Hot Girls Wanted (2015) Poster

User Reviews

Review this title
46 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
6/10
Perhaps really, really dumb instead of being exploited in many cases.
planktonrules5 June 2015
When I saw that a new documentary just came out and it was gaining a lot of attention in social media, I assumed I knew what the film would be--about countless women being exploited by evil pimp-like guys. Well, the truth for the women in this picture was quite a bit different. Sad, but very different.

A camera crew somehow was allowed into a home owned by a young entrepreneur named Riley. Riley recruits girls 18-25 from Craigslist. However, he doesn't trick them in any way--he offers them airplane tickets to his home in Miami and they move there specifically to make porn. The home is filled with a half dozen or so aspiring 'actresses' and the crew interviews them and follows them on some of their jobs. They are there to have sex on camera and supposedly live an exciting life in the sun.

The part about all this that surprised me is that the film does NOT show strung-out drug addicts or illegal aliens forced into sex slavery. Instead, the girls seem to come from rather normal backgrounds and they want to be porn stars for fast money--bored girls with no thoughts about tomorrow. And, while I am sure some will find my words harsh, they seem incredibly vacuous and selfish. AIDS, pregnancy and the realities of the industry seemed irrelevant to these stars. They are simply out to have a good time and that's all that matters to them...end of story. This brings us to a major weakness in the film. You really don't care about these ladies because they all seemed to know exactly what they were getting into and they weren't very nice folks. They seem completely amoral and self-absorbed, so it really was hard to find much in the way of meaning to all this. As a father of two daughters, I was horrified by these women and their attitudes...but felt at least in these stories, they were involved with their eyes wide open...at least most of the time. The proliferation of rape and violence porn came as a surprise to me and some of them, as their fun lives (as they put it) stopped being fun when they were deliberately hurt or completely degraded in a few of the films. This part was a bit shocking as well as quite sad--and this was one case where I did feel for a couple of the girls, as they were raped or nearly raped to satisfy some guys' bizarre fantasies.

Overall, this film is mildly interesting but overly long. I really think with some editing, it would have been a more impactful film. As it is, I just found myself a bit bored with some of the girls' stories, though I was at least happy to see that a few of them chose to leave this self-imposed life. Technically, the camera-work was okay and the viewing experience was much like watching a reality TV show as opposed to a typical documentary. Interestingly, the film's executive producer is Rashida Jones--yes, Quincy Jones' daughter and who played Ann on Parks and Recreation. You can watch it streaming on Netflix if you'd like.
128 out of 179 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
a short view into a world taken for granted
Quinoa19842 August 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Amateur porn. It's out there, people watch it (you may even have a tab open with some videos to choose from, don't deny it). And here, in Hot Girls Wanted, produced by Rashida Jones and directed by Jill Bauer and Ronna Gradus, is not about women who are trafficked in the way that they are in the documentary Tricked from a couple years ago (like this movie, that one is also on Netflix). The curious part about the stories of these girls is that they make active, voluntary choices to be in this world. They see that money can be made quickly by having sex with guys on camera, and that they can even get lots of, you know, followers on Twitter and social media. That it may also ruin their lives as far as getting other jobs or make them pariahs in their families, well, comes with the territory perhaps.

Though this is an ensemble piece, the main focus seems to be on Tressa Silguero, aka Stella May, who has just turned 19 and in from Texas to Maimi - we learn, by the way, Miami has become a bigger hub for LA due to the lack of condom restrictions - and starts to do some videos. She enjoys it, she likes the money that she can get from sex. Not so good is when she goes back home to her small Texas town and her mother knows about what she's been doing, almost from the day that she started; porn, amateur or otherwise, gets around pretty quickly in today's internet age. One of the memorable scenes in the film shows Tress and her mother just sitting on their couch and this awkward silence between them. The mother just wants her to be safe, and Tressa can't seem to talk about it very easily - and god forbid her dad should find out.

Another key figure in this doc is the guy (I forget his name) who hires nearly all of the women and sets up their shoots; he has a kind of home for them while he types away on Craigslist to get more girls. As he tells the directors, the average shelf life for these girls is six months, perhaps less, and the best they can hope for is a year in the business. The amateur porn actress is different than a porn *star*, as we learn, because of the visibility and how the amateur girl is there as a fresh face people don't know, so the longevity is different. But what's still curious, again, is how the girls get into this world knowing what this entails, that they're not pushed on to a street corner for a pimp but able to control - up to a point - how they present themselves.

