Review of A Hard Look

A Hard Look (2000 TV Movie)
5/10
Fun, but insubstantial
20 October 2023
I disagree with the other reviewer here--most of his criticisms are valid enough (if more vehement than I felt), but I don't think the film makes Laura Gemser look stupid. She just has an amused, flippant attitude towards her participation in the series--she makes it clear that she didn't care if the films weren't much, she was just happy to be paid to travel to interesting far-flung locations--so her memories aren't terribly specific or extensive. Sylvia Kristel is more articulate, but then this is the role she'll always be known for, and she was taken somewhat seriously as a sexual liberator (rather than just an exploitation movie star) in that capacity at the time.

Some of the other interviewees are indeed trivial--Patrick Bachau gets a lot of screentime despite his only being in one film, and shoehorning Dennis Hopper in is particularly irrelevant. It's also annoying whenever Alex Cox is onscreen, playing a sort of "host" for this superficial overview. He's not as funny as he thinks he is, and god knows he's made enough bad movies that he shouldn't be condescending to anybody else's. Nonetheless, this is OK as an introduction/homage to the Emmanuelle movies, though it's hardly exhaustive and tends to jump around a lot. There are some interesting anecdotes, even if sometimes (as between the recall of Kristal and Just Jaekin) they clash with one another. But hopefully someday someone will make a better documentary on the subject. This one feels like a glorified blu-ray extra.
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