By Stephen Pytak 

     If you watch cannibal movies for their soft-
core qualities, you gotta track this one down.
     Because when Black Emanuelle comes to
town - or the jungle in this case - everyone's 
getting it on.
     Joe D'Amato made a bunch of Emanuelle
films in 1977, including the classic 
"Emanuelle in America," and this one.
     He decided to do a cannibal flick because
supposedly he was inspired by some Ruggero 
Deodato project, probably "Jungle Holocaust
(1977)."
     Anyway, the story is simple and actually
kinda stupid.   
     Emanuelle (Gemser), an investigative
journalist, is doing some kind of undercover 
photography work in a New York City booby 
hatch.
     Some girl patient goes off and munches 
down on a nurse's breast. 
     Aroused, Emanuelle decides to research 
cannibals, finds a good-looking researcher to
make it with and heads to the jungle to incite 
some tribe to bloodshed.
     Along the way, we get to see her make it 
with a blonde chick in a pond. Meanwhile one
of her guides, the brunette Maggie (Navarro), 
gets jungle fever. This is really cool, since Navarro
at the time was one of the hottest women in film. 
Also known as Susan Smith, her best role (from
what I've seen) is "Death Walks at Midnight 
(1972)."
    Also along for the ride with Emanuelle
is a nun. And in the end, the so-called "last 
cannibal tribe" has its way with her.
     This is all well and good. The pace isn't
too bad. And if you've got a sense of humor, 
I'm sure you'll find something funny in the 
plot or the performances.
     I always get a kick watching Emanuelle's
responses, or lack of, to situations of sex and 
death. She hardly bats an eye when the 
natives decide to bisect one of her guides with
a rope trick or impregnate the blonde chick in
a gang bang.
     But I guess that's just how she is. After 
being in so many of these, like "Emanuelle
in Bangkok," "Emanuelle in America" and 
"Emanuelle Around the World," I figure 
she's seen everything.
     There really aren't any impressive gore 
effects.
     But the women are nice to look at.
     If you like watching Ursula Andress being
stripped down by the Puka in "The Mountain 
of the Cannibal God (1978)," then pop in this
classic and let Gemser take you to the next 
level.
     By the way, Shriek Show released the 
DVD. It doesn't contain many special features,
just a trailer and a stills gallery.
     You'll learn a bit more about this flick and
other Black Emanuelle films if you pick up 
Blue Underground's DVD of "Emanuelle in 
America," which contains impressive 
featurettes, including an audio interview 
with Gemser.