The 'Up to a point' part is where things get tricky and kind of terrible, as the Latina girls are sometimes put into ugly abuse videos which, apparently, get more traffic online than one would expect, and at one point Stella May does a dominatrix/S&M scene that, as we see her afterwards, she is kind of bewildered. And she has a boyfriend as well; that was something that could've been it's own movie (and maybe is somewhere), about the guys who somehow become the 'other' for these ladies in amateur porn. At first, Tressa's guy is fine with it... until he isn't, and this becomes a conflict that expands through most of the documentary. The question then continues as: how much of this is exploitation? What happens when people are watching porn with so much more accessibility, and these women become objects for people all across the world in seconds?

It might've been good/better if the film had been longer and had taken more of a view of the business aspect; when it does, it's actually some of the more interesting parts of the movie, how this guy operates and recruits these women, how he has certain specific things he's looking for, how fast the turn-around is (by the end of the movie, there's a whole new group of girls at his house). It also nears being at times reality-show like, but I think a key thing separating this from some junk on TV is that a) the directors aren't trying to create any active drama or conflict with these girls in their house, it's closer to cinema verite if not as artful, and b) what the girls have to say to one another, aside from cutesy talk to their little dogs, is genuinely interesting as they talk about working on various jobs and what is good and definitely not so good for them.

Hot Girls Wanted presents its subjects and lets you decide how it turns out. Of course for people like Stella-cum-Tressa, there is no longevity here, but there is the gray areas of this world that I think the filmmakers don't shy away from. It doesn't say out-right, "No, young women, do NOT do this, ever, it's bad", but of course it doesn't show it as super-glamorous either. If you show up to a house with low-rent camera equipment and lighting, and the director puts character behind the 'action', you know what you're getting into.
14 out of 17 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
5/10
Not quite the seedy underbelly you expect
littlejimdavies19 June 2015
What the film tries to tap into is a kind-of shocking female, teenage-exploitation expose narrative, but, instead it uncovers a series of relatively normal, young, stupid and feckless teenagers looking for a way out of their middle-class suburban monotony.

What is supposed to strike you as something akin to sex trafficking (ie imposed drug addiction, systematic dehumanization etc etc) actually reveals an ever-more mainstream industry that has little compunction in playing to the natural vanities and naiveté of emerging female adults, sure, but yet never takes away their choice to leave or stay.

They are paid well, treated like human beings (with the agency and self-determination to board planes to unknown locations with a head full of dreams of being a 'porn star and the hopes of escaping their home town), yet the film still tries desperately to supplant this with a slow descent into infantilization of it's subjects.

The film does not hide that the high turnover of débutantes in this portion of the industry generally wields a 3-4 month cycle for each actress (after the realities of the trade-off of money for loss of reputation and damage to relationships become too much for them to bare, presumably) yet the narrative still implies the idea that it's anything but their own stupidity that has lead them to this.

Unfortunately for the film makers, everything seems 'above board'.

These girls are making 'bad' decisions, defying their parents wishes, wasting money instead of saving it, not thinking about the future or how their decisions effect their romantic life, and yet it's clear that they are having a lot of FUN! All you see is people freely having the liberty to do what hey want, when they want, getting paid and partying till the sun comes up. Seems alright really, doesn't it? It's almost as if it's what being young is all about - Making very bad mistakes through the endeavor of having a good time.

And that's the central dilemma here: How much responsibility do we place on young women to be accountable for all their free choices? The tone here suggests a mixed bag, dependent on the circumstances.

There is definitely an unspoken, Feminist finger being pointed at 'institutions of male power' here, who 'seek to manipulate women for sexual gratification', yet the women make A LOT of cash for their troubles. And as should be well known by now, women make a lot more than men as performers in this industry. Feminists watching this would be careful to invoke the 'wage gap' myth lest the reasoning be turned against them, for example. But, when society sees a woman 'giving' away her chastity so easily and having sex with many people, it suggests the woman is hurting herself. When a man does the same, he is hurting other people. This is patently sexist in itself, implying that women are not capable of making decisions for themselves or being self-reliant enough to learn from said mistakes.

The film does come to a shocking point somewhere towards the end when we see that the girls extended time in the industry means more and more offers that test the limits of their own bodily comfort and autonomy. 'Abuse Porn' is therefore somehow suggested as being the heart and soul of porn when it is allowed to reach it's natural limit, ie simulated rape. Not surprisingly the girls find it to be a step too far for their sensibilities to take. Quite right, I'd suggest, as the money to perform this stuff without having your 'heart in it' would never find a suitably high enough equation to deem it of any net benefit to my person-hood.

As many men will testify however, Porn is not a monolithic trove of played-out and video taped rape fantasies. It has thousands of strange, wonderful, tasteful, distasteful, Arty, disturbing and myriad permutations that bridge the full scope of the collective human desire for 'sex'. They do not ALL involve a form of quasi- consensual rape. Nor is 'Abuse Porn' as ubiquitous as this film suggests. Which leaves you wondering how 'neo-puritan' the film makers must be to be so naive about 'mens habits' as to paint it otherwise.

