PENTHOUSE: 25TH ANNIVERSARY SWIMSUIT VIDEO (1994) *** ½

To celebrate a quarter of a century in the erotic industry, Penthouse released this sexy video. At first, it feels like just a cash-in on the popular Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Videos that were popular at the time.  You may think to yourself, why would Penthouse models even need swimsuits?

Luckily for us, each model spends approximately forty-five seconds in their respective swimsuits before chucking their bikinis aside and rolling around naked and undulating.  As a bonus, whenever the ladies are writhing up and down, there are plenty of shots of their nether regions that are so close they could be used in a gynecological textbook.  You won’t find that in a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Video, that’s for sure.

The first big scene is set at a ritzy mansion where four models do a separate dance number before hopping in the pool.  Then, two models wearing lots of Day Glo and denim perform a striptease at the beach.  Then, a chick in a cheetah print bikini disrobes on a matching couch.  This is followed by a cheeky (in both senses of the word) segment set at a military boot camp where the recruits take a bath, apply suntan lotion, and shower.  This segment is hampered by some unnecessary shaky-cam videography, but it doesn’t totally distract from the action.  Next, a bunch of models dressed like hippies take it off in front of a psychedelic background.  This is a fun scene since many models wear bikinis that are the same color as the green screen, so when they disrobe, it’s like their boobs are coming out of the background.  Then, models pose with a bodybuilder at the beach.  This segment is nearly ruined by the awful music that sounds like a German B-52’s cover band.  Afterwards, models strip on the rocks, which is followed by a hot sequence where a model is felt up by disembodied hands by the pool.  It all ends with the models reuniting to frolic in the surf. 

Many of the models are well-known faces.  There are exploitation stars like Julie K. Smith (who is in many scenes) and Samatha Phillips and porn luminaries such as Nikki Tyler and Julia Ann.  Even the models who I didn’t recognize are quite hot too.  While not all the sequences click, there are certainly plenty of steamy moments and plenty of skin to live up to the Penthouse name.