Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 30, 2023

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as both this standalone release and as part of Severin's The Sensual World of Black Emanuelle. Severin sent the huge box set for purposes of this review, and I am assuming the standalone release has the same content.

Kier-la Janisse gave film fans one of the most outstanding boxed sets of the last few years with All the Haunts Be Ours: A Compendium of Folk Horror, a late 2021 release that ended up making my Best of 2022 list. Janisse is back now with another gigantic boxed set, one that's even bigger than the folk horror compendium, and one that may appeal to a certain niche audience who may not have been especially interested in that earlier set. Those who may remember the rating system of days of yore will probably recall the "M" designation, which meant "for mature audiences only", and if I may be permitted an orthographic joke that is admittedly a bit arcane, some might argue that Emanuelle gave up one of her "m"'s in favor of three x's, at least with regard to some cuts of the many Black Emanuelle films. For those not conversant with the history of this perceived franchise, and who may be scratching their heads at my "joke" (what else is new?), Black Emanuelle was a pretty blatant attempt to cash in on Emmanuelle, and in order to avoid any potential legal hassles one of those original "m"'s in the title character's name got dropped. Furthermore, as supplements on many of the discs included in this set offer, there were hardcore XXX inserts (in more ways than one) that at least some of the Black Emanuelle productions offered. Joke explained, hopefully. Perhaps even more comedically than my fitful attempt at humor, the Black Emanuelle series ended up offering many more films than its perceived progenitor, and 24 of them (with additional cuts) are aggregated in this at times overwhelming collection. This is a collection where the quality of the films may be highly debatable, though it's salient to note that the supplements both overtly reference and are in and of themselves examples of perhaps unexpected critical scrutiny this franchise has engendered, and anyone interested in this kind of bizarre franchise mash up of what might be called porno, mondo and gonzo will most likely find this an amazing set to dive into.

Joe D'Amato seems like a kind of sweet older guy in some archival video included in this documentary, even when he's lying on his back holding a bill in his mouth that a naked woman straddling above him is attempting to pick up with her flexed butt cheeks. In a kind of rambunctious opening to her commentary on Emanuelle in America, Kat Ellinger talks about Joe D'Amato basically being about "love", though she quickly goes on to further particularize that sentiment by saying "love of absolute filth". The kind of oddly endearing thing about so many of D'Amato's films is how absolutely provocative and arguably offensive at times they can be while they also seem to retain an inherently sweet, almost innocent, demeanor. It's a very odd mashup of qualities, one that also has to collide with D'Amato's emphasis on sexual cruelty and, um, kinkiness which can involve graphic violence. All of these qualities are discussed in the probably not all that surprisingly heartwarming Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess, a piece which includes some fun archival video of D'Amato and/or Aristide Massaccesi himself, but newer interviews with a glut of people including his daughter Francesca Massaccesi and Eli Roth.

What emerges is a portrait of a guy with manifold talents (fans will know he was an ace cinematographer and lensed many of his films), as well as a smart and funny filmmaker who knew he was a provocateur, though at times he seems sheepish to admit it. D'Amato's willingness to go where the money was, even if it ultimately meant more hardcore work, is addressed if not dwelt upon.

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. Severin's almost overwhelming book The Black Emanuelle Bible included with this set offers a brief description of the transfer, as follows:

Source: 1080 provided by Wave Cinema / Fairway Film/ Trulove.

As with many documentaries culled from a variety of sources, Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess has an undeniably heterogeneous appearance at times, but all of the contemporary interview material looks nicely defined and sports a healthy if at times somewhat subdued palette. The archival video and film clips are in widely variant levels of quality, with some of the archival video of D'Amato in particular looking lo-res and kind of ragged. My overall score is 4.25.

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 options, mostly in Italian. The surround track may be a bit of overkill for this talking head heavy documentary, but it does occasionally open up some of the film clips. Otherwise, both tracks provide secure support for all spoken material, with the understanding that some archival audio may not have the crispness of the contemporary material. Optional English subtitles are available.

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Introduction by Nicolas Winding Refn for Venice Film Festival Premiere (HD; 1:27)


• Two of a Kind: Talking About Joe (HD; 29:28) features director Manlio Gomarasca and Giona A. Nazzaro, Artistic Director of the Locarno Film Festival, in conversation. Subtitled in English.


• Outtakes (HD; 36:25)


• Trailer (HD; 1:45)

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Inferno Rosso: Joe D'Amato on the Road of Excess may not be overly revelatory, but it's kind of sweetly affecting and it provides some insight into what D'Amato was like personally and professionally. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.