There are plenty of adult performers who are happy, well paid, professional, safe, intelligent, post-grad, up-standing citizens that chose Porn instead of a career in Science, for example, who DO NOT become the subject of porn documentaries. The film tries a little too hard to shame porn as an industry and in so doing, a lot of successful womens free choices to do something they love.

An average film which raises very important questions about female agency and male sexual desire.
104 out of 156 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
The flip-side of Porn
santiagocosme18 July 2015
Hot girls wanted is a documentary about young girls who enter the porn industry. We get to see how everything starts for them (generally via craigslist), what they go through, and how fast the majority tries to get out of there. Hot girls wanted is a bit of an eye opener and some of the things you see will probably make you feel terrible about having watched porn yourself. It makes you understand ever more that most that happen in porn in just acting and nothing else. While you probably knew that, I am not sure that people are aware how much the actresses actually dislike what they do.

As a cinematographic piece, the documentary is not good, and I am not sure it will be very successful as people are probably more interested in watching porn than watching a documentary against it. But if you are mildly curious about this whole industry that has taken over the world by storm, and the effects of an ever increasing number of sexually orientated images in our society, then you should consider watching Hot Girls Wanted. Warning, you may not want to watch porn for a while
11 out of 15 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Good but contradicting
kmj-1646222 November 2016
This is a good doc to watch. But with the producer growing up with privilege she didn't portray this very well. She made it out to be that these girls are so deprived and feel stuck that this was their easy outlet to a better life. No, these girls are from middle classed families not deprived. She makes is out to be industry is dangerous and wrong. But, by looking at it in this situation it isn't the case. These girls were there on their own free will. They have a roof over their heads and that scout books their gigs and goes with them to them. That scout does it in such a way that the girls are not forced into anything shady or put them in danger in anyway. If they want to leave or want out he lets them. These girls come to him not vise versa. So I didn't like how they were making it out to be that this industry is a bad situation. The material contradicts the theme of the Documentary. If you want to do a doc about this then use subject that fits your vision. Not the exact opposite.
33 out of 55 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Newbie Women Led by Newbie Agent: The Blind Leading the Blind
nicejewishmama31 May 2015
Done by a woman from the Kinsey Institute. Fairly accurate, although a good agent would watch the shoots and not sent a woman from FL to CA for a one hour shoot with a gross guy with a camera and a tripod. A good agent books 3-5 gigs a day and goes WITH for the 10% and protects the woman like high-end merchandise. Especially if she is hot and does anal. The movie research says that 40% of Amateur Teen Porn is exploitive. i.e., having dildoes shoved down their throats until they puke for $300. (More money in turning a trick with a good Escort Service and not "Filmed.") Women are paid 100K a year. They book as many shoots a year as possible to keep their Twitter numbers up in this Miami agency of 8 live-in women. The agent is age 22 and is renting a home. Not a Jewish Macher, but a Newbie himself. Last year he was a busboy at Outback Steak House. A better agent has better women and the gigs pay more. These women are average and open to anything. No bedding as they settle in on bare mattresses. NO condoms. Lots of Pizza & Acne.

This film has a narrow scope as the house of 8 does not represent larger and more seasoned studios and agents that mill the majority of the Amateur Industry through filming. I have been in Adult Industry for over 40-years. As an agent, I know and check out who I send women to. I do not hire women for cam or for porn that are under age 26. This is a decision one must live with for a lifetime. Men record women who do cam and women are often shocked to see their cam session on a paid site. Only WS high court has ordered these removed. Otherwise, they are out there as your history.

The money is in BBW's or Curvey women with a little age. I learned that in the 80's. that most guys who SPEND do NOT fantasize about the teen next door. Men with money do not want to get over, but UNDER. Let's face it, teen porn is equal to recruiting soldiers at 17. EHHH. (Buzz Sound) both are taking advantage of US youth and it is up to us to guide them down a better path.
27 out of 49 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Should Have Been Called "Young Girls Wanted"
ryanpaddy729 December 2015
I say it should have been called "Young Girls Wanted" because what enabled the objects of this film to make money in the adult industry was definitely not their looks, but their ages.

Hot girls Wanted is an interesting (albeit skewed) documentary about one very small aspect of the adult industry. HGW focuses on a few girls who go off to a flop house in FL to take advantage of the money available to them via making adult videos. The film focuses in on just one or two of these girls, thus giving you an extremely myopic look at what is arguably the biggest, most lucrative industry in history. While you couldn't possible get a feel (pun intended) for the adult industry by following even a hundred or a thousand talents around, just how much can you expect to learn from following a few? And these few are rock bottom amateurs being managed by a rock bottom amateur.

