Is it shock simply for the sake of shock? It's a tough call when it comes to the indie effort Amateur Porn Star Killer. The title alone is about as exploitative as they come. Especially when you consider that the film has nothing to do with the killing of any actual 'porn stars' persey. The filmmakers (or filmmaker in this case) is simply equating the act of having sex on camera to that of being a porn star, and since the girl in question has sex on camera and is then subsequently killed (c'mon, I'm not giving anything away here) we've got an 'amateur porn star killer' on our hands -- yeah, I guess so.

A young woman (Michiko Jimenez) is willingly plucked from the streets and brought to (what I can only assume is) a seedy motel by a young man named Brandon. Stacey, (as she's called) is coaxed into taking off her clothes, piece, by piece, by piece, by agonizing piece (for a 71 minute film, this seems to take forever) and then into oral sex. Or at least I think it was oral sex. It's so dark it's hard to tell what's going on. Eventually, Stacey is beaten to death. In the mean time, scenes from (once again, what I can only assume) one of Brandon's earlier exploits fades in and out of frame.

In this other segment of the film, Brandon manages to coax another young woman (named Lauren) into stripping for him and then the two engage in multiple sex acts. Sometimes this action takes up the bulk of the screen and sometimes it's superimposed over a portion of the screen while footage of Brandon and Stacey is also visible. This juxtoposition of action is often used in clever ways and easily one of the few highlights of the film.

Amateurishly shot, the film has a glossy editing style that sometimes conflicts with it's supposed grimy aura. Cheap computer effects are used to make this SOV production look like super 8 or scratchy film stock and it doesn't work. It simply looks as if the video was sent through a filter in Final Cut Pro. Hardly the type of behavior you'd expect from an Amatuer Porn Star Killer. Shot in a Cinéma vérité style, or gonzo for you porn afficionados, I'm not sure if the purpose of the film is to titilate or educate (like a PSA maybe?). Strictly as an exploitation film, Amateur Porn Star Killer suffers from it's own limitations. The characters are not strong enough to carry the action, and the action is not sleazy enough to carry the characters. Ohhhh, that could be a problem.

Shane Ryan (Brandon) is the true brains behind the brawn here as the writer, director and 'star' of the film, this is Shane's show all the way. While there are some promising moments and filmmaking techniques on display, most of what we're given seems to miss the mark. And in the end I couldn't find a purpose, which is something that I really needed. Was it to entertain? Hardly. The girl is supposed to be 13 years old, who (in their right mind) would find the gratuitous kidnapping, rape and eventual beating of a 13 year old girl entertaining? Was it to disturb? Well, yeah, it's 'kind' of disturbing I guess, but I'll use my John Waters analogy here. It's really easy to stick a piece of poop in front of someone and make them say 'yuck,' but to leave a truly lasting impression, you really have to do something special with that piece of poop. You need a motive, a reason, a statement of some sort or dare I say, social commentary. Otherwise it's just a plain ole' piece of poop...

I was sent a no frills VHS screener for the purpose of this review since Alter Ego is still seeking distribution. The film was followed by a brief interview with actress Michiko Jimenez and I'm sad to report, it was almost as painful to watch as the feature itself. The only reason I can see why this would have been included is to prove that Jimenez is still alive. But you know what? This segment could have been shot before the film itself. So there you go.

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