Erotic Nights of the Living Dead (Code Red) (Blu-ray) Review

Distributor: Code Red Edition Details: Limited Edition Blu-ray Movie Specs: Genres: Golden Age Classic, Feature Film, Horror, Foreign Also known as: Sexy Nights of the Living Dead, Le Notti Erotiche Dei Morti Viventi, Emmanuelle vs the Erotic Night of the Living Nods Run Time: 112 minutes Rated: X Release Year: 1980 Director: Joe D'Amato Written by: George Eastman (as Tom Salina) Cast: Laura Gemser, George Eastman, Dirce Funari, Mark Shannon (as Mark Shanon), Lucia Ramirez, Lola Burdan, Chantal Rubel Voices: Carolyn De Fonseca Release Specs: Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono (dubbed) Subtitles: none Video: Widescreen, 1.78:1 (anamorphic) Video Format: NTSC Format: Blu-ray Regional Code (for DVD/Blu-ray): A (North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia) Number of discs: 1

Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is a horror and adult film combination from writer George Eastman and director Joe D'Amato. Erotic Nights of the Living Dead was shot at the same time as Joe D'Amato's horror and adult film combination Porno Holocaust. Out of the two films, Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is far superior to Porno Holocaust in this reviewer's opinion.

In Erotic Nights of the Living Dead, John Wilson's (Mark Shannon) firm has leased Cat Island for 20 years with plans to put a hotel on it. John Wilson has been sent to survey the island for the development. He hires Larry O'Hara (George Eastman) to transport him to the supposedly uninhabited island and the two, along with Fiona (Dirce Funari) head out to the island. Unbeknownst to John Wilson but known to the locals, Cat Island is under a Voodoo curse and is inhabited by zombies lead by felines.

Joe D'Amato lets the viewer know from the very beginning of Erotic Nights of the Living Dead that things aren't going to go well for the main characters. The film starts at the provincial psychiatric hospital after the events covered in the film have happened. Then quickly the viewer is whisked back to when it all started happening and the viewer finds out how Larry ends up in the psychiatric hospital.

The story for Erotic Nights of the Living Dead isn't bad. The story doesn't really go for surprising the viewer at all nor does the story really go for any chills. However, it is fun to watch the film play out. The biggest issue with the story is that it drags in some places rather bad. Joe D'Amato would have done the film a big favor by trimming about 30 minutes. There is a little gore in the film but, honestly, way less than this reviewer was expecting.

Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is a hardcore film; however, there really isn't much actual hardcore material in the film. There are plentiful sex scenes in the film; most of them are entirely softcore though and the few hardcore ones are filled with more softcore footage than hardcore footage.

Erotic Nights of the Living Dead does have its issues; however, the film is still worth viewing despite the problems. The story is interesting and Joe D'Amato has done some fun things with the film. Just don't go in expecting a gory horror and sex-filled film.

Code Red has done a nice job with their limited edition Blu-ray edition of Erotic Nights of the Living Dead. The limited edition Blu-ray edition contains the explicit uncut version of the film. Erotic Nights of the Living Dead was shot on 35mm film, and Code Red has used a high definition scan of what appear to be 35mm archival film elements for this release. Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is presented in the anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 in 1080p. For the most part, the image presented on the release is very good sporting grain, artifacts, and print damage. There are periods of heavier print damage. The colors are usually bright and vibrant. There are periods where a filter was applied to the film to change the time of day Joe D'Amato shot the film. Those portions do look overly dark, and the colors are more muted during those portions. This reviewer isn't sure how much Code Red could have done to correct this issue.

Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is presented with a dubbed English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 monaural audio track. The sound doesn't present any issues with clear and easy to understand the dialog. The only major letdown with the audio is that only the dubbed English version is included. This reviewer would have also have liked to have seen the original Italian audio with English subtitles.

Code Red has included several extras on the release, most of which were ported over from the previous Media Blasters DVD. There is “The Real Italian Stallion — Part 2,” which is the 20-minute conclusion of an interview with Mark Shannon. The first part is contained on the limited edition Blu-ray of Porno Holocaust released by Code Red. The interview is in Italian with burned in English subtitles. The interview is slightly incorrectly framed since there are periods where the subtitles are cut off at the bottom of the screen. “Erotic Sunny Afternoons of the Living Dead” is a 27-minute featurette containing alternate footage for the film. “Evidence of the Dead — Laura Gemser Gallery” is a photo gallery containing production stills and a Laura Gemser photo gallery.

Erotic Nights of the Living Dead is a decent horror and adult film mix from Joe D'Amato. The film does run a little long, is light on the hardcore, and a bit light on the horror, and drags in some places but the story is decent, and the film does make for enjoyable viewing. Fans of the film should be pleased with the limited edition Blu-ray from Code Red. The video and audio quality on the Blu-ray are good.

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