"Arabesque" is director Chris Ward's masterpiece, a truly outstanding effort. The men, to a man, are exceptional masculine specimens, sexually voracious and overwhelmingly effective throughout a three-hour carnal tour of male sexuality in the desert. The flick takes place in a mystical Middle Eastern land, and many of the men appear to be Arabian (Huessein, François Sagat, Sarib), though some are closer to Spanish blood (Iván Andros, Manuel Torres, Joey Milano, J.C.). No matter, they all have the look. And the look and feel of the flick is quite authentic, with woven baskets, Persian rugs, embroidered pillows and the like strewn in and about the Mediterranean-style structure in which the action takes place (as well as the between-the-scenes interstitials -- brief clips from Rudolph Valentino's "The Sheik" and "The Son of the Sheik," silent movies of the 1920s). This stagecraft and the background music set the mood for sex that far exceeds the high-noon temperature of the Sahara desert. The costumes, save for a male belly dancer, are the diaphanous, loose-fitting pants of the region.
The opener takes place in an open-air marketplace where hot Arabian men buy and sell goods. Huessein, Sarib, Colin West, Joey Russo and J.C. trade goods of a different sort soon enough, trading blows in every conceivable combination. This oral segment really showcases Huessein, Sarib and Joey, all incredible cocksuckers. Huessein then focuses, understandably, on Colin's creamy bubble-butt, smacking the hole, licking the hole, sucking the hole, and then fucking the hole mercilessly (Huessein, it seems, doesn't know how to fuck any other way, as his later scenes also prove). Colin cums being doggy-fucked, and we segue to Sarib fucking Joey, Sarib fucking Joey atop a Persian rug, giving the hung stud a magic carpet ride he'll likely remember for a long time. Joey's legs are pinned to the floor as Sarib pumps and pumps and pumps. Joey jerks out his cum-shot, then Huessein pounds Sarib's furry hole, and Huessein is a harsh fucker, he rams Sarib missionary at jack-rabbit speed and with the force of a jack-hammer. He fucks the cum out of a very enthused Sarib, and then douses Sarib's crotch with his load. But Huessein is still not finished -- he sucks lean and hairy J.C.'s beauty of an uncut dong. Then Huessein takes charge again, and delivers another round of prime fucking, fucking J.C. until the sun sets.
We move inside to the sheik's grand palace. And deep inside the palace, in a small chamber decorated with colorful carpets and stone columns, Remy Delaine, stands in embrace with Cory Koons. They kiss and caress as their cocks grow to full attention, and Remy's is spectacular, a simply huge cock, with lotsa tasty foreskin. Pants soon drop and Cory goes down on Remy's giant cock, servicing Remy with his small mouth. Remy flips him over and fucks Cory senseless, and Cory cums while being fucked, Remy drenching Cory's nuts with his load. There is an interlude (a palate cleanser of sorts) with show-stopper Manuel Torres in a solo sequence where he shows off his fine manly frame, long dick and hairy hole for the camera and then shoots his load. Cory returns, this time with smooth cutie Dario Granada. Cory services the hung stud's long, perfectly shaped uncut cock, and then gets the cum fucked out of him by Dario's deep thrusts.
To me, the Turkish bath scene is above and beyond spectacular, it is my single favorite Chris Ward-directed scene ever (and I think I've seen every scene he's ever made). It is dark outside, and the moon is shining brightly against the Saharan sands. Huessein and François Sagat pour water over each other in a sensual bath. Framed in a huge archway with massively thick walls, these massively built men explore each other's bodies. François is just about as gorgeous as a man can be in my book without being too pretty, and Huessein is he-man personified with hair and muscles to spare. The chemistry here is off the fucking charts, Huessein sucking down François gigantic cock with aplomb (and no gag reflex). François does likewise on Huessein's always-hard bone, and then Huessein fucks and rims François' ass in several positions. I have rarely seen sex between two men so intense, so intimate, so well captured. Wow.
Remy Delaine and Iván Andros hook up next, and Remy sucks down Iván's cock as Iván toys with Remy's ass, spreading his fluffy cheeks and tasting his hole. They fuck in four glorious positions (the hottest of which is reverse-cowboy, Remy's enormous hooded penis flopping about as Iván thrusts upward into his arse). Remy rides Iván forever as the energy builds to climax (Iván is an amazing, hard-fucking top, strong and steady). The cum-shots are sublime.
