Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

Emmanuelle 3 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 22, 2013

François Leterrier's "Goodbye Emmanuelle" a.k.a. "Emmanuelle 3" (1977) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal/Universal Studios-Italia. There are no supplemental features on this release. In French, with optional English, Japanese, Italian, Spanish (Castellano), Dutch, Portuguese (Brazil), Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Then take the money...

Completed two years after Emmanuelle 2, the third film about the famous beauty opens up in the Seychelles, where Emmanuelle ((Sylvia Kristel, Emmanuelle, Mata Hari) and her husband Jean (Umberto Orsini, Ludwig, The Damned) spend most of their time relaxing. The two have casual affairs with different people, but their relationship is as strong as ever.

The perfect balance is soon disrupted when Emmanuelle meets a handsome director (Jean-Pierre Bouvier, Subversion, My Favorite Season) and Jean seduces a young blonde who wants to have the same kind of 'open relationship' Emmanuelle and Jean have. After Emmanuelle repeatedly meets the director, Jean confronts him and then questions her commitment to their lifestyle. The incident triggers a chain reaction of events that eventually push the two lovers in opposite directions.

Francois Leterrier’s Goodbye Emmanuelle a.k.a. Emmanuelle 3 is the least playful film in the classic trilogy. It is still a very colorful and beautifully lensed film, but the elaborate lovemaking scenes that made the previous two films so popular are missing here. They are replaced with ‘revealing’ conversations which by modern standards actually seem very casual.

The focus of attention is on the two lovers’ struggle to save their unusual relationship. After Emmanuelle begins her affair with the director the two frequently question each other, but the film never evolves into a soapy melodrama. On the contrary, it remains very relaxed and kind to the two lovers and their decisions.

The final third of the film where Emmanuelle and the director spend a lot of time together and visit some of the smaller islands is especially beautiful. The panoramic shots with the quiet beaches can easily be used in a promo piece for wealthy tourists who may not be convinced that the Seychelles are worth visiting.

The cast is good. Kristel and Orsini again look very comfortable with each other. Bouvier is also believable as the handsome director, though it has to be said that some of his shirts could have been a lot better. The very elegant Alexandra Stewart has a small but memorable role. (She is seduced by Emmanuelle in a very entertaining scene). Olga Georges-Picot, who appeared in Basil Dearden’s The Man Who Haunted Himself and Fred Zinnemann’s The Day of the Jackal, also has a small role in the film.

Goodbye Eammanuelle was lensed by cinematographer Jean Badal, who collaborated with Jacques Tati on his legendary film Play Time.

The film’s soundtrack was created by the great Serge Gainsbourg. The main song, Goodbye Emmanuelle, was performed by Gainsbourg and his muse, Jane Birkin.

Emmanuelle 3 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, François Leterrier's Goodbye Emmanuelle arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal/Universal Studios-Italia.

The disc's main menu can be set in one of the following languages: English, Japanese, French, Italian, Spanish (Castellano), Dutch, Portuguese (Brazil), Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish.

As it was the case with Emmanuelle 2, the high-definition transfer used for this release has been struck from a dated source, more than likely a master that was used for previous European DVD releases of the film. However, the basic characteristics of the high-definition transfer which we typically address in our reviews are indeed solid.Some extremely light denoising corrections have been applied, but image depth and clarity are indeed very pleasing. The daylight footage, in particular, looks quite good (see screencapture #2). Contrast levels are stable throughout the entire film. There are no traces of problematic sharpening corrections. Color reproduction is pleasing - there are plenty of warm and well saturated reds, browns, yellows, blues, greens, and blacks. During the opening credits there is some light fading and a few light stains, but throughout the film there are no debris, damage marks, cuts, or scratches to report in this review. Overall image stability is also very good. To sum it all up, there is definitely some room for improvement, but the Blu-ray release undoubtedly represents a very solid upgrade in quality over the old R1 DVD release of the (see the 3-disc set). My score is 3.75/5.00. Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Emmanuelle 3 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are five standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: French DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0., English DTS 2.0, Italian DTS 2.0, Spanish (Castellano) DTS 2.0, and Portuguese (Brazil) DTS 2.0. For the record, StudioCanal/Universal Studios-Italia have provided optional English, Japanese, Italian, Spanish (Castellano), Dutch, Portuguese (Brazil), Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they split the image frame and the black bar below it.

The quality of the lossless French track is very good. The improvements in depth and clarity, in particular, are dramatic. While on the R1 DVD the sound is rather thin, here it is well rounded and fuller (listen to the opening song composed by Serge Gainsbourg). The dialog is stable, free of background hiss, and easy to follow. The English translation is very good.

Emmanuelle 3 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Unfortunately, there are no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray release.

Emmanuelle 3 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is great that StudioCanal and Universal Studios released Emmanuelle 2 and Goodbye Emmanuelle on Blu-ray. Now the complete trilogy has been upgraded and I have to say that each of the three discs is definitely worth owning. Let's hope that soon we will also see some of Laura Gemser's film transition to Blu-ray. RECOMMENDED.