Movie Review: After Porn Ends

I honestly can’t believe it took someone this long to make a movie about porn stars post porn.  It seems like a no brainer and yet I have never encountered a film that focuses on the reality of stars that society gets off to.  Director Bryce Wagoner aims to explore the complete lifecycle of a porn star while focusing on what happens when their time in the industry is done in his documentary, After Porn ends.

After Porn Ends chronicles the lives of some of the most famous porn stars to ever grace the various screens over the past 20-30 years.  With interviews with 14 former stars including Crissy Moran, Asia Carrera, Randy West and Mary Cary, as well as a journalist and an academic, we learn the ins and outs of the industry, how each of the stars found their way into the business, what their experience was like during it, how it affected them emotionally and how they found their way out, if they ever did leave.

I think anybody that watches porn or has ever watched porn should check this documentary out. It’ll shed light on an industry that few know real information about along with the stories of some of its participants and how we as a society hold them to a double standard.  It’s fascinating to hear their take, along with third party takes, on the perception of porn stars and what they have to do in order to transition to a “normal” life while accepting that fact that the ‘X’ factor will never go away.  Like so many of us and Facebook, no matter what you post online the internet is forever and no society is less forgiving.

I’ll be honest, as a man, the best parts of the film are the visuals of the various stars doing what they do best.  There is no point in lying.  There is just the right amount of supplemented content to go along with the stories of the stars that it doesn’t take you out of the story.  It might distract you temporarily but you can still hear what they’re saying which is an impressive feat.

The coolest part about this documentary was listening to everyone’s stories about their experience while participating in porn.  Some had very emotional and personally destructive experiences, like Crissy Moran, while others embraced it to the fullest, like Asia Carrera, learning about the entire operation or enjoying the fact that they’re travelling the world and enjoying the intimacy that once existed in the industry before the work went from monthly to weekly.

My chief complaints about the film are the editing and the camera work.  There were countless moments when the camera would unexpectedly shake or it would go out of focus even though it was clearly fixed.  I understand it’s a documentary but these are the types of things I felt should have been adjusted before pressing record.

There are some big names in the film and there are references to even bigger names but not all the key stars you would expect to be in the film are in it.  For example, Jenna Jameson is referenced in a great story told by Randy West though there is no interview with her but, to be fair, Mary Carey or Asia Carrera are big enough names to supplement her.  Also, Ron Jeremy, the most famous male porn star of all doesn’t even get mentioned, you only see him in a clip that’s referring to Houston’s 500 person gangbang.

The film may not visually seem smooth, but the dialogue flows nicely and the stories are connected so well that you never have a problem understanding the turn of events and where you are in the story.  You might be able to see that the interviews were conducted at different points in time but the answers flowed so well into each other that the visual transitions can be forgiven.  Overall, After Porn Ends may not be the greatest documentary out there but it Is most certainly a film people should watch (especially if you’ve ever used it to get yourself off).

Rating: A choppy but insightful look at the lives of adult stars after their porn tenure ends (6/10)

After Porn Ends is currently available on VOD and will available on DVD on October 9th.