Emmanuelle

Emmanuelle, or Emanuelle, is the lead character in a series of French soft core pornographic movies based on a character created by Emmanuelle Arsan in the novel The Joys of a Woman.

Related Topics:
French - Soft core - Pornographic movies - Emmanuelle Arsan - The Joys of a Woman

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The character first appeared in a movie called Io, Emmanuelle in 1969 and was played by Erika Blanc. The character was recreated in Emmanuelle in 1974, played by Sylvia Kristel, who is probably the actress best identified with the role. This film pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable on screen at the time with its sex scenes as well as scenes involving rape, masturbation, the "mile-high club", and a noted scene in which a dancer is shown inserting a cigarette into her vagina. Unlike many films that tried to avoid an MPAA X-rating, the first Emmanuelle film embraced it, and became a huge international success. It remains one of France's most successful films, and reportedly played in some theatres there for years.

Related Topics:
Io, Emmanuelle - 1969 - Erika Blanc - Emmanuelle - 1974 - Sylvia Kristel - Mile-high club - Vagina - MPAA - X-rating

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Several sequels starring Kristel followed, beginning with Emmanuelle 2 which is also known as Emmanuelle: The Joys of a Woman. The character also began to appear in a number of other productions made in Italy, Japan and the United States. In a number of cases, the character's name was spelled "Emanuelle" suggesting these films were not authorized. There was even a Black Emmanuelle produced at one point.

Related Topics:
Emmanuelle 2 - Italy - Japan - United States - Black Emmanuelle

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Among the best known of the spin-offs were a series of Italian "Emanuelle" films starring Laura Gemser. The films were spoofed in Britain in 1978 with Carry On Emmannuelle, which starred Suzanne Danielle in the title role alongside Kenneth Williams.

Related Topics:
Italian - Laura Gemser - 1978 - Carry On Emmannuelle - Suzanne Danielle - Kenneth Williams

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Kristel stepped away from the role in the 1980s, yielding to younger actresses, although she continued to make cameo appearances as an older Emmanuelle in a number of films. She also appeared in a number of films that either capitalized upon or parodied her Emmanuelle image, such as the American sex comedy Private Lessons.

Related Topics:
Sex comedy - Private Lessons

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One of the better-known actresses to take the part in the 1980s (which, in some parts of Europe, was considered as coveted as James Bond) was American b-movie actress Monique Gabrielle.

Related Topics:
James Bond - B-movie - Monique Gabrielle

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The level of sexual explicitness in the many Emmanuelle/Emanuelle films varies from virtually non-existent to full hardcore. Emmanuelle V, Gabrielle's film from 1987, was released in two versions: one with softcore love scenes typical of the series, and a video-only version that inserted several scenes of hardcore sex (Gabrielle, although a former porn actress herself, does not participate in these inserts).

Related Topics:
Hardcore - Emmanuelle V - Porn

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Arsan's character has appeared in many different forms in recent years, including a made-for-cable science fiction series in the 1990s called Emmanuelle in Space starring American actress/model Krista Allen in one of her first major roles. Although Allen, who went on to star in Baywatch and major films, has gone on record as regretting her R-rated turn as the character, she remains closely identified with the character.

Related Topics:
Science fiction - Emmanuelle in Space - Krista Allen - Baywatch

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