I find it amusing how people rectify capitalism with instances of it where other people are making money doing things that they a) don't like, b) wouldn't do themselves, and/or c) wouldn't want family doing. Seems to me that the phrase "they're being taken advantage of" or "they're being manipulated" comes in quite handy to folks who can't grapple with the fact that quite often, what makes money valuable is that it gets people to do stuff they normally wouldn't do. Maybe it's a plumber who deals with feces on a daily basis, maybe it's the person that's flipping burgers for minimum wage, or maybe it's someone exhibiting sexual behavior on film. And while I'm certain there are people who do all of these jobs and love doing them, the fact is that most are doing it for the money. You could make the same movie and title it "Plumbers Wanted" or "Short Order Cooks Wanted." Either would make the exact same point.

But of course we have the double standard that sex is all at once wonderful and special, but at the same time "bad" to do for money. Please do this little thought experiment... Imagine that there are no more STDs, and that people are able to control their ability to breed 100%. No one ever gets sick, and no one ever gets pregnant (or impregnates someone) if they don't want to. Now ask yourself if it's OK for people (your wife, kid, etc...) to work in this industry. If the answer is "no" then you have some deep thinking to do.

As far as the "morality" of adult content in and of itself, I will offer this... If you wouldn't condone your wife, daughter, mother, son, neighbor, anybody doing it, then you ought not be watching/consuming it.

And I loved the puppy:)
36 out of 70 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
4/10
Not the best doc, but some unexpected info
paulnemeth22 March 2016
I was interested in this after hearing that Rashida Jones (whom I've always liked) produced it.

The actual direction, honestly, is ho-hum-large parts of it felt like someone just strung a bunch of random footage together and called it a "documentary". This (imo) is the weak point of the movie.

Now, here's the part I found interesting: the central point of discussion was the exploding "amateur" porn market. Now, unless you're a complete simpleton, you understand that the people doing "amateur porn" are actually paid, and the doc details how these girls are found (the only thing I really found shocking was that people still use Craigslist).

The main producer (think his name is Riley) basically is these girls' pimp-he finds them, puts them up in his house, books their gigs and transports them. Whether he gets or expects sex from them is up for speculation. The focus is on fresh faces, and most of Riley's house-guests can expect a career of three months to a year before they either burn out or have to reinvent themselves.

I do think these kids are being exploited, and here's why: one of the girls reveals that the average payment per shoot is $800. I'm not a porn industry scholar, but I believe that a paid "professional" makes more in the range of $2k-$3k per shoot. Also, due to heavy regulation in California, most amateur porn is shot in Miami, which requires AIDS testing but no condoms. At the end of the movie, one of the girls reveals that they still have to pay for living expenses, all their clothes, make-up, lingerie, etc...she says that, over a 3-month period, she made $25k, and when she left the business, she had $2k left in the bank. The documentary doesn't reveal whether the girls pay Riley rent or not.

The main difference between Riley and a pimp is that he doesn't have to force girls to stay because there's a steady stream of new girls coming in the door.

Not the best documentary on the porn industry, but there are a few surprises.
27 out of 30 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Genre: 7/10 - Total: 6/10
marius-kimmel27 June 2015
If you are interested in who the girls are you skip threw tumblr, youporn, redtube and so on this could be interesting to watch. The documentary tells you a bit about the young girls that do porn and why they do it. I was not really shocked about the girls and their life, that was pretty much what i expected. Sometimes i felt sorry for the teens, sometimes not so much.

Summary:

You watch porn and want to know a bit more about the work behind the cam? Feel free to watch "hot girls wanted".

You are looking for some good, touching documentary? Skip it.
18 out of 32 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
1/10
This Movie Is About Choices, Not Exploitation
AshleeQuick31 May 2015
In modern America everyone wants to be a victim.

In this case we have a movie that tries to make the argument that somehow the porn industry, or men who make porn (specifically men, though plenty of women are involved in producing porn), or people who watch porn, or pop culture or SOMEONE is to blame for the choices these adult women make other than the women themselves. Another victim born.

Sure, there is a lot of manipulation and deception that occurs in the Porn industry. But it's not force, it's not rape, it's not human trafficking, it's not violence and it's not the threat of physical harm. The reality is the porn industry is already actually pretty heavily scrutinized by state and federal law. No one is forcing these women to get into porn in the first place and no one (certainly not the Porn studios) is forcing them to stay in it.

In fact, women show up to make these amateur videos in the hundreds these days, they've made themselves a disposable commodity.

Awful right? Well if it's awful who exactly is suffering? In the words of one of the women the film interviews, 'why work for 10 bucks an hour at a fast-food restaurant when she can make $2,500 having sex on camera in only a few hours?'.

The film makers want you to feel bad for women who decide to use their bodies as a shortcut to wealth. They only regret their choices once they decide the industry is difficult and the $10K to $20K they've made in from their handful of shoots is likely all the money they'll ever see from the industry.

