how tomboyish Kristen Scott plays in the film I don't think anyone could mistake her from a girl. Either way, though she's able to get the attention of Alina Lopez who drags her into the bathroom and lets Sam eat her pussy. When she grabs for her cock though she's totally disgusted and runs out. But thankfully for Sam, it's here that she meets her mentor Mick, played by the wonderful Kenna James, an older more experienced and downright beautiful lesbian who takes Sam under her wing and teaches her about the lesbian lifestyle. Sam has absolutely no role models before meeting Mick, so now the doors are open for her to learn things she never would have before. Including her first real lesbian sexual encounter, which in my mind is the single most beautiful lesbian scene Bree Mills has filmed yet. It is so very well filmed because it is so simple. This goes back to what I said about this film transcending porn. It shows a real genuine sex act, not a typical show biz fake fuck scene. The beautiful pacing as Mick instructs Sam on the finer points on cunnilingus and genuine sapphic lovemaking is what boils this film down to gorgeous erotic masterpiece it is.

As Sam becomes more comfortable with herself, which we can see with the glow that Kristen Scott exhibits as her character matures, she becomes bolder which leads to the most heartbreaking scene in the film. Throughout the school year, she's been eying the gorgeous new girl Teresa, played by Whitney Wright, a fancy girl who's into brit-pop and art films. They become friends, only to have Teresa reject Sam's advances at a coffee shop. We then cut to Sam's heartbreaking reaction later that night. Here's a performance from Kristen that completely pulls at your heart as you feel Sam's hurt over Teresa's rejection. It sums up the entire film of a lonely lost girl who's just so trying to find her share of love and acceptance in this world, and it brings what she's built within herself crashing down.

At Mick's urging, she brings Sam to one of her support group meetings, lead of course by Bree Mills giving one of her famous wonderful cameos as she does in nearly all of her films. It's here that Sam meets Casey Calvert, Maya Kendrick and Kendra Spade whom she recognizes from school. They each tell their coming out stories, all of them giving such heartfelt performances that you believe and feel every word. The meeting lifts Sam back up making her become comfortable with herself again. I should mention here that there's a scene of Sam masturbating while she fantasizes the members of the group in an orgy setting. The scene flashes back and forth of Kristen rubbing her pussy while she imagines the other ladies fucking in while bathed in purple light. It's an example of Sam getting to know her body and preparing herself for when she actually does enter into a relationship. Which DOES happen, I just won't mention with who.

This is a wonderful, beautifully narrated coming of age story, told completely through the memories of Bree Mills and her struggles as a teenager dealing with her obstacles in the '90s. Unlike today it was a period when acceptance wasn't as prevalent. And it's also a reminder that while people are freer today to express themselves, we still have a long way to go as a society. One thing I'd like to touch on is Sam's relationship with her mom. Sam is the product of divorce, and we have two scenes with Sam and her mom, played wonderfully by Dee Williams with Tommy Pistol as her dad. In the first scene, we see the tension between her and Sam as mom blindly sees who Sam really is. But when Sam comes out to her, we feel her joy and love as she embraces her and tells her she'll always love her. It's an extremely moving and touching moment, and it caps this wonderfully moving story with so much love and conviction.

In the end, this is a very special film, that's filled with so much heart and bravery with incredible performances from the incredible cast. The incredible Bree Mills has given us a peek into her life and shows what it took to make her the force she is today. To see how far she has come from when those bullies threw her into the dumpster to where she is now is extraordinary. She has gained a reputation as one of the most admired people in the industry today, and this film shows what she had to go through to get to where she is today. As I said, it transcends your typical porn film because it doesn't just show lesbian sex but also it delves into the lesbian lifestyle and says to the world, “This is us, and we're not going to hide it!” And to that, I say BRAVO Mrs. Mills. This is a must-see film, either in the more story-based feature version, or the more erotic long-form version. Either way, it's an experience that can't be missed.