Black Emanuelle's Box (1976 - 1977) - DVD boxset review at Mondo Esoterica

Emmanuelle (1974) was a revolutionary film - eschewing sleaze and vulgarity it was instrumental in introducing sex films into mainstream cinemas, when for years they had been relegated to the XXX houses. The film proved massively sucessful in France and across Europe and soon fans were clamoring for more. Seeing an opening in the market, producer Mario Mariani and director Bitto Albertini snapped up actress Laura Gemser who had just appeared in Emmanuelle 2 (1975) and cast her in Emanuelle Nera (1975) - changing the name (one M) to avoid rights issues.

The film was a big sucess, and as Laura Gemser became a star, quick thinking producers began to market her other erotic films as Black Emanuelle sequels - even quicker thinking producers decided to cut out the middle man and wrote their own 'official' sequel Emaneulle in Bangkok (1976), bringing in director Joe D'Amato who had already filmed the unofficial Emanuelle's Revenge (1975). With their leading lady gone, Mario Mariani and Bitto Albertini went on to produce their own sequel Black Emanuelle 2 (1976) with the buxom Sharon Lesley taking the lead role, they also helmed Yellow Emanuelle (1977) the next year. D'Amato teamed up again with Laura Gemser to film Emanuelle Around the World, Emanuelle in America and Emanuelle and the Last Cannibals, and later Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade (1978), with ever increasing levels of sleaze and degredation, from gang rape to beastiality. The character would continue to crop up into the early 1980s, including in Violence in a Women's Prison (1982) and Emanuelle Escapes from Hell (1983) - entries to the newly popular Women in Prision genre. However, with Gemser aging and Euro-cult cinema in decline, these would be the last appearances of the character, and aside from a few cameos into the early 1990s for Joe D'Amato, Gemser slipped into retirement.

Anyone famous in it?	Laura Gemser stars in two of the films and would become an erotic icon in Euro-cult cinema for many years, the unusually attractive Annie Belle and stunning Ely Galleani. A few familiar Euro-cult faces crop up throughout the films including Al Cliver and Feodor Chaliapin Jr.
Who is it for?	Fans of the less sleazy, and more sexy erotica will find plenty to enjoy in these relatively mild entries.

Visuals	All the films are presented in original aspect ratios and anamorphically enhanced. Print quality is generally good, quite a lot of grain, but good colours and
Audio	Black Emanuelle 2 and Black Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade include English audio that sounds fine. Black Emanuelle White Emanuelle includes a strong Italian audio track, and an English dub from a tape source that is rather lower quality and missing in a few scenes.
Subtitles	Optional English subtitles on Black Emanuelle White Emanuelle for the Italian audio.
Extras	The discs include: Interviews with director Joe D'Amato, Dagmar Lassander and Al Cliver with some audio clips of interviews with Annie Belle and Laura Gemser. Original theatrical trailers for all three films. The set includes a bonus CD containing the soundtracks to Emanuelle in America (1976), Emanuelle and the Last Cannibals (1977) and Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade (1978). Recorded in stereo, the sound quality is superb and it comes with a postcard insert listing the track names.
Packing/availability	The discs come in three standard Amaray cases (the CD is included in the Emanuelle Around the World case) within a box. The front of the box opens up to reveal a nude publicity shot of Laura Gemser.
Region	Black Emanuelle 2 is Region 0 (ALL) - NTSC The other two titles are Region 1 (USA, North America) - NTSC
Other regions?	Some of the films are available elsewhere although generally not in such good quality.
Cuts?	Belive to all be fully uncut. Print languages vary.

Black Emanuelle's Box 2 (1976 - 1978)

Summary

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Summary