Paprika

"Paprika," a 1995 adult film directed by Joe D'Amato, is a European classic that delivers on its promise of spicy anal action. With a simple yet effective premise, this film takes viewers on a journey through the sexual exploits of a woman in search of satisfaction, both physically and emotionally.

The movie stars Erika Bella in the lead role, and she shines as a woman who embarks on a series of steamy encounters with multiple partners. Bella's performance is confident and captivating, ensuring that the audience stays engaged throughout her character's erotic adventures.

The supporting cast is equally talented and includes well-known names in the adult industry, such as Shalimar, Cristina Valenti, and Dina Pearl. These actresses bring their own unique flair to the film, adding variety and intensity to the sexual scenes.

The film has a good balance of storytelling and sex scenes, with the latter being the obvious highlight. The anal-themed encounters are creatively choreographed and executed with enthusiasm by the cast. One particularly noteworthy scene involves Cristina Valenti, who, with her sultry looks and natural curves, delivers a scorching performance. Valenti, with her luscious curves and sultry gaze, takes center stage in an orgy scene, showcasing her insatiable appetite for pleasure. As the men take turns indulging in her most intimate depths, she moans in abandon, her body glistening with sweat, eyes rolling back in pure, unadulterated bliss.

"Paprika" also has a sense of humor, with some light-hearted moments adding a playful tone to the overall serious and sensual nature of the film. The setting and costumes are typical of the era, with a mix of classy and kitsch styles that add to the overall charm.

However, the film is not without its drawbacks. Some viewers may find the plot simplistic and the dialogue lacking in depth. While the sexual scenes are well-executed, there is a sense of predictability to them, which may make the film feel longer than its 96-minute runtime.

In conclusion, "Paprika" is a solid entry in the adult film genre. It delivers on its promise of erotic content, with a good balance of storytelling and sex scenes. The cast, especially Erika Bella, brings energy and enthusiasm to their performances, ensuring that the film remains engaging. For fans of classic European adult films, "Paprika" is worth a watch.

Great minds think alike, so it's no surprise to have Joe D'Amato ripping off Tinto Brass with PAPRIKA, a XXX version made just four years after the maestro's near classic effort.

Unfortunately this is mere imitation, with D'Amato bringing very little to the table. When our heroine Rose (the beautiful Erica Bella) arrives in the 1920s to work in Madam Giselle's bordello, Giselle rechristens her "Anal Paprika" -setting the tone and content for the next 90 minutes.

I was much taken with Deborah Caprioglio, the original Brass choice as Paprika, an amazing young actress who after a liaison with Klaus Kinski failed to get her career in order. As much as Bella decorates many a D'Amato porno film, she cannot deliver the freshness and liveliness of Deborah.

Instead she pretty much takes it in the rear, as well as a lot of "between the breasts" action. The previous IMDb-er made a big thing about the costume design (and designer), but it is uncredited on the print used for the American DVD and definitely nothing to write home about.

Among the highlights, several of which are familiar from the Brass version, is the inevitable Giselle/Rose lesbian scene; an incest scene after an uncle is shocked to find his niece working in the brothel, and a troilism segment that turns into an orgy. Brass's humorous and tasteless vignettes involving the Madam's strap-on as well as a corpulent customer with a huge dick are oddly absent from this hardcore version, even though they would play better in explicit fashion.

Ending is particularly poor, as Paprika goes off with a big lunk, talking dirty as "FIN" is arbitrarily superimposed on the screen. Brass, taking the basic FANNY HILL material, went to great pains to establish an historical context about the repressive era (that closed the brothels) with the coming of Fascism, but D'Amato is low on content.

PAPRIKA is a good example of the kind of mindless trash that Joe D'Amato was putting out at the tail end of his career. In itself it's a pornographic rip-off of the Tinto Brass softcore movie PAPRIKA, but it takes away all of that film's nuance and political backdrop to replace it with one monotonous sex scene after another. The setting is an Italian brothel, where Erica Bella plays a high-class prostitute who shows up looking for work and certainly finds it. D'Amato must have directed about a hundred such movies at the end of his life and there's no art, eroticism or attempt at story or character here, just physical action.