However, this isn't deception as the filmmakers try to argue...of all the porn stars you know, only two or three have ever become millionaires doing it and most of them had to do hundreds (if not thousands) of films to get there. So these women, if they actually expect to become rich through making porn, are simply naive. That does not mean they were deliberately deceived by anyone.

The slippery slope where the movie makers cross the line is where they try to shame the people who work in a completely legal industry (making Porn) for trying to make selling what they make.

Should the government stop allowing the production of pornography? Should no sex scenes be allowed in movies? Should porn be regulated more actively? This implies the government should play some role in overseeing the production of hardcore adult films? Good luck with that.

OR perhaps the filmmakers no longer want women to be able to make choices for themselves. If so, who gets to make decisions for young girls now if not themselves? The Porn industry? The government? The parents? You?

I feel we should stop infantilizing women by implying they aren't smart enough to know EXACTLY what they are doing, why they are doing it, and what the repercussions will be.

Yes, these are young girls making poor choices. But the right to make poor choices is a responsibility of adults. According to the law these women are adults. Like all adults these women will live with the consequences of the choices they make, good or bad.

I rated this film a 1 for trying to force a moral argument when the actual 'documented' behavior shown on screen in this 'documentary' tells a different story. This is a story about delusional women who are looking for a quick path to fame and fortune, who are willing to use their bodies to do it and who want you to feel bad for them when they don't get what they want.

They should have titled it 'Bowling for Idiots'.
200 out of 379 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Let's the subject matter do the talking... Unforgettable.
MrMcMurphy30 May 2015
I don't get it. The negative review (as of May 30, 2015) confused me. Someone from outside the porn industry does not have "the right" to make a documentary about it? And Rashida Jones is extra unworthy because she grew up with money and successful parents? We're still talking about producing, right?

It would be one thing if it was ABOUT what people from outside the industry thought, or if their points of view were interjected, or if opinions--which could have ONLY come from the subjects anyway--were cherry-picked to push an agenda, but it was the complete opposite of that. IT WAS 100% OBSERVATIONAL. IT JUST SHOWED THE SUBJECT MATTER, AND LET IT DO THE TALKING. If you didn't like the documentary, it is because you didn't like what the subject matter said, not because of who produced the freak'n film.
127 out of 182 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
The Modern World
gavin694219 June 2015
A documentary about young women who have been drawn into the online sex trade - and how easy it is for a web-savvy generation to end up making porn.

First of all, this was produced by Rashida Jones, best known for her role on "Parks and Recreation". Who knew she had it in her to get involved with this sort of project? But it is an interesting topic. With the internet so prevalent, it becomes extra easy to access this type of material, as well as appear in it. Exactly how the money is made is unclear, and it would have been nice if they went into that more. On one occasion, it almost sounded like a way around prostitution laws -- if you film an act and make it public, it is not a crime to pay the woman $300 for her act.

Now, the unfortunate consequence of this film is that is will make the girls featured more popular. As some of them are trying to get out of the business, this film will actually increase the numbers of web searches. Videos that had a few thousand views may now get a million... with no additional income for them, but rather the companies who hired them.
13 out of 22 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
1/10
Just.....bad.
I cannot even finish the movie. For me its feels like watching a school project rather than a documentary with indepth interview, underground rare information, and so on.
3 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Eye Opening
xsophietaylorx29 May 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I don't know what possessed me to watch this documentary but in some weird way I'm happy I did. I found 'Hot Girls Wanted' really sad but interesting and eye opening really. the documentary is about young girls who go into the porn industry. The whole documentary just opens you eyes to what really goes on and it is disturbing how young girls as seen on this can be manipulated into this situation I hope by this documentary coming out that the weird appeal to some young girls will fade and the harsh realitys of the porn industry will hit them, The money is obviously enticing for some (I don't know how anyone in the sane mind could ever consider going into porn) but however obviously some people are that desperate they feel they have to. Its sad you see how at the start the girls are happy they speak of freedom and money but at the end it's like the realisation hits them the line that stood out to me was 'is the money worth it' they were finally asking themselves is it worth it to loose all you self respect for abit of money? I would recommend people watch this to see the dark stretches people are willing to go for money. I wouldn't say I found it entertaining but I'm glad I watched it.
25 out of 48 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
A different perspective
t-sai7717 January 2016
I have read the other reviews here and the majority falls down to two categories; anti-porn (exploitation) and pro-porn (choice). I saw more pro-porn, guess some people don't want to accept the vindictiveness of their porn.

But that's not what this documentary is about. This documentary is based around the coming and going actress within the industry and how their naivety are taking advantage of for a couple of months when they are "young and stupid". But, they also have the choice to do it. They were giving a home, money, and the perfect life style of being "free" and doing what they wanted to do.