The finale is in the dance hall of the palace of a grand Oriental potentate. Soaring fifty feet high, the room is surrounded by stone arches on two levels. Deep red carpets hang from high above, and the sky itself is filled with candle lanterns, shimmering like stars. Following the floor show by the aforementioned belly dancer (Michael McElhaney), Manuel Torres, Huessein, François Sagat and Joey Milano enjoy each other, dicks out and hard. Each man is paired with the others for cocksucking, and the fucking between Manuel Torres and François Sagat is the highlight of the first half of the scene, Manuel really pounds François, and the second half features Huessein really pounding Joey Milano. They all splash out impressive loads to end a most impressive scene and one helluva motion picture.
ADDITIONAL SCENE No. 1: "The Pharaoh's Tomb" ["Raiders of the Lost Arse" -- Jeff Allen, Simon Cox and Bryce Pierce]: Jeff Allen makes it into a tomb. It is pitch-dark until he brings some light down below. Underneath 20-foot-high statues of Ramases II and other artifacts, he looks around, and innocently touches a stone figure of Simon Cox, a muscular black man with several piercings, including a sizable nose ring. The touch brings Simon to life, and the two briefly tussle. Jeff wins, however, and lays Simon flat, ass open, and starts pumping him to celebrate his return to life. Simon's ass is a vacuum, taking Jeff's fat dick and begging for more. Jeff's dick is a big bulb that slams hard into his bottom. But lurking in the background, Bryce's mummy, all wrapped up, awakes himself, and walks up and knocks Jeff out. A bit of jealously, perhaps? Bryce takes over Simon and screws Simon himself, just as penetratingly. These two are both butch and pierced on many a body part. Taking a fuck break, Bryce lubes up and sticks his hand way up Simon's open ass. He fists him so thoroughly Simon' innards almost pour out. They re-position the naked Jeff so that his manly ass is arched out. Slowly Bryce sticks his entire hand up there. It's an erotic scene, due to the sheer butchness of Jeff. Jeff stands up straight with Bryce's fist up his ass, hardly seeming to notice, and jacks off his load.
ADDITIONAL SCENE No. 2: "The Sultan's Tent" ["A Porn Star Is Born" -- Michael Soldier, Brendan Austen and Marco Montana]: As the scene opens, Michael Soldier and Brendan Austen are on a porn movie set exchanging a few lines of dialogue. Brendan is an Australian muscle hunk with smooth pink skin and a pretty uncut pecker. They then exchange kisses and blows, and just as they're about to begin the fucking, the director, Marco Montana, joins them. Marco is a macho guy with a club of an uncut cock that Michael and Austen feast on. What's more, Marco enjoys their cocks, too, helping the proceedings along nicely. Austen and Michael then take turns fucking each other as Marco continues to feed them cock. Austen fucks the cum out of Michael, Marco squirts a load that sprays out like a lawn sprinkler, and Austen pops last, covering Marco's tummy in goo.
DVD features (two-disc set): Chapters; making-of documentary (with extensive behind-the-scenes footage, hosted by director Chris Ward); on-the-set walk-around and interviews (Tim and Roma of NakedSword.com tour the set and interview several cast and crew members); interview (Taurus interviews François Sagat); TV clip (Remy Delaine tours San Francisco with QTV's Nick Oram); trailers ("Hard as Wood" and "Passport to Paradise"); and no regional coding (playable worldwide).
A DVD Review by Butch Harris
Chris Ward has stated that Arabesque contains his finest work to date. It is hard to quiblle with that statement. With Arabesque, Ward not only delivers one of the videos of the year, he also presents a classic that will be viewed and admired for years to come.
Ward has dedicated this movie to two of the all-time greats, Kristen Bjorn and Jean-Daniel Cadinot. While it is easy to see how this film was inspired by their works (especially Cadinot's Arab-themed classic Sex Bazaar), Ward makes this film his own. And in so doing, he attains the level of artist, which is a level not seen too often in the porn industry.
