The candid study of eros in fantastique and cult films.
Above you see the title card of BLACK EMANUELLE, the first film in the Laura Gemser series. Note the position of Gemser's right hand.
And to further interest you in the forthcoming discussion of this landmark film, here is a clip from the hardcore version of the film.
Some Emanuelleists add two films often credited to Bruno Mattei, VIOLENCE IN A WOMEN'S PRISON (1982) and WOMEN'S PRISON MASSACRE (1983), to the list of official Laura Gemser Emanuelle films. The original Italian title of the latter film was EMANUELLE FUGA DALL'INFERNO (EMANUELLE ESCAPES FROM HELL), and in the films Gemser does play an Emanuelle character--perhaps the Emanuelle. The considerations against including these two films as part of the series are probably weak: director Joe D'Amato was not involved in the films, as were none of the production companies from previous entries, and composer Nico Fidenco, whose smooth loungey grooves accompanied all previous Gemser-Emanuelle films, was also absent.
Added to the list of problematic Gemser-Emanuelle films are two "mondo" movies that were hosted by Laura Gemser, one, at least, being promoted as her Emanuelle character: LE NOTTI PORNO NEL MONDO (1977) and EMANUELLE E LE PORNO NOTTI NEL MONDO N. 2. (1978 ).
Three more problematic Emanuelle movies remain: SEXY MOON (1976), otherwise known as EMANUELLE QUEEN OF SADOS, in which Gemser plays Emanuelle Brindisi, and SISTER EMANUELLE (1977), a Giuseppe Vari film where she plays "Sister Emanuelle." We should also note LE DECHAINEMENT PERVERS DE MANUELA (1983), a Joe D'Amato concoction that used scenes from previous Gemser films, including EMANUELLE AND THE LAST CANNIBALS, for a "new" film that was also referred to as EMANUELLE'S PERVERSE OUTBURST and UNLEASHED PERVERSIONS OF EMANUELLE.
All other Gemser-Emanuelle films appear to be retitlings and nothing more.
Several Laura Gemser films were retitled with the Emanuelle moniker to take advantage of the Gemser-Emanuelle connection. Before we go further in exploring this series, we should list what are considered, with some dissent, the genuine Emanuelle films. There are seven of them, one made without Gemser.
With the exception of the first film in the series, all Emanuelle films have been officially released on American DVDs in excellent quality and in their proper aspect ratio. Severin's BLACK EMANUELLE'S BOX VOLUME 1 contained EMANUELLE IN BANGKOK and EMANUELLE AROUND THE WORLD, while VOLUME 2 contained BLACK EMANUELLE 2 and EMANUELLE AND THE SLAVE TRADE. Blue Underground released EMANUELLE IN AMERICA, and Shriek Show put out EMANUELLE AND THE LAST CANNIBALS. The first "Black Emanuelle" film has been released on DVD by Televista, unauthorized and from a video source.
Because production companies and producers varied on these films and the pseudo-Emanuelle films, any official list becomes problematic. We intend to explore the options and debate all considerations.
Is it "Emanuelle" or "Emmanuelle"? The extra "m" makes the difference. In the Laura Gemser series, the female protagonist has only one "m" in her name, while in the French series that initiated the Emmanuelle craze, the female has two "m"s. This French series began in 1974 with EMMANUELLE, with Sylvia Kristel in the title role. EMMANUELLE made over 300 million dollars in worldwide grosses and spawned theatrical sequels and television cable features. Italian cinema, ever on the lookout to take advantage of a genre success, rushed out their own similar films with Laura Gemser, beginning with BLACK EMANUELLE in 1975. Naturally, the Italians made the bolder and more dangerous films, embracing sweat-inducing taboo in several entries.
Severin Films released two box sets of Gemser's Emanuelle films last year, under the wink-wink umbrella title "Black Emanuelle's Box," as well as a separate DVD release of the "XXX European Version" of EMANUELLE AROUND THE WORLD. (The non-XXX version found its way to the first volume of the box sets.) The Emanuelle films are superb erotic travelogues and exploitation programmers--earthy, yet sophisticated in a pseudo-chic European way, and at times shocking. So let's travel with Emanuelle....
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