The best is they are free to leave when they want to. When the actress had enough, they are even congratulated and they are left alone. The reason for the niceness is because the "model finders" (Ex: Riley) always know there will be four other young girls to take her place. Like Riley said; "Every day a girl turns 18 and every day a girl wants to do porn."

This is a powerful piece because it didn't rely on drama nor facts, it relied on reality. I was glad that Riley allowed the documentary to take place as he knows this won't change anything. Women will keep entering the industry and lads like him will still be getting richer. The cycle won't end for him and he is fully aware of it. Just look at his face at the end of the documentary. His grin says it all.
6 out of 10 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Underwhelming and Myopic
mjbset4 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
This documentary could have been so much better. They made a choice early in process to be very myopic in scope. Maybe it is due to the secretive nature of the business. But I would preferred more statistics, and company names. The movie did take a heart felt look at the porn actresses lives which was somewhat interesting but nothing surprising. Somewhat confusing however because the girls had screen names and real names and couple of them look similar to each other. Also the seemed to focus on the girls having trouble rather than the more balanced girls. Spoiler, the more balanced girls seemed to have better outcomes regardless of whether they continued to do porn or left the industry. Overall for a documentary it took a more emotional tone that to me weakens a documentary that should emphasized the power of media and porn industry. Also while they hinted at how porn has influenced mainstream media they didn't really show how the trend got started. i would have appreciated more statistics about the women leaving the industry, like rate of STDs, Domestic Violence, Unemployment, Drug Abuse and etc. It is highly disturbing that 'teen' is the most popular porn search term.
6 out of 11 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Yet Another Porno Documentary...
MovieHoliks15 June 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I've seen countless documentaries over the years about the porn industry, and thought I'd check out this one off Netflix which I see was produced by Rashida Jones (also did some of the music for the film-??). "Hot Girls Wanted" shows how easy it is for these web savvy young people to make money in the adult industry. That porno actress you used to watch playing the "girl next door" these days IS the actual girl next door!?? The location for this film is mostly in the Miami area- I see due to some recent regulations about all male performers having to wear condoms on the set in the L.A. area-??

I enjoyed this film, but I guess what bugs me about it and a lot of the other docs I see about the "jizz bizz" are all the negative things they go into- and I'm like, well then DON'T DO IT!!- nobody is making you perform in this business- plenty of other ways out there to make money!!?? If you think that is so disgusting, go work in another field already-?? Well, anyhoo, like I said, decent documentary- I liked this movie- not really any new insight into this big chunk of the entertainment industry, but always seems to make for interesting docu- drama...
6 out of 13 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
3/10
Title and Documentary Content a Bit Misleading
anonpetyr4 June 2015
The documentary plays off more of a "reality TV" vibe, following the life of 1 girl in a more detailed fashion and input on various scenarios by the other 4-5 girls.

These girls all live with what I believe they called a casting agent. Basically a not very bright man who posts on websites offering attractive women flights to Miami. These girls end up living with the casting agent for anywhere from a month to(if they are "lucky") 3 months on average.

All with the hopes of "making it big" in the industry. Making it big is basically advertising yourself via Instagram, twitter, and growing a fan base so that there is a "demand" for the actress and getting her to do scenes. All of these girls are told they have a high chance of a low lifespan in this industry. Even the Cast Agent/Pimp(trust me it's a gray area) tells them this.

I feel like the documentary missed a lot of opportunities. While the camera following a now former porn actress, Stella, shows insight into dealings with her family, she was obviously one of, if not the, brightest of the bunch.

Out of all the girls, Jade comes across as a burnout and I would not be surprised to find she is doing hard drugs. This question about drugs is never asked and while we do see some of the amateur porn "actresses" smoking marijuana, it would have been interesting to find out if harder drugs are used commonly within the house.

At one point in the documentary, the dimmest bulb, Jade(24 years old), makes comments on her breasts. She is apparently getting implants sometime during/after the documentary takes place. One of the other girls says she really wants implants. The Casting Agent/Pimp then says "she isn't allowed because she isn't a MILF(Mother I Like to F***) like Jade is". Here's where the documentary could have really taken a turn.

So we have Jade, a girl who is clearly lost and in her very own teenager-like words says "there is no black or white to me". Is she a MILF because she is 24 years old(oldest in the house), or does she really have a child, making her a mother? Is the child living in the house with the other 4-5 porn actresses and the Pimp? Did she abandon her child? Where is her family?

I think we all realize that money is just one factor for why these girls do what they do. Midway through most of the girls, excluding Jade realize that morally(if I can use that word) what they are doing is not a gray area. Halfway through the documentary you can see it in their faces.

