SEXY NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD

Mention the name Joe D�Amato to most film buffs and they�ll most probably either look at you with a confused expression or they�ll express their distaste for his films. D�Amato is certainly an interesting character in 70�s/80�s Italian exploitation cinema; he is one of the most prolific directors from this period and he must also hold the record for the most bewildering array of pseudonyms (he has been known to use upwards of thirty different names! Even Joe D�Amato is a pseudonym; his real name is Aristide Massaccesi!), which has meant that it has proved difficult to say exactly how many films he made up to his death in January 1999, making him Italy�s closest thing to Spain�s Jess Franco. He is best known to horror fans for his trilogy of gore films, BUIO OMEGA (1979, aka �Beyond the Darkness�, �Buried Alive�, �Blue Holocaust�), THE ANTHROPOPHAGOUS BEAST (1980, aka �The Grim Reaper�) and ABSURD (1982, �Rosso Sangue�, aka �Monster Hunter�, �Anthropophagous II�). The latter two films made the �video nasties� list in the UK, whilst by far the most extreme of the three, BUIO OMEGA, was not officially banned but was subject to problems during the mid 80�s. Many horror fans consider BUIO OMEGA to be a minor masterpiece, and it�s certainly a very unpleasant, well made film with some nasty special effects (rumours abound that real corpses were used in the film), and it can be seen as a forerunner to Buttgereit�s NEKROMANTIK films. However, many fans are disappointed when they eventually see ANTHROPOPHAGOUS, a case of a film�s reputation out-stripping its actual �gore value� (see also: THE DRILLER KILLER (1979)). The film�s most notorious scene involved the titular beasty jumping up and down on a pregnant woman�s stomach (played by Sarena Grandi) to induce labour, before eating the foetus before her eyes. Unbelievably, this scene was actually featured in UK news broadcasts along with footage from Deodato�s CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1979) as evidence of real �snuff� films, ludicrous as it might seem today. However, ANTHROPOPHAGOUS is not a terribly gory or shocking film but it is a suspenseful, well-made horror film, contrary to what many people would have you believe. This film�s �sequel�, ABSURD, is in many ways a better film and does deliver more in the gore stakes than its illustrious predecessor. D�Amato is also well known as a director of hardcore sex films, as well as softcore films like the successful ELEVEN DAYS, ELEVEN NIGHTS (1986-1987) series. D'Amato's other best known film is  CALIGULA: THE UNTOLD STORY (1979), but probably his most successful films were his �Black Emanuelle� series, which starred Laura Gemser (aka �Moira Chen�, she starred in many of D�Amato�s films) and included the infamous EMANUELLE IN AMERICA (1976) and EMANUELLE AND THE LAST CANNIBALS (1977, aka �Trap Them and Kill Them�). In 1987 D�Amato surprised most people by producing and acting (very competently) as DP on Michele Soavi�s directorial debut STAGEFRIGHT.

The reason for the above (very brief) career summary is that I hope it will allow me to put the film under review in context with the rest of D�Amato�s career, particularly in the late 70�s/early 80. I think this is important in order for the reader to appreciate the unusual sex/horror hybrid nature of SEXY NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD. Better known as EROTIC NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD, it is often confused with another D�Amato film PORNO HOLOCAUST. Some sources mistakenly consider them to be the same film (the IMDb and Sazuma to name but two!), but they�re not � I have copies of both! They were shot back-to-back in 1979, using the same cast (Eastman, Shanon and Funari) and crew and the same Caribbean island setting. PORNO HOLOCAUST contains a lot more sex than SEXY NIGHTS and is basically about a group of scientists (!) who travel to an island to investigate atomic mutations found in the area. There is a monster on the island who has a big dick and who eventually kills the men and rapes the women (perhaps this film was the inspiration for the Japanese film ENTRAILS OF A VIRGIN (1988, Kazuo �Gaira� Komizu)? Not as unlikely as it sounds, since D�Amato�s films are well known in Japan, as evinced by this Japanese DVD under review). Sounds good, huh? Well actually it�s a bit of a bore and in its uncut version is very overlong (nearing the two hour mark). SEXY NIGHTS is a much better proposition altogether. The film�s story isn�t exactly complex � a property developer (played by �Mark Shanon�, real name Manlio Certosimo) hires a sailor (played by the great George Eastman (real name Luigi Montefiori), D�Amato�s friend and very frequent collaborator) to take him to an island that he has bought to turn into a tourist attraction. They take along a slutty woman (Dirce Funari) who Shanon has met. When they get to the island, they meet an old man and a mysterious young woman (the lovely Laura Gemser (star of D�Amato�s EMANUELLE series and frequent collaborator)) who warn them of dangerous forces on the island. When they eventually try to leave they find that the boat won�t start and they�re stranded. Zombies turn up and the usual carnage ensues� The film actually begins in a lunatic asylum where we watch a woman creep through the corridors, eventually meeting up with a man who proceeds to have vigorous sex with her. The woman turns up again as the slut in the film and the man in none other than the sailor. The film ends with the two having crazed sex on the beach after surviving the zombie onslaught, cutting back to the two having sex  in the asylum, where they have been ever since being rescued by a passing ship.

