Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
gloriously cheesy and gory, 30 Sep 2001
I was seriously impresed with this disturbing film about tribal beliefs and rituals. The story itself is a bit far-fetched, but still it manages to hold your attention as a group of people go in search of Susans (Ursula Andress)husband, unbeknown to them that they are being followed by strange people in weird masks. There is a fair bit of gore along the way with animal and human sacrifces. Not the best acting in the world, but then i never expect films like this to be up for an oscar. If you enjoy movies with gore a plenty and cheesy storylines then this is a must for your collection, if you dislike such sceens as animals being eaten alive and people being killed in various gruesome ways then stay clear!
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A SOLID ENTRY IN THE CANNIBAL GENRE, 26 Oct 2007
Arriving in New Guinea, Susan Stevenson, (Ursula Andress) is directed to Professor Edward Foster, (Stacy Keach) a tracker and jungle expert, to help her look for her missing husband. Accompanied by brother Arthur Weisser, (Antonio Marsina) they begin trekking through the jungle, looking for the last known spot of him. Finding nothing, they decide to try a small off-shore island nearby which contains a large mountain sacred to the natives. Searching the island, they find clues that her husband had been there and continue on, running into Manolo, (Claudio Cassinelli) a fellow adventurer who has befriended a tribe in the jungle where they plan on searching and accompanies them up the mountain, finding a ravenous cannibal tribe that requires all their ingenuity to escape alive from.
The News: This is a very solid entry in the cannibal genre. At it's heart a safari picture, there's a few animal attacks within. Due to the jungle location, the fact that two attacks and one threat come from a snake are handled nicely. The highlight is when a python's certainly intense but not really frenetic attempt to get a stranglehold on the girl and the subsequent fight to remove it. Part of what works so well about this sequence is the resolve to try to extricate her without killing the beast. It's stated earlier that he doesn't kill animals, making clear that he won't punish these beasts for doing what Nature intends them to do, and that resolve is steadfast throughout the film. A crocodile vs. native bearer sequence is vicious and what is not seen is as horrendous as what is seen. The editing on the scene is tight and the scene is frenetically paced. The location helps this out as well. Shot primarily in jungles, the setting is often beautiful, and is beautifully photographed. From the large trees overhead, to the scenic waterfalls and the plants and bushes, this makes the scenery really come alive adds a sense of beauty to the opening of the picture. Since the film is kept moving at a good clip, with the only real lagging spots are the animal death sequences, this here really doesn't seem as slow as it actually is, a quality sign. When it comes to the end, the film gets right back on track with some really spectacular scenes. The costuming of the cannibals, specifically the choice to have the cannibals wearing wooden masks, makes for some memorable antagonists. It also makes a great deal of sense. The warriors are made to appear less human, and thus less vulnerable, more akin to spirits of the jungle than native dwellers in it. It scores highly and makes them more creepy and backwoods than they possibly ever could've without them. As with any cannibal film, it largely exists as a smörgåsbord of decapitations and human entrails. These amount to some quite impressive shock effects, as one of the bearers caught in a trap that slams him between two cage sides mounted with sharp rocks and the others returning to only find a gnawed arm, a quick beheading, several spears into bodies, a brutal arm being ripped off, one victim being disemboweled and devoured and another falling down a large waterfall and bashing their head open on the way down. The makeup effects are also for the most part well done and aren't dwelt on. The temptation, including a scene where a cannibal's head is busted open on a rock, is hardly shown, making the sporadic appearance and shortness of effect all the more realistic. It even has some nice sleaze in here with a couple of nude scenes with Andress. She's as sexy as ever and just as uninhibited when it comes to dropping every stitch of her clothing as one could hope for. Not to be outdone, one of the cannibals does an extremely erotic striptease that's quite pleasing and really helps balance out the film. However, there are still some problems with the film. While the jungle is photographed beautifully, it isn't as claustrophobic or dark as it might have been, and in the long run, this does cut down the tension factor. Most of the film is done in daylight and it would have benefited greatly if the reverse were true, or if jungle area with more overhead coverage were selected to shoot in. This also limits the threat from the forests. It doesn't help that the predators in this jungle are strictly of the reptilian-and-snake variety, with a single spider thrown in for good measure. The film probably could have benefited greatly from a more direct threat from the wildlife to up the tension factor. Lastly, it's hard to get around the animal carnage. It isn't abundant, but it is there, and one sequence in particular is both grueling and needless. That involves the death of a monkey by a python. The scene just goes on and on and the viewer is forced to watch the ape's death throes for no reason whatsoever. The are other sequences involved where the animals are being consumed, flayed, cut open and so on, which is not for everyone and makes it a pretty hard film to get around no matter what. It's not as intense as other films, but it is there, and is something to get around. Otherwise, this is a solid, straightforward entry in the genre.
The Final Verdict: Basically the same as any other entry in the genre, this has a lot to like and a lot to get around. It's quite tame by most standards, enabling it to be an excellent introduction to the genre for those that are curious, while only a few small problems harm it for the more experienced cannibal viewer.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
DECENT CANNIBAL FLICK !! !! !!, 23 Feb 2006
Im a big fan of zombie/cannibal/B-movie horrors/slashers so when i saw this i baught it immedietly. Previousley banned, gore and video nasty is written many times on the DVD sleeve so i was expecting lots of this film. But all i got was an avarage cannibal flick. There was even a statement by someone on it that said this would be 'one of the best cannibal films youd ever see'!
Now i must admit that this film isnt all that bad and should be viewed by all fans of the genier. But dont be expecting anything too great!
The violence in this film (which youll probably want lots of if you like this sort of film) is not that nasty but there are some bloody scenes every now and then. There is a scene that copys of 'Cannibal Holocaust' which is where a man gets his penis sliced off, although in this film it is very badly made and looks like a sausage!
Things that i shouldnt have to thell you is the quality of acting, special effects, dubbing, picture quality ect ect, which are all bad of course. But if your stupid enough to watch this and not enjoy this sort of film then you probably wont mind these things.
This film obviousley has a low budjet but if you were to compare it to other movies of the genier then it isnt that bad really. But if you were to compare it to any other film eccept from another B-movie 70/80s cannibal horror then it is obviousley still a cheap, crappy flick.
Overall this is a reasonably good Vipco' film with some bloody scenes but as i said earlier, dont be expecting anything too gory! For fans only!!!!!!!!!
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