The only reason I even give this documentary 3 starts is because of the few sequences that do engage the viewer. Stella's meeting with her family and her relationship with her boyfriend are the most redeeming parts of the film. The boyfriend(Kendall) starts off as being accepting, but as Stella needs to perform more niche fetishes, he starts to really be affected. At some point you realize that off camera Stella has tried several times to leave.

I wish the film would have delved more into the motives of these girls. Is it simply the money? Was there previous molestation? Like I mentioned above, what about drug use. Are they otherwise stable girls? While some of these answers may be clear to the viewer, I'd like to see how delusional these girls are.

To the Pimp's credit, it does seem like he warns the girls what they are getting into. There is a bit of conflicting information however as Stella states she realized the craigslist ad she responded to was for porn "sometime after I boarded the plane". The Pimp says that he tells these girls their families WILL find out and these films they participate in do not disappear, they are forever. Which is funny because one of the girls is not willing to commit to a boyfriend that may or may not be temporary but she has no problem committing to something that is forever.

One of the final clips shows Jade and another girl watching a YouTube video of Belle Knox, one of the amateurs who gained world wide recognition(something these 2 will never have). At one point they Zoom in at Jade and I tried not to laugh. The jealously coming out of her eyes, insecurity just flowing from her. You can't help but feel pity. This is the type of girl that stares down other women at malls.

But let us not forget, these are all consenting adults. They have the absolute right to film scenes where a family friend/member takes advantage of them. They have the right to, regardless of what one of the girls says, be demeaned, spoken down to, made to vomit. They are just inventory in this industry but somehow they can keep their self respect.

The Documentary ends with a follow up slide show of where the girls are now. I won't spoil it for you but one of them still does web cam because "she is in control". I'm sure you can guess who it is.

At the end, what I got out of the documentary, was that these girls have easier access to make stupid decisions than generations before them. Lasting decisions, but decisions nonetheless. I was also left with a sick feeling hoping there isn't a child living in the Pimp House.
44 out of 81 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Young Girls Being Young and Stupid
Michael_Elliott26 September 2015
Hot Girls Wanted (2015)

*** (out of 4)

Good, if flawed, documentary taking a look at a group of young girls who enter the amateur porn industry. The documentary follows the girls for a few months as they get introduced to the business while the viewer also gets to know various statistics about online porn and the girls who try to escape their lives by entering it.

For the most part HOT GIRLS WANTED is an interesting documentary but there were countless times where I just wanted someone to ask the women if they realized that they were basically just stupid. Several of these girls have videos online that are easily search-able but I'm not sure they're being "exploited" as it really does seem as if they are just young and stupid. That might sound harsh but I think everyone alive has done stupid stuff as a teenager or young adult but the documentary doesn't really go into details of how these girls decided to enter porn.

We learn about them wanting to leave their small towns and so forth but there's just so many other questions that never really get addressed. If you're fascinated with the subject then there's some nice information here but I'd like to see a follow-up one year or five years from now and see what the girls think of their decisions.
5 out of 12 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
No greater significance, more case study of youthful foolishness than a documentary
ArchonCinemaReviews29 June 2015
As a case study and glimpse behind the curtain of the amateur porn world, Hot Girls Wanted is an interesting and captivating tale. As a documentary, however, it lacks the scope and comprehension to delve deeper into the subject on a grander, more impactful scale.

Premiering at Sundance Film Festival this year, audiences were a-buzz by the sensational subject matter and taken aback by the rare and untold story of how young girls barely out of high school find themselves in the adult film industry.

The candor and frankness of the girls whose stories we are told in this documentary is shocking in its nonchalance. We learn that the normal career span of a 'barely-18′ porn star is three to six months. And when their time runs out after engaging in more fetishized and abuse oriented videos, a new crop of 'talent' is swiftly found with yesterday's Craigslist advertisement.

The disposable nature in which these girls are treated in this microcosm of the porn industry is concerning and disheartening. And yet, the shock and outrage quickly dissipates as the documentary progresses and we spend more and more time in the sheltered environment. Most of this information should be old news to anyone who knows anything about the porn industry, and Hot Girls Wanted may only be illuminative to the most naive viewer.

With no greater consequences of the potentially dangerous amateur porn occupation these girls expose themselves to, Hot Girls Wanted is merely an interesting film that sheds light on the subject. Film viewers will feel for the girls, but also be frustrated by their foolishness, and without any greater significance, will forget the film.

Please check out our website for full reviews of all the recent releases.
4 out of 12 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
4/10
As depressing as you would expect, but raises more questions than it answers
hansmoleman-519-6333427 February 2016
'Hot Girls Wanted' is an intimate look at the 'amateur' porn industry, and is about as scary as you would assume - the 'industry' grinds up young girls really quickly and then leaves them with barely anything, and most likely ruined lives (pursuing another career at this point is difficult, considering that it is inevitable that your online work will be discovered).