This film is a fairly crazed (and fairly early) entry to the Italian zombie film genre, seen through D�Amato�s demented eyes. This effectively means lots of sex and passages where nothing much happens. However, when he does cut to the chase, we�re treated to some fantastic scenes with the zombies, easily the most effective zombies I�ve ever seen outside of a Fulci film. The combination of zombies and sex film might seem a little odd to the casual viewer, but it must have seemed a natural enough step to D�Amato, who was only really beginning to enter the hardcore arena. D�Amato�s films are some of the most truly sleazy to come out of the classic era of Italian exploitation cinema and this one is no exception. It should be pointed out that the sex in this film is not really of the hardcore variety, despite this being a cut print. PORNO HOLOCAUST on the other hand consists primarily of hardcore sex scenes. D�Amato must have felt very at home making films like this, as he tended to work with a very small team and frequently used Gemser and Eastman as his leads (Eastman also wrote the screenplay for the film, as with many of D�Amato�s films (and the previously mentioned STAGEFRIGHT)). He also photographed the film himself, and this is very telling � D�Amato�s true calling in life was undoubtedly as a DP rather than a director and this is perhaps the reason that he has so often found himself accused of being a �hack�. His films tend to be clumsily constructed and directed, yet often feature remarkable photography lifting them well above the level that they were perhaps aimed at. Eastman and Gemser also help a great deal, as both are very competent actors as well as being quite charismatic, again perhaps more than the films really deserved. Another aspect of the film which rises well above its low budget sleaziness is the score, provided by Pluto Kennedy (real name: Marcello Giombini). This is excellent in places, really adding to the creepy atmosphere on the island and avoiding the �zombie drums� type of music found in so many Italian cannibal/zombie films and recalling Fabio Frizzi�s apocalyptic music for Fulci�s zombie tetraology.

The zombies in the film do look fantastic, and are very much how one would imagine a Haitian zombie to look, which really adds to the atmosphere given the film�s Caribbean setting. The scene when Eastman and Gemser are having (simulated) sex in the sea and the zombies are stood silently watching them on the beach is an eerily effective moment as the rags they are wearing blow around them against the tropical forest backdrop. Great stuff! There is also an excellent moment when Shanon throws a carved idol to the floor only for it to turn into a big black cat that leaps up at him. When you consider the film�s minuscule budget this excellent editing shows the time and care that must have been taken in post-production. Another scene worthy of note, again involving Shanon, occurs after he has beheaded a zombie. As he steps too near to the head lying on the floor it suddenly comes to life, biting him before he kicks it away. Again the editing in this scene is excellent and the gore effects generally are very impressive� not that there are too many, sadly.

For me the film�s best moments are its closing ones. Some critics have rubbished D�Amato�s ending, seemingly misunderstanding his intentions, perhaps due to only seeing the film in Italian language. The misunderstanding I am referring to is that the film ends with all the events having only been imagined by a watching loony in the asylum as some sort of bizarre masturbatory fantasy. In fact, the ending does not constitute a circular, throwaway wrap-up like this (as in Umberto Lenzi�s NIGHTMARE CITY for example), since we hear the guards mention that they really were found on the island with the corpse of Shanon. It is intended to show the insanity that the zombie episode has wreaked upon the survivors. Effectively, D�Amato has them saved by the passing ship only to condemn them anyway to life in an asylum. Quite a pessimistic ending to a sex film, and an extremely effective one at that. Eastman conveys a real sense of delirium in the final scene on the beach, wild eyed and looking completely primal as he fucks Dirce Funari senseless. It�s a shame that the sex scenes with Eastman tend to be somewhat ridiculous in D�Amato�s films as Eastman always keeps his jeans on, making things look rather silly since the other sex scenes are obviously hardcore. If you�re thinking of getting this film for the sex then I�d think again � Dirce Funari isn�t exactly the best-looking woman ever to grace Italian cinema, and the only other women involved in the harder scenes are bored looking Caribbean girls. Gemser is stunning, as always, but if you want to see her in a sexy role, try one of her EMANUELLE films instead. Of course, if you get off on the sight of a naked, dodgy looking Mark Shanon with a 70�s moustache then this is the film for you�

This is the first time that an English language version of the film has been available on VHS/DVD. Sadly, it�s quite heavily cut. Not only are the sex scenes all trimmed, but pubic areas are optically censored too. Bizarrely, this is the least effective digital censoring I�ve ever seen and doesn�t really obscure things one bit. The print is also missing the famed scene in which a black girl dances and strips for Eastman before uncorking a bottle of wine with her vagina. The parts before and after this are included, which makes the scene a little confusing and a bit pointless. As with PORNO HOLOCAUST, D�Amato lets the film meander too much, edging towards the 100 minute mark (the fully uncut Italian print reportedly runs 109 minutes and is available from grey market dealers). A little judicious cutting would have gone a long way in this case, as the first two thirds of the film are nowhere near as interesting as the last third.

