Body Chemistry 4: Full Exposure (4 Stars)

A jury is made up of 12 people brought together to decide who has the best lawyer.

That quote, spoken in the film by Shannon Tweed as Dr. Claire Archer, is unfortunately true, especially in America. A lot of money can be earned from making sure that guilty people don't go to jail.

The fourth film in the Body Chemistry series begins where the third film ended. A reporter has written a screenplay for a film about the psychologist Dr. Claire Archer, in which there are details about her murdering her ex-lovers. When he delivers the script to a producer Claire is waiting, and she shoots both of them. She was witnessed committing the murder, so she hires the high profile lawyer Simon Mitchell to prove that she's innocent. Never a person to separate business and pleasure, she has a sexual affair with the lawyer. At the same time she makes anonymous threatening phone calls to Simon's wife and his legal assistant. Is this madness, or will it somehow help her case?

This is a very well written film, with a perfect balance between the courtroom drama, the action and the sex scenes. It's what all erotic thrillers should be. Unfortunately, it's now out of print. Let's hope there will soon be a box set containing all four films in the Body Chemistry Tetralogy.

Body Chemistry 4: Full Exposure (4 Stars)

This is the last in the series of films about the psychologist and serial killer, Dr. Claire Archer. Normally I would complain about the leading character being changed within a series, but Shannon Tweed takes over as Dr. Archer in this film, which is a welcome change. Roger Corman is the executive producer for the series, and Jim Wynorski directed the third and fourth installments. It's been a long time since I watched the first three parts, but as I remember sado-masochism played a bigger role. The sex in the fourth part, which I watched today, is more vanilla, although Shannon -- oops, I meant Claire -- is always the one in control.

The film begins with Claire killing a reporter who was about to publish an article about her. She goes to the top attorney Simon Mitchell and asks him to defend her. He is convinced of her innocence, so he does an expert job in tearing apart the prosecution's case. But he also falls under Claire's spell and begins a dangerous affair with her, which threatens both his marriage and his job.

This is the second film I've watched in a row that was directed by Jim Wynorski. If I counted correctly, I have 22 of his films in my DVD collection. That's enough for a marathon. Soon. There are a few marathons I'd like to do, when I have the time.

Scandalous Behavior (2 Stars)

This film, made in 1999 and directed by James Hong, has also been released as "Singapore Sling".

Michelle Drake is engaged to marry Stephen Tanner, the owner of a Texas oil company. While on holiday in Singapore she is arrested for possession of a gun, and she is sentenced to five years in prison. A rich Singapore businessman, Adam Chance, arranges for her to be released on condition that she marries him. For two years they remain together, but Michelle doesn't love him. She runs away and returns to America to her fiance. In her absence Stephen has moved on and is living with his childhood sweetheart, Lisa Blair, but he throws her out when Michelle returns. She doesn't tell him that she is now married.

Michelle might not love Adam, but he loves her. He flies to America and offers to invest 20 million dollars in Stephen's company if he sends Michelle back to Singapore. Stephen's oil wells have run dry and he is deeply in debt, so he doesn't hesitate to accept the offer. After all, he still has Lisa in reserve.

This was the last of four films directed by James Hong, who also plays Adam Chance. I can understand why he hasn't been allowed to direct any more films. The quality is so poor that it's embarrassing. As director he should have planned the shoots better. In some scenes, when the camera switches to another angle the actors are standing in different positions. When the camera returns to the previous angle the actors are back in their old positions. That's messy editing, messy directing, messy everything. The plot is overly complex. My short summary above probably seems complex already, but there are other details and other characters that I didn't mention. There's a romance between Stephen's brother and a strip club owner, attempts to discover new oil, rivalry between the two brothers, a stolen ruby and the escapades of Adam's henchmen. Too much is happening.

The DVD cover emphasises Shannon Tweed, who plays Stephen's ex-girlfriend Lisa, even though she has a relatively small role in the film. As the best known actress she gets her picture on the cover. Shannon's fans will be disappointed.