Peter North finds out the hard way that, for a private dick dredging his daily bred outta Tinsel Town's asphalt swamps, friends are a luxury pricier than cantaloupe in Katmandu.

North's partner was Jonathan Morgan, an oily-but-glib flatfoot whose best years were behind him and whose future stretched before him like the road outta Corregador.

Pete, on the other hand, had life whipped. He had cash and a great dame, Lené, a blond bombshell with eyes like two pools of nervous nitro. But that was before he turned his back on a shadow and breathed his last, face-down on his stylish hardwoods.

The hard-boiled private dick saga is a blue movie staple, and while Bawdy & Soul adds very little to the tried-and-true smut noir formula, three standout sex scenes plus couples appeal galore combine to make it a very viable pick.

Peter North's from-beyond reunion boink with Lené contains a nice doggie segment, and plenty of enthusiasm on the part of both performers. Then there's the Lené/Asia Carrera girl/girl, which, while not exactly lavahot, can't help but make an impression given the raw aesthetics implicit in the image of Lené and Carrera lapping at each other's loins.

The big winner here, though, is Chloe's scene with North, in which she of the celestial climax is featured as big Pete's new partner in the great beyond.

In a masterpiece of casting, Chloe transforms the "spirit realm" into the Happy Humping Grounds with one of her characteristic eyes a-rollin', jaw a-droppin' mega-orgasmic (anal-inclusive) rut sessions.