Overall, I consider SEXY NIGHTS to be a real missed opportunity. Don�t get me wrong; it�s a sometimes excellent film from a great era in Italian cinema when literally anything went, but it really makes me sad that D�Amato didn�t ever make a full-blown zombie film in the tradition of Fulci as this would surely have been a sight to see. The film does make for compelling viewing for fans of Euro sleaze and is of value both as a curio and as a companion piece to PORNO HOLOCAUST, undoubtedly two of the most bizarre films to come out of Italy�s considerable canon of exploitation cinema, and perhaps equaled only by Alberto Cavallone�s BLUE MOVIE (1978, which also featured the �talents� of Dirce Funari, interestingly). I have given a full list of crew credits below as this information is difficult to come by on the internet at present. Thanks to Stefano Kristal for providing them.

DVD Specification
Original year of release - 1979
Approximate running time - 100min 39sec
Aspect ratio - Pan & Scan
System - NTSC (colour)
Rating - Unrated.
Sound - Dolby Digital mono (1.0)
DVD release - GALLERY OMOTE SANDOU
Region Coding - Region 2

DVD Extras
None.

DVD Ratings (out of 5)
Picture - 3
The Japanese disc presents the film pan-and-scan sadly. The image quality is generally good, but the film was shot in 16mm and should be presented in an approx 1.85:1 aspect ratio. To be honest, there isn�t really a noticeable loss of information at the sides, but it would have been nice to be able to appreciate the scenes of the zombies on the beach in widescreen. The only way to see a widescreen copy of the film is through the grey market. Despite this shortcoming, the film looks surprisingly good given its age and rarity and I can�t see anyone complaining too much. Note that the Japanese subtitles are burned in.
Sound - 3
This is the first time that an English language print of the film has surfaced on video/DVD and the DD mono track sounds fine, emphasising the sometimes excellent music and also the mysterious rumblings on the island. The film was presumably shot in mono and to expect a remix would be a bit much, even for those crazy Japanese! Like the picture quality, the sound is better than you�d expect for a film like this.
Extras - 1
None. It�s a shame that they couldn�t have found anything for the disc, not even a trailer, but I guess it�s to be expected. What supplementary material could have been included? I would have thought it unlikely that an original theatrical trailer exists for a film of this sort (can you imagine seeing it at the cinema?!?), and a new interview with D�Amato is sadly out of the question. Perhaps they could have found an old interview, or even included a documentary like the excellent JOE D�AMATO � TOTALLY UNCUT (1999, Roger Fratter). A point to note here is that Japanese DVD�s tend not to focus as much on extras as Western DVD releases, particularly in the case of Japanese releases of Western films (presumably because of the need to subtitle anything that they did include).
Overall Rating - 3
I�ve given the disc an overall �3� but I think I should probably qualify my decision. Firstly, this being a Japanese release you can expect to pay well over the odds (typically �35-40) for a copy� if you can find a copy to begin with that is. Obviously, when one is paying out this kind of money, one would expect i) the film to be presented in its correct aspect ratio, ii) a fully uncut print, and iii) some sort of extras. None of these three ideals are met by this disc and it�s annoying that the studio couldn�t have gone to the bother of releasing the full Italian print, though this would have meant no English language option. D�Amato is not at all well represented on DVD at present (especially in relation to his fellow countrymen Argento, Bava, Fulci et al), so if you�re a fan then you�re going to want to see this film, and the best way of doing so at present is through this disc. If you have only a small (more healthy!) interest in the seedier underbelly of Italian exploitation then you�re probably best avoiding the cost of this DVD and seeking out a grey market copy first � try before you buy, so to speak. I had actually never seen this film before and was very pleasantly surprised by it, especially given the rather tiring nature of PORNO HOLOCAUST which led me to believe that SEXY NIGHTS would be more of the same. It isn�t. It�s a fun, weird, effective, somewhat overlong mix of sex and horror that works surprisingly well.

AKA
LE NOTTI EROTICHE DEI MORTI VIVENTI (Original Italian title)
EROTIC NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD (Literal translation)
IN DER GEWALT ZER ZOMBIES (German title)
LA REGINA DEGLI ZOMBI (Alternate Italian title)
NITE OF THE ZOMBIES (US title)

Alternative versions
The film was also available on a German language DVD as �In der Gewalt der Zombies� from Laser Paradise. This was the full-length version but did not feature subtitles. It has also been available on Japanese and German home video. As mentioned previously, the print used for this disc is cut, but this is the first time an English-dubbed print has been officially available on VHS/DVD. Rumours persist that another alternate version exists with full hardcore sex scenes/penetrations.

Movie Facts
SEXY NIGHTS was shot back-to-back with PORNO HOLOCAUST, a film featuring almost exactly the same cast and crew, and the same Caribbean island setting. Both films were written by the star George Eastman (Luigi Montefiori), who also wrote the ANTHROPOPHAGOUS films and Soavi's STAGEFRIGHT.