The Emmanuelle Collection: Emmanuelle / Emmanuelle 2 / Goodbye Emmanuelle

Although I've had the first two Emmanuelle films on VHS for several years, I didn't see Goodbye Emmanuelle until just recently, after watching the complete Emmanuelle Collection sequentially. What struck me about the series is the evolution of, or changes in, Emmanuelle's character.Emmanuelle: Here, she is something of an ingenue. The scene where she puts on boyish expressions corresponding to different ways of wearing a baseball hat expresses the charm of her (relative) innocence. This is my second favorite in the series.Emmanuelle l'Anti-Vierge: [How the "Anti-Virgin" subtitle was translated into "Joys of a Woman" is beyond me!] This is my favorite of the three films. Very, very erotic! A good story well directed. Great music. Great script. Wonderfully acted. It's a miracle this film is able to get in so much erotica and yet make it all seem so natural and plausible. I love Sylvia Kristel in this film. It's the only one in which she has long hair. And her character is absolutely seductive in every way. Also, she is given quite a few comic-ironic zingers which I anticipate and relish with every viewing. When a woman with whom her husband has made love in the sea (Emmanuelle complains that for her, it's just the bathtub or swimming pool!) comments on the performance of some Asian fan dancers, qualifying the dance as "erotique," Emmanuelle responds sarcastically, "Aquatique." But she'll get a chance to mate like (cold) fish in her next film, Goodbye Emmanuelle. In this film, Emmanuelle is very wise to the world, and her cynical maturity makes her a very interesting character to watch.Goodbye Emmanuelle: Having just watched it for the first time, I must say that it is my least favorite. Jean (played again by Umberto Orsini)is not as charming as he was in the second film, and Emmanuelle is either troubled, sad, rebellious, or angry. Her emotional range is broader, and she shows her acting skills very well, but her character is just not very likeable here. The film has few sex scenes compared to the previous ones. And while more total frontal nudity (including brief flashes of male frontal nudity) is on display when the plot comes around to the sex, there is just nothing erotic happening anywhere in this film. The film should have been called Emmanuelle l'Anti-Erotique. The cold matter-of-factness of the nudity along with Emmanuelle's negative moodiness just saps any fun from this last official outing. What saves the film, and prevents me from lowering the overall grade of the collection, is the solid acting (but, alas, no memorable lines), true character development (even if it's not in the direction I would have preferred), and some great Seychelles locations. Goodbye Emmanuelle does offer a (sad, but perhaps inevitble) resolution to the "free couple" philosophy that Jean espoused from day one.Sylvia Kristel signed for three films. Forget about her brief apearance in Emmanuelle 4, or whatever the actual French title is. I saw it once, and hated it. And forget about her bookend appearances in later Emannuelle offerings. The Emmanuelle Collection is a true trilogy. And what makes it a trilogy is the evolution of Emmanuelle's character. Had this series been made in Hollywood, Emmanuelle would have no doubt reconciled with Jean, and they would have become strictly monogamous, living happily ever after. The French, instead, opt for a moral lesson. Be careful what philosophy you preach. It may just bite you in the derriere.I'm not aware of any other soft core erotic trilogy where a central character actually evolves. I believe this is what sets these films apart from what I imagine to be the rest.Finally, I've read a few reviews elsewhere on the internet emphasizing that the Emmanuelle movies are somewhat erotically tame by today's standards. I can't really say. But the lasting popularity of this trilogy seems to attest to my supposition that some of us prefer it a bit tame. Eroticism is not so much about sexual explicitness. It's more about the characters involved, what you sense they are feeling (physically and emotionally), and what you don't see but must instead imagine. Some of us don't want material that is too explicit and exploitative. Based on my somewhat limited familiarity with erotic films (I do have, for example, L'Histoire d'O and Red Shoe Diaries), Emmanuelle l'Anti-Vierge is erotica cooked up just right. The perfect blend. And since I care about the title character, this is, for my money, the best erotic film series.

this is an excellent series with a decent plot and the scenery of Asia is nice. I thought Sylvia Kristal was excellent especially in the first movie. Its a bit expensive but worth the price

Happy with the product and the on-time delivery definitely would do business with the seller again

Great packaging, 3 outstanding movie's, in this box set. This should be the standard for all erotica movie's. If I had only one complaint it would be that I wish a biography booklet was included being a classic and a box set, I was sort of hoping to see one. However the quality and the movie content did not disappoint. All 7 releases are well worth watching, but the best four are the 3 included here (I,II,III) and Emmanuelle 7

Movies are classics, but are way to old and outdated. I did not realize that the story was scattered and made no sense. I wish I could return these DVD's.

I hate to put it this way, but if you are looking for a way to spice things up with your spouse, partner, or whatever you call your significant other, this may just be the answer. I never thought these were trashy. They are well made sexy films that can appeal to any adult that might require a little...encouragement. But this ADULT.

Sylvia Kristel is very enjoyable to watch. These films are remarkable for enduring. The seem current and titillating. They don't feel dated or out of touch.

BAD DISC THREE - NO TO SUBTITLE CHANGES.The DVD's were clearly produced for the Korean market and changing to the English language for the Discs 1 and 2 is frought with the danger that one must resume play not return to main menu - otherwise you never get out Korean Subtitles. However, circumnavigated for Disc's 1 and 2. NOT SO for disc three which has no resume "button" and the subtitle language change proves impossible!!! This is ok for the spoken language "French", but the subtitles need to be in English for users like myself.I am reluctant to make a second return on an order from which I have little luck. I have returned the Blu-ray series on the Vikings because for the first time Blu-ray has chosen to become region specific. That means no more Blu-ray orders from me unless Amazon can guarantee no Regional blocking. It appears USA is region A and we are Region B.

I took the chance to buy the Korean box set (with some Korean characters on the box cover) because it is cheaper, and contrarily to what is written in the Amazon product description and in accordance to what is written on the box backcover, the DVDs are multi/all regions with the options of original French and English languages plus French and English and Korean subtitles or no subtitle.

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