Laura Gemser is Emanuelle in this sexy softcore nun film, co-starring Rik Battaglia. Severin Films USA R0 boxset.
The Film
By mid 1977 the Black Emanuelle
films were in full swing, with four official titles and dozens of
knock-offs being shot that year alone. Unlike the previous Black
Emanuelle titles however, she is no longer a globe trotting, free
loving journalist, but has become a nun. While the notion of naughty
nuns is nothing too radical for modern, Anglo-American audiences, in
the still largely Catholic Italy and France, nuns were a common sight,
and the idea of them getting up to forbidden behaviour was certainly enough to draw the crowds into the cinema, by the end of the 1970s the Nunsploitation genre had become an effective niche of softcore erotica.
Emanuelle (Laura Gemser) has
renounced her libertine lifestyle and taken holy orders. Along with the
Mother Superior she travels to Venice to pick up the wayward young
daughter of a wealthy man (Rik Battaglia) to take her to stay in the
convent over the summer. As they journey there by train, Emanuelle realises the
challenge she is in for with this girl when she first comes on to
Emanuelle herself, and is later caught 'entertaining' the train's
conductor. On arrival at the convent she quickly seduces many of the
girls, however things change when she discovers an escaped convict
hiding nearby and sneaks him into the convent at night...
Writer Marino Onorati had quite some experience writing softcore erotica, including Edwige Fenech title The Lady Medic
(1976) and he provides a very effective framework here with a suitable
storyline and plenty of well written sex scenes that never come off as
gratuitous, a crime that many of the Black Emaneulle
films slip into. His background in sexy comedy is evident in the much
lighter tone of this film compared to the very sleazy Joe D'Amato
directed titles, including Emanuelle Around the World
(1977) - there are no rape or shock scenes here, but equally the script
avoids descending too far into sex-comedy territory, there are some effectively
funny scenes and a couple of rather low brow but fortunately brief
toilet gags. Well paced throughout, there are a few surprises along the
way, and the film ends very well.
Director Giuseppe Vari
(credited as Joseph Warren) clocks up his only erotic film credit here
and does a surprisingly good job considering that he was more at home
shooting Spaghetti Westerns and crime films. Ultimately the production
all comes together - the sex scenes are sexy yet artistic, the
locations look great and the soundtrack by composer Stelvio Cipriani is
very effective although lacking the theme songs of the Nino Fidenco scored titles.
Laura
Gemser is back again as Emanuelle and she keeps her clothes on a lot
more here (although not throughout of course), showing some good acting
as she is replused by the actions of her younger rival. Monica herself
is played by the otherwise unknown young actress Mónica Zanchi who
manages to perform well in and out of clothes and is certainly more
than just a "porn star". Laura Gemser's husband Gabriele Tinti appeared
alongside her in many of the films, and here plays the escaped convict
Rene, while the relatively big name Italian actor Rik Battaglia cameos
as Monica's father.
Sister Emanuelle
is very different to most of the Black Emaneulle films - especially in
its softcore edit reviewed here it is a much lighter film than the rest
of the series which often tried to outdo themselves with shocks and
sleaze, and is more remniscent of late night cable softcore. With an
effective storyline and some very good direction, plus a host of
beautiful women, Sister Emanuelle is ideal for erotica fans who want a break from the more intense genre entries, or who want to sample the Black Emanuelle films for the first time. Recommended.
In Brief
Anyone famous in it?
Laura Gemser - the attractive Indonesian star of all of the official Black Emanuelle films. Rik Battaglia - the Italian actor best known for his role in Fistful of Dynamite (1971).
Directed by anyone interesting?
Giuseppe Vari - a lesser known European director, who also shot the Klaus Kinski Spaghetti Western Shoot the Living, Pray for the Dead (1971).
Any violence or gore?
None.
Any sex?
Extensive female nudity. No male nudity or any hardcore in this cut of the film (see deleted scenes).
Who is it for?
Recommended to fans of the series who want something a little lighter.
Good Soundtrack?
An effective soundtrack from Stelvio Cipriani that is not as cheesy as many of the other Black Emanuelle themes.
The DVD
Visuals
Original Aspect Ratio - 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. Colour. The
print quality is very good with almost no print damage or grain, the
focus is slightly soft throughout although this is probably how the
film was shot.
Audio
English and Italian audio. Both sound fine, and the English dub is quite well done.
Subtitles
English (optional) - these translate the Italian track.
Extras
The disc includes:
Deleted Scenes. These scenes are included with wrap around footage, and are taken from a video source.
The 'Train Scene' and the 'Flashback Scene' include brief hardcore inserts into two of the film's sex scenes.
The 'Stepmom Scene' is a lengthy extension to a lesbian sex scene, involving a banana! (2m 30s)
The 'Bondage Scene' is an additional sex scene missing from the film's climax, non-hardcore. (3m)
Original English titled theatrical trailer (3m 40s).
Also available on a lower quality DVD from X-Rated Kult DVD in Germany.
Notes:
The
disc reviewed had a couple of minor authoring problems that might not
be present on other discs. The deleted 'Bondage Scene' cannot be
accessed from the menus, but you should manually select TITLE 3,
CHAPTER 2 to view it. It is also not possible to switch between the
audio and subtitle streams while playing the disc, only via the menus.
Cuts?
The
film is presented in its softcore European edit, and alternative
hardcore edit was filmed for the French and Italian markets - the
additional footage from which can be seen in the deleted scenes. The
print used has English language credits.
Summary
The sleaze has been replaced by well filmed sex and a good storyline in this lighter entry to the series. Recommended.
A
great looking and sounding print, it is a pity that the deleted scenes
could not have been found in similarly good quality, but it seems
better to include them as deleted scenes than try and merge them into
the film where the quality drop would have been very noticable. Unless
a fully uncut, good quality print of the film ever emerges, this disc
is likely to remain definitive.
