Passionflix Movie -Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre
Reviewed by Kini
Passionflix is a streaming subscription service turning romance novels into movies. I heard about probably late last year or early this year. I did a Google search and RT first mentioned it last October. My memories are fuzzy, but I have been excited about it ever since. I LOVE Hallmark movies, but they never feature more than kisses on the mouth. Sex isn’t the only thing I love about romance novels, but I usually like the story better when it is depicted on the page. I didn’t know if Passionflix would include sex on the screen, but I had hope.
Passionflix’s site and app launched in late September with its first original release, an adaptation of Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre. This was my main motivation for signing up for the site. I read the book a while ago and thought it was good. A famous actor falls for a small town woman. I adore this trope. I will get back to the movie shortly.
Passionflix costs $5.99 a month, although I signed up early and got it for $3.99 a month. As of this writing, they have about twenty movies available to stream from the site. All are romance-themed, but not necessarily romances. Some titles include: Clueless, Overboard and Last Holiday. It is not a huge selection of movies and all seem to be several years older, but I think their focus is going to be on their made for screen adaptations of current romance novels and the other movies serve as filler.
Some books slated to become Passionflix movies are Afterburn/Aftershock by Sylvia Day, A Brother’s Honor by Brenda Jackson, and to be released in December- The Trouble with Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis. I was not able to find a specific release date for this movie on their website. I also see Royally Screwed by Emma Chase listed on the site, so that has my interested piqued.
As for the actual movie of Hollywood Dirt, I liked it. The site lists are as a 5 on the naughtiness scale. But with nothing to compare that against, I didn’t know what to expect. Rest assured there is nekkidness on the screen. And cuss words. And sex. The hero even goes down on the heroine. It was directed by a woman, and I think it matters and the adaptation felt sensual and sexy not gratuitous with sex for the sake of sex. It has been a while since I read the book, but I felt like it stayed pretty close to the written story. One of the biggest things that bothered me was the lead actress’s accent. It kind of sounded like she had marbles in her mouth. I looked her up and she is from the UK trying to do a Southern accent. The book is always better, but it was a lot of fun to see a true romance novel brought to the screen.
I will likely never watch any of the older movies available. I love Overboard and watch it anytime I see it on TV, but would probably never think to seek it out. I think the Brenda Jackson movie is a new addition but the rest of the intended movies feature H/H that lack diversity. I also find that they aren’t doing a great job, in my opinion, on making putting information in a central location. I had to hop over to their Facebook page to find out about the Jill Shalvis movie. I follow them on social media and they post CONSTANTLY about the Afterburn/Aftershock movie being in production, with no info on the website. I did check their Twitter and I see that is scheduled for November release. There are no specific dates given for the releases and that makes me a little twitchy, no one likes pay for something and not know exactly when it can be used.
As for my subscription, I will continue it. At least on a short-term basis. I enjoy knowing in my small part, I am supporting a romance venture. But I think that I would prefer if it was a pay-on-demand type service. Of the list of books to be movies, I only have an interest in seeing two. It would seem the intention is to have a new, original production every month. I don’t know if they are taking recommendations for movies/series, but I vote for Kristen Ashley. I recommend this service as a fun way to watch romance movies. But know that the original content is only being posted every month.
This is pretty much how I feel about the whole enterprise. I am glad to out my money towards supporting it but will likely only watch the movies they put out (and they seem to currently be scheduled to put one out every other month) and may not subscribe in the long term. I did not love Hollywood Dirt as I also found the lead actress trying but it was nice to sit down on a Sunday with a new adaptation of book I liked.
I originally signed up at $3.99 but opted out after I saw the Hollywood Dirt trailer. It seemed too much like Lifetime. And I’m from the south. Born and raised and it feels a little insulting when I hear accents that are so far off the mark. I also have a problem with paying monthly, and not at least getting one new, book adaptation, movie every month. Most of their movies I can stream on Netflix. I know it may take them some time to get their footing. I’ll wait until they have all the kinks knocked out before I sign up.
I WAS HOPING TO SEE A NEW MOVIE AT LEAST EACH MONTH. ALSO WISH THEY HAD MORE INFORMATION WHEN NEW ONES ARE PLANNING TO BE ON. I WILL TRY TO STAY AROUND A LITTLE LONGER TO SEE IF IT GETS MORE INTERESTING.
What is bothering me as my one year subscription date is coming up is how little content has been added in 2018. One movie. I thought it would be one movie every two months or so, but with only one this year, that means they have made four total in a year. Not worth the monthly rate as I never watch the old movies. They announced a new option today, but who cares since it will take 10 years to catch up at this rate.
I ended up cancelling my subscription. Lack of new and interesting content combined with lack of diverse content. I can’t continue to support something that doesn’t appear to be interested in telling diverse love stories.