Using actual scenes from the 1920s silent-era black and white classic The Shiek, Ward sets a tasteful stage for the debauchery to follow. The action takes place in and around an Arab marketplace, the Shiek's palace and a Turkish bath. He uses actors with an Arab-ethnic feel, and the costumes, sets, and music combine to create an authentic sensibility. But on to the action
In the opening scene, buyers and sellers haggle in an open-air marketplace. Once carpets are sold, plenty of ass is left over to be grabbed. Newcomer Sarib sucks the absolutely stunning Hussein, a German-born Turk who Ward has imported for Raging Stallion. Hussein is a stunner: Always hard, hairy all over, wavy black hair and a nonstop power top who ends up dripping in sweat after every encounter.
After JC, Joey Russo and Colin West have an oral threesome, Hussein takes the colofully tattooed West for himself. Hussein delivers the first of several powerfucks here, and he likes to give a nice wiggle after he delivers a series of heavy thrusts. I'm sure his partners really appreciate it, since I got off just watching his hard round ass swivel after mercilessly pounding West and the lucky men to follow.
Hussein squirts on West's back after West drops his load on a carpet. Next the masculine Sarib slowly and carefully sucks West, then quickly mounts him. Russo wanks a shaky shooter, and Hussein immediately tops Sarib for one of the hottest fucks in video this year. The powerfucking seems to go on forever as Hussein and Sarib reach intense levels of animal lust. At one point, Sarib sucks himself while being drilled by Hussein.
Both end up dripping in sweat and lathered in lube and end up releasing screaming loads all over Sarib's hairy chest. The scene cuts to Hussein sucking, then fucking the tall, manly JC. After doing some aerobic squat-thrusts on Hussein, JC works out a fast-action dripper, and Hussein follows with a massive eruption of white lava that leaves JC shouting in awe and appreciation.
Inside the Shiek's palace, Son of the Shiek Remy Delaine is all over young Cory Koons. This scene features a great oral sequence that highlights Delaine's unusually tight foreskin. Koons moans in delight as Delaine fucks the cum out of his piss-slit and PA hole. Delaine rubs out a spitter onto Koons' round pup-rump.
Next, Colombian-born Manuel Torres is standing outside the palace in the moonlight. With nothing better to do, he pulls out his pud for an exceptional solo effort. Torres is an absolute stunner, and although I don't appreciate many solos in videos, this one had me drooling. In fact, one of the special features includes an interview with Torres in which the interviewer (Sister Roma) is literally flustered by his Latin beauty to the point that she can't talk!
Back inside the palace, Koons and young, smooth newcomer Dario Grenada pair off. After a great close-up of Koons eating Grenada's cock, Grenada fucks him. Koons is so appreciative that he dick-slaps Grenada's abs during the long, slow, expertly shot fuck. Koons gives up a thick shooter and Grenada sprays his seed all over Koons' balls.
The following scene is one of the best of the year and is a scene you must see for yourself as words cannot do it justice. Here Hussein and Frenchman Franciois Sagat pair off for a long, romantic encounter in a Turkish bath. With steam bubbling around them, Hussein and Sagat's passion build to white-hot intensity. Ward has said that this scene is the finest he has ever directed, and it attains a level of pure artistry as the perfection of the performers, direction, music, videography and editing combine to make this scene a landmark in the annals of porn.
There is plenty more to come however, and by that, I really do mean plenty! Delaine and Ivan Andros pair off in the palace, and this time Delaine bottoms. The scene ends with a suprprisingly slow and gentle fuck that has Delaine screaming and moaning with every thrust that Andros delivers. When Andros cums, he releases a four-foot shooter that lands directly in Delaine's face. And he keeps cumming and cumming and cumming until Delaine, amazed and delighted, can't hold back from starting to giggle at what he is seeing. In mid-giggle, his eyes squint and his body clenches as he releases an excellent spurt in return. This is one of the best cumshots of the year and is alone enough of a reason to run out and get this video!
The film ends as it began, with an orgy. This time, Hussein, Sagat, Leonn and Joey Milano have at it in the palace. Notable here are the great butt-slapping sounds made as Leonn bangs Sagat. All four shoot as JC, who has been watching from afar, finishes himself off.
The special features include a half-hour cast and crew interview that was featured on the Tim and Roma Show, a superb behind-the-scenes featurette, a brief interview with Taurus and Sagat, and a tour of San Francisco hosted by Remy Delaine. As an added treat, two full-length scenes from other Raging Stallion videos are included.
This video is a class act all around, and it is highly advised that you buy a copy for your collection today!
- Matt Woods