Womb Raider

I gotta admit it, since Seduction Cinema has pretty much deluged the genre with low-budget spoofs and knock-offs of almost every successful flick to hit the mainstream cinema, I was a bit hesitant to pop Womb Raider -an obvious rip on the Tomb Raider franchise-into my DVD player. After dozens of titles you reach a point where it’s enough already.

But this flick is different in that it has cinematographic style, atmospheric moods, and a director who apparently knows what he is doing. Sure, there is scant excuse to feature copious female nudity and the writing suffers some of the same cornball, stereotypical, kinds of b-movie elements (such as the lead villain, Dr. Scrotus) that makes you want to sigh and roll your eyes. But that doesn’t stop this film from being well, sort of well-made.

It’s not like the original was big on story and plot either, being more or less a showcase for the bosomy beauty of Angelina Jolie. And Womb Raider makes no attempt to disguise its similar intentions by featuring all of the actresses in either no clothes at all or clothes that seem to fall off at the slightest provocation.

For instance, how does our heroine Cara Loft (Lauren Hayes) deal with would-be assassins (Annie Body), lethal female spies (Antoinette Abbott), and aggressive female Zulu warriors (Shalimar)? By seductively removing her clothes, softly caressing her body in all the naughty places, and as they helplessly swoon and submit to her irresistable sensual charms, wrapping her shapely legs around them and grinding away to a sweat-glazed, lesbianic finish. It’s the Lara Croft we all wanted to see.

I found most of the sex scenes to be well-shot and sensual, with an effort to set an atmospheric mood and convey actual passion from the performers. Lots of breast sucking and tongue play, long slow caresses, and the odd scene that jumps out as interesting and original, such as when the two Arabian harem girls (Crystal White and Mercedes Bin) kneel down and Cara rubs them both from behind. No explicit nudity or raw, borderline action but definitely more than just the usual dry bump-n-grind you see in most softies.

Not every scene is a winner, though. Cara’s seduction of the Zulu warrior (Shalimar) features lots of dream-like style but very little substance.

Lauren Hayes can play sexy and smart better than most actresses and does not disappoint here. Aside from her toned and hard-as-granite body, she conveys the strength, intelligence and sensuality that the role requires. As for the rest of the cast there’s not a bad bod in the bunch, and director Randolph Scott lets the cameras roam over every inch.

For a low-budget flick these guys at Cyber-Scan have obviously put their time in, creating a movie with elaborate sets, inventive props, and a cast that does more than just “phone it in”. I think this is one of the better lesbo-parody type movies I have seen.