Seduction Cinema presents

Who Wants to Be an Erotic Billionaire? (2002)

"Which of these is not a disaster: the Titanic sinking, the Hindenburg explosion, Burt Reynolds' toupee, parallel parking?"- Remis Philbin (Julian Wells)

Stars: Julian Wells, Vivica Taylor
Other Stars: Allison Slinger, Bethany Lott
Director: John Bachus

MPAA Rating: Not Rated for (contains nudity and strong sexual content)
Run Time: 01h:18m:53s
Release Date: 2002-05-28
Genre: late night

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
D-	D-	D+	C-	C

 

DVD Review

Who Wants to Be an Erotic Billionaire? should occupy its own special place in the realms of awful DVDs. Released by Seduction Cinema, known for such cinema classics as Play-mate of the Apes and An Erotic Vampire in Paris, this game show satire drags through its 78-minute running time with only a few scant laughs available. Its obvious selling point is several lengthy lesbian encounters, but even these lack any energy to make them very worthwhile.

Modeled after the format of ABC's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, this game show takes place in a cramped set that could exist in your typical basement. Host Remis Philbin (Julian Wells) sports a wannabe announcer's voice that quickly becomes annoying in its early stages. Her wisecracks might have seemed funny during filming, but they come off too amateurish to even be entertaining. The contestants include two young women and two purposely loser guys. It's no suprise who will win the prizes. They are playing for a chance to go all the way with Bambi (Vivica Taylor), the show's surgically enhanced and exuberant model, and a billion dollars.

Following the ABC model, the contestants must first answer a fastest-finger question to see who gets the chance for the prize. Once chosen, Remis reads through nine extremely easy questions like "What's your favorite color?" and "Who was the first president the United States?" Sometimes she just skips some questions (thankfully) to move the events along to the big payoff. Honestly, the encounters are pretty tiresome and feature several ridiculously enhanced girls. This may be attractive to some viewers, but it seems pretty unappealing in my opinion.

I understand that Who Wants to Be an Erotic Millionaire? purposely creates a terrible game show and tries to have fun with the concept. It even includes awful commercials for super-frosted sugar cereal and aluminum-foil underwear. However, it still needs some form of cleverness to make it worthwhile. Even the big sex scenes are so by-the-numbers that they become mundane. In the finale, the host joins all of the female contestants for the ultimate scene. Even given these circumstances, it wasn't worth the wait and follows the same tiresome pattern.

Rating for Style: D-
Rating for Substance: D-

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	1.33:1 - Full Frame
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	no

Image Transfer Review: Created on the most basic of video cameras, this feature lacks any of the usual sharpness associated with the DVD format. This full-frame presentation contains unimpressive colors and an overall bland appearance. The low budget almost certainly played a role in this dull look, which was definitely not the focus of this feature. It does avoid any significant defects due to its straight-to-video format.

Image Transfer Grade: D+
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
Mono	English	no

Audio Transfer Review: This mono transfer is pretty quiet and lacks much force in any manner. With the exception of the quick theme song and some mood music, this film is entirely composed of dialogue. The words are understandable throughout the feature, which is a minor plus for the bland track.

Audio Transfer Grade: C- 

Disc Extras

Static menu with music
7 Other Trailer(s) featuring Mummy Raider, Erotic Vampire in Paris, Playmate of the Apes, Naughty Stewardesses, Female Animal, Master's Plaything, Inga
1 Featurette(s)
Packaging: unmarked keepcase
Picture Disc
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: single

Extras Review: Who Wants to Be an Erotic Millionaire? contains a 15-minute, behind-the-scenes feature that shows what it's like to film this adult movie. Shot on a home-video camera, this footage captures line mistakes from Wells, the director specifically mapping out the love scenes, and other silliness away from the camera. There is nothing fascinating here, but it does present the low-budget feeling and laid-back atmosphere of the production.

This disc also offers seven preview trailers for both new and Retro Seduction Cinema titles. All of them appear in full-frame transfers and offer a peek into more adult entertainment. The newer movies appear similar to this production, while the older ones seem to actually have a more defined story.

Extras Grade: C
 

Final Comments

In the grand tradition of the popular ABC television show, Who Wants to Be an Erotic Billionaire satirizes the format and injects its own type of prizes to the proceedings. Fans of Seduction Cinema will probably enjoy this film, but I found it dull and a waste of time. Little originality exists in the piece, and it stands well below the original series that it copies.

Dan Heaton 2002-07-11