The Ultimate Attraction

Once upon a time, Italian artist Milo Manara created an erotic graphic novel (or were they still called adult comic books back then?) called “Click!” about a machine that could turn a cold-hearted rich woman into a steaming cauldron of wanton lust with just the flick of a switch. He later turned that book into a succesful series of graphic novels.

Before all that, film producer Alain Siritzky made a film called Emmanuelle about a rich woman who discovers her erotic passion, becoming what one might call a sexual adventuress. He later turned that film into a successful series of films and practically gave birth to the film genre known today as Softcore Erotica. Manara had already been involved in a hot little film based on his “Click” books called The Turn On. Siritzky must’ve been looking for new stories to make films out of and probably heard about Manara’s Click stories. So why not try to make a film series based on the Clicker?

The Ultimate Attraction is the first and one of the best of the Click film series produced by Alain Siritzky based on Manara’s Clicker device. Siritzky must’ve liked that idea so much because he’d even name the studio that made this series after it (the now defunct Click Studios) Plot wise the film goes like this: The Clicker (created by Dr. Fez played by John La Zar) basically finds it way to a place called The Body Beautiful Gym located somewhere in San Francisco. Two Gym employees, Linda (Gabriella Hall) and Ben (David Chielens) discover the device and use it to save the gym from being sold out to a ruthless woman. Along the way sexual situations occur (who knew?) Okay, simple enough. Now why is this film so good?

To start, this film is a real highlight for actress Gabriella Hall. As Linda, she’s so thoroughly nice, smart and just sexy enough that you can’t help but like her (and even envy her dunce of a boyfriend Ben for being so lucky). Her sex scenes with Ben are smokin’ proving that even nice girls like good sex. Secondly, the comedy and the sex are well balanced and never conflict with each other (like they did in Sex, Lies & Politics and Legally Exposed). Praise must be given here to director Rolfe Kanefsky as he deftly blends sex & humor like no other director in softcore. Thirdly most of the sex scenes are warm and strong (even the ones with the VERY annoying 360 degree “lovecam” thang going).

Next you can really enjoy this as a film and NOT just for the sex scenes. I know it may sound strange but this film is so well written than even if it wasn’t a “wall-to-wall” softcore flick you could STILL enjoy it as a top notch light comedy. The cast is so good that even when porn stars appear the film STILL keeps its quality level up.

Ben accidentally uses the Clicker on Linda and changes her into…hardcore porn star Taylor St. Claire (gasp!) And yes their sex scene works! David Chielens plays Linda’s boyfriend Ben so well I’m surprised he hasn’t done more softcore (or at least hasn’t had 2 or 3 fansites since this film came out.) This is Chielens’s one and only attempt in softcore and he’s as likable as legends like Jason Schnuit. What happened?

Anyway, The Ultimate Attraction is a REAL winner. The ONLY negative parts of this film are that Dr. Fez doesn’t show up until the last few minutes of the flick (he’s the only constant in this film series but it just feels like they nearly forgot him here what up with that?) and, of course, the eternal torture that is the 360-degree-merry-go-round-”lovecam” shot during a few of the sex scenes that haunts and hurts this “Click” series. Still those are VERY minor irritations for a film this well written, directed and acted.