An incendiary surprise, with the unheralded return of heartthrob Rafael Carreras and a star turn from Giovanni Summers, this is a must-see for 2009

I love domino competitions where there are a jillion dominoes and you tip over the first one and the chain reaction begins: streams, ripples starbursts of fallen dominos, often leaving marvelous patterns among their fallen comrades. And you hold your breath wondering if the astonishment will last, and when it does, there's one final domino and it's you, and you fall over in rapture.

Lost Diary of Giovanni is a domino competition. The sexual dominoes begin to fall when the eponymous Giovanni (Giovanni Summers) pulls out his journal, which is radioactive neon green, and begins to write in it with a matching pen. He records the erotic activities he imagines happening between men he sees on the New York City streets. While it's not an earth-shattering porn premise, it might just rock your libido.

Valentin Petrov and Rafael Carreras are the first couple to set Giovanii's mind to wandering. Did I say Rafael Carreras? If you are a long-time reader of this column, you may remember Carreras as a former "Hottest Man on the Planet." Discovered by Polish director Jan Novak, Carreras appeared in about 10 films for Studio 2000 from 2001-2004, then he made three films for Chi Chi LaRue and left the industry in 2005.

About one of his early performances I wrote, "Carreras is one of the year's hottest tops. He's smooth and lanky, with a cock that will either make your mouth water or send you running in fear. When he fucks you, he looks you in the eye, if not the soul, and his lucky partners know, however brief the encounter, Carreras will make it memorable."

The man has not lost his touch, and the elapsed years have only made him hotter. My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I was him in the credits. His oral technique deserves to be studied. In his opening scene with Valentin Petrov and a later scene with Michael Lucas, he demonstrates what it's like to have a black hole for a gullet. While devouring his partner's cock, he works his lips, his tongue, his throat and I swear he sucks in his cheeks hard enough that they provide additional wet friction along the shaft of the cock he's sucking. If you don't bust a nut before the end of the first scene, get thee to a nunnery.

Dimitri Romanov and Spencer Reed, spotted greeting each other with a kiss in front of an adult book store, provide Giovanni with his next journal entry. The highlight of this scene may be watching Dimitri surrender himself to being lovingly tongued and fingered.

Justin Beal and Raf Rollin eat no man's dust, as they show in the next scene, which offers an ass-eating encore plus sound effects. Then Giovanni "injects" himself into one of his fantasies, by willing the rugged-looking Fernando to pop in while Giovanni is masturbating. Fernando is hunky, rough and cute all rolled into one. Once they work their way up to fucking, they take turns exercising their pelvises. Giovanni will remain motionless while Fernando plows him, then Fernando will remain motionless while Giovanni works his hips and hole. Hola! Giovanni's sounds and facial expressions are authentic and they ratchet up the heat level.

Then fate intervenes and Giovanni loses his journal; it falls out of his waistband onto the sidewalk, where its chartreuse glow dares someone to pick it up. Rafael Carreras is the finder, and he later calls Giovanni to offer its return. Although Giovanni says he'll be right over, Rafael is entertaining Michael Lucas, so he doesn't postpone his carnal plans. Carreras gives a refresher course on how to give a blow job, then after lots of spitting, sucking, 69ing, rimming, toe sucking and more, Carreras bottoms for Lucas.

I'd have to check my previous reviews, but I don't think Rafael has bottomed onscreen before. In his interview on disc 2, he says it's his least favorite sexual thing to do with a guy. But there's no hint or reticence or holding back. Michael Lucas is equal parts showman and topman, so viewers can takes notes on his technique, which makes up in razzle-dazzle what it lacks in intimacy.

The fucking is interrupted by the arrival of Gio to reclaim his diary. Rafael answers the door nude and hard, and rather than answering trivial questions like "where'd you find it," he just throws Giovanni onto the bed.

Lost Diary of Giovanni is the biggest and best surprise of 2009 so far. The parts come together perfectly. Several of the sets consist of just a black box with translucent "windows," similar to clerestory windows, except they are low rather than high and they add just the right light. The videography is exactly right and the new faces are extraordinary, elevating Everyman to porn star status. The emphasis on lots of foreplay (including armpit rimming) is both unusual and commendable. There's lots of voracious cum eating for those who like that and the chemistry between the models is exceptionally good.

Giovanni Summers has a fairly long (for porn) phone call with Rafael Carreras when his journal is found. When Luise Rainer won the Oscar for The Great Ziegfeld, common consensus was that her phone call scene cinched the win. It's notoriously difficult to be convincing in a scene when you're reciting lines to a telephone. Summers is brilliant in this scene.

But the surprise, unheralded return of Rafael Carreras my be the best thing about Lost Diary of Giovanni. It is the final domino to fall. I am in love all over again.

This is a 2-DVD set. The first DVD has scene selection, the five-scene film and a web link; 182 minutes. Disc #2 has behind the scenes footage, cast interviews and trailers. Widescreen.

Originally published here.