Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade

Director - Joe D'Amato (Zombie 5: Killing Birds, Deep Blood)

Starring - Laura Gemser (Black Emanuelle, Violence in a Women's Prison), Ely Galleani (Day of Violence, A Lizard in a Woman's Skin), and Gabriele Tinti (Endgame, Beaks: The Movie)

Release Date - 1978

Genre - Crime

Tagline - "Emanuelle as you'll never see her again"

Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Many years ago I was browsing movies on the Upcoming Horror Movies message board when I came across a thread for the Emanuelle films.  This was my first introduction to the Laura Gemser character and since then I've been fortunate enough to review several of the Emanuelle films.  A few weeks ago Full Moon announced the release of two Emanuelle films on blu.  I enjoy the Emanuelle films I've seen in the past and was really excited to dig into these so I reached out to MVD who was handling these releases for a review copy.  I want to thank MVD and Full Moon for sending these over to check out!

     The film follows Emanuelle (Gemser) who is attempting to interview a reclusive businessman and possible mob boss.  Once she is able to secure a friendship with him she finds herself fascinated by another man she had seen while at the airport.  Her journalist instincts take over and she starts following him before she uncovers that he is in the prostitution ring.  She goes undercover posing as a poor girl and quickly finds herself in the middle of it with no way of escaping.

     I was really excited to check this one out.  I've had a lot of fun with some of the previous Emanuelle films that I've reviewed but this one was a bit chaotic and jumpy without the fun.  The Black Emanuelle series is known for it's sleazy stories with a few having some horror elements tossed in for good measure.  The White Slave Trade is sleazy but it feels like two incomplete movies that were pushed together to make one.  It has some fun moments but the overall film is fairly forgettable.  The acting in this one is decent enough.  Gemser is gorgeous as ever and really has fun with her role.  She goes all in and bares all for Emanuelle which is why this character has been so popular and spanned several films.  While it is debatable, she is the most popular Emanuelle in my eyes.  The supporting cast has a lot of fun and that's clear in every scene but there is a few scenes where the acting is a little flat and almost goofy.  These scenes are a little awkward and bring out a few unintentional laughs.  The story for this one is split into two sections.  The first following Emanuelle as she attempts to interview the business man with ties to organized crime.  This was a bit of a boring segment but it did feel like a genuine Emanuelle film.  The film then abandons all this to go into the sex trade portion of the film.  Where the first felt like a true Emanuelle film we now go head first into a real Emanuelle story with the sex, action, and more sex.  With that being said, this story is never pushed to it's full potential resulting in a lot of boring scenes full of dialogue.  The dialogue is painfully dull and these scenes go on for what feels like days.  Finally, the film is not a bloody one.  Instead, we get some skin, some fight scenes, and more skin.  Overall, Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade was a bit disappointing.  If the film would have went all in on the sex trade portion of the film I could have enjoyed it a lot more than what we actually got.  It had some fun moments that makes for decent fun time watch but don't expect much.  With that being said, this release from Full Moon looks great.  Collectors or fans of Emanuelle will want to check this release out.