What the film doesn't conclusively answer is why these (and so many other) girls sign up for this. The girls usually say that it is because of the easy, quick money, the opportunity to travel, etc. That may be true, but one would think that even a tiny bit of research would reveal that this industry is dreadful and not worth the quick money (which I assume is one of the goals of the film- makers, to have this out there so young girls can see it).

Unfortunately, the end result is that the girls come across as, at best vapid, at worst, just really stupid. It is also very difficult to feel any pity for the girls, as they do this of their own free will, and no one forced them into it.

Tressa, the girl from Texas, for example - looking at her life - one still cannot comprehend why she did this. Her family seems stable and caring, she has a loving boyfriend - granted she was probably bored to death in her home town but why this dramatic leap? Was it really just money/travel? This remains unanswered. What should her parents have done differently to have prevented this? Travel more? I think many parents might watch this and be horrified, but not have any idea of what to do.

The one avenue that could have been explored further is the rise of abuse porn sites, which really is disturbing. Still, though, as the girls participate of their own free will, there is not much that could be done.

There will always be people in the world who are shockingly irresponsible and short-sighted. Not sure if a film about them was really necessary.
13 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Insightful and fascinating look at both modern society and the huge amateur sex industry in the US...
metaldog14-334-55521418 June 2016
Warning: Spoilers
First off, I don't think this film has anything bad to say about people who watch porn or women who choose this as a career path. It offers both negative and positive opinions on the subject from the subjects of the film -- both the men and women. The narration only offers facts and statistics. You are allowed to decide what you think of the way the porn business handles young amateur porn actresses in America, and what it says about our society that it is such a big industry.

I thought this might be a terribly depressing film or worse, a slut-shaming film and was pleasantly surprised -- that the narrative tone was pretty neutral. It harbors no ill will towards women who want to make a living this way, but offers many viewpoints on how different people, involved in the industry and not, view the subject. The only part that was really unsettling was about the types of porn commonly being produced due to popularity, rather than the lives of the actresses involved -- apparently porn that depicts degradation and violence against women makes up about 40% of what's on the internet, and there is a fairly disturbing porn scene depicting a white male giving a forced blowjob to a Latina female, in which he degrades her by calling her racial slurs and making generally racist remarks. As far as exploitation goes, I do think there is a certain level of it involved in the way the talent agent Riley goes about soliciting talent (posting ads on Craigslist promising young women a chance to get away from their parents and boring "normal" lives to make lots of money in porn, enough to party, buy clothes and live a luxe life in Miami.) It's kind of a mixed bag whether or not these girls realize the implications of their choice to pursue these ads -- some seem very savvy on the subject of porn stardom and are in it for the long haul, while others decide to resign and go back home after a few months.

Personally, I think the fact that the emotional, physical and financial implications are not extremely clear to these girls beforehand and the fact that these implicatoins end up being the reasons for their resignation, makes a strong case for the idea that there is a level of exploitation involved in the solicitation depicted in the film. The blame for why the implications aren't clear doesn't necessarily have to fall on the entrepreneur depicted in the documentary -- I think this doc has more to say about society itself and how sex learned about, discussed and treated in America.

All in all, a really insightful documentary and worth a look for anyone who watches porn - you should know how the sausage is made, whether you like it or not. (Pun intended....?)
17 out of 22 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Well made documentary
danmossman21 February 2022
The structure of this documentary is very interesting, it starts with the excitement of a new job and good pay, but becomes much more serious once they realise the repercussions. Some of it is funny, some of it is cringey to watch and some of it is very dark and disturbing.
1 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
2/10
The Antidote to Priapism
A better title would have been, UGLY GUYS WANTED. This doc will make you never want to have sex again. Cat crap ugly, mommy-issued, misogynistic old men taking advantage of girls that are hardly legal. It sucks that porn is all about degradation and humiliation these days. I remember a time when it approached an artform. A new low in human abjection and self-esteem. Yuck. I needed a Silkwood shower after viewing this.
14 out of 23 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
6/10
Choose Your Words Better....
workoutsmurf23 March 2021
First, let's get one thing straight, NONE of these "girls" are being taken advantage of. They are ALL MORE than aware of what is going on, and no one has held a gun to their heads. THEY LOVE the attention and the fast cash, and the paid-for lifestyle. They are fully aware of what is happening, and anyone who thinks they are innocent and being taken advantage of is a complete moron. These girls LOVE the attention, in the age of "followers" and "likes" these vapid people thrive on this crap. This is more a movie showing how they are living than it is an exploitation film. They all come willingly, they all log on willingly and they are doing what they want for money. In the age of "every woman is strong and intelligent" how can people say these are being taken advantage of? GIVE ME A BREAK. THEY LOVE THE MONEY AND LIFESTYLE.
2 out of 10 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
An error has occured. Please try again.

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed