Dangerous When Wet

I'm not sure how most people would react to a video that begins with a short film about anonymous preadolescent lesbian sex in a playground, even if it is only a 4-minute claymation piece. It's certainly attention-catching, though uncomfortably reminiscent of some of the worst charges leveled against lesbians (we all recruit, you know). Beyond this challenging beginning, the rest of this collection of short films about the lesbian experience is a satisfying blend of innovative, fun, humorous and enlightening filmmaking. I can't possibly say anything about Sleep Come Free Me without spoiling the ending, but it is a sly, witty story about passion in an office setting. I'm Starving, set in a small apartment in Chinatown, toys cleverly and hypnotically with the relationship between food and sex. The title piece is a beautifully-edited, humorous 5-minute collage about first sex, built around the metaphor of swimming, while Blue Diary is a moody, atmospheric lament about falling in love with the wrong woman. The real incentive for buying this collection, however, is Badass Supermama, by Etang Inyang, in which a shy, obese African-American teen fantasizes that she is Pam Grier. Any woman who survived adolescence on the strength of her fantasy life will connect with this tenderly humorous story, generously laced with clips from the Grier oeuvre. Recommended, with the warning about the opening short. (K. G. Schneider)