Home :: DVD :: Art House & International :: General  

Asian Cinema
British Cinema
European Cinema
General

Latin American Cinema
Cannibal Ferox (A.K.A. Make Them Die Slowly)

Cannibal Ferox (A.K.A. Make Them Die Slowly)

List Price: $29.99
Your Price: $26.99
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 4 .. 8 >>

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good release, not so good film
Review: I am a horror video fan and seeing that there are not that much reviews for the rerelease of this infamous video, I will contribute my opinion to the curious. The best parts of this release are the trailers, the director and actor commentary (they travelled all the way to Rome to interview Lenzi himself exclusively for the video), production stills, background on making the film, movie posters from other countries, and a very special "Cannibal survival kit" which is just too hilarious to reveal.

However, the movie itself is not at all the "most violent film ever made." It drags on a lot and takes a long time for the action to start going. It goes back and forth between city scenes and the amazon scenes, probably just to have a longer running time. Lots of zoom-ins of monkeys in trees...is Lenzi trying to say something? The monotonous music makes it even drag more. The pros are the gore, which feature realistic scenes of eye gouging, hanging by breasts, severing of a guy's you-know-what, and a worm going in and out of a native, but there are other scenes like slicing the top of a guy's head off, or a spear going through a chest which look very fake and corny. What is real is the animal cruelty, over 5 scenes of animal deaths, which has caused the controversy of the film in some countries. Otherwise, if you've seen "Dead Alive" or "Pink Flamingos" it's pretty tame. The gore won't make you cringe but actually chuckle at the way it's presented in the movie. Overall, a must have collectors item for horror fans, but stars go down for the actual film itself. Good release, not so good film.

P.S. Keep on the lookout for more RMM agency/Grindhouse releases. They will release many more horror videos, complete with special features like this one.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A good transfer to DVD for a classic exploitation film
Review: Cannibal Ferox is one of the most infamous & notorious films, and its transfer to DVD is accomplished. The film is about a woman, her brother and another female companion, who venture into the Amazon region to study cannibalism. While there they meet a drugged-up crazy guy and his friend (on the run having stole money from a drug gang in New York) who have previously terroised the natives. Then the natives seek revenge, and the unfortunate trio are in the thick of it.

The gory bits include 'Mike's Member Whacked and Eaten' (that's how the scene is described on the DVD chapter menu) and chapter 44: 'Pat Hangs Out', a woman is hung up by hooks through her breasts, plus chapter 45: 'Brain Hors d'Oeuvres', Mike has the top of his head sliced off and his brain eaten.

The DVD is well presented. The menus are good. When you open one menu you are presented with Mike having his head chopped off, then put back on by a cannibal's spear. Also included is an interview with director Umberto Lenzi, although he speaks mostly Italian in it, even though he is questioned in English. There is also a commentary track from Lenzi and John Morghen, who plays Mike, who admits he hates the film. There is an excellant lengthy segment showing stills, posters and photos took making the film. It rolls automatically at a nice pace, a neat idea. There is even a hidden easter egg showing the film being shown at a theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, with interviews with some fans of the film. The picture is in widescreen and clear, and the sound in stereo is good, especially during the electro music scenes. All in all, a good DVD transfer of a pure exploitation film.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: ZZZZZZ.....Bore them to Death Slowly.....ZZZZZZ !!
Review: Absolutely, boring (and over-rated) Italian made drivel about mafia gangsters, cocaine addicts, cannibalism & wild animals attacking each other ! I bought this supposedly "shocker to end all shocker" DVD based on it's grisly, cult reputation, and boy, what a let down ! As for all the film critics & fans who rate "Cannibal Ferox" as some "gut churning, mind blowing, nerve shattering experience", they are obviously used to watching tamer, family movies like "The Care Bears" & "Hambone & Hilly". Hey, don't get me wrong.....I love Italian zombie / cannibalism / horror films, but this film is hugely overrated in terms of shock value, and reputation.

Most of the "sadistic brutality" in this film consisted of footage of jungle animals attacking each other for a meal. BIG DEAL ! Anyone watching "The Crocodile Hunter", or a National Geographic special about Africa or the Amazon on the History Channel, will see the same sort of thing and the photography & commentary is much, much more entertaining !!!! The acting is woeful, even by Italian shock movie standards....and the special effects are very crude & amatuerish....looks like the effects department just threw around a lot of spaghetti bolognaise & chicken gizzards on the cast members to simulate them being disemboweled. The "South American Indians" in this film are an absolute hoot.....they all stand around like silent, granite statues ( whilst the Italian members of the cast are all wildy over acting ), they never exhibit any emotion ( except when they are dining on the bolognaise & chicken innards), and they all look they've been dusted down with bags of talcum powder ????

I'm giving this DVD two stars, instead of only one, as Grindhouse Releasing have put together plenty of additional features to supplement the main movie including interviews/audio commentary with the director Umberto Lenzi, foreign trailers, plenty of production stills & liner notes. So, even though I'm not going to give the film a thumbs up, the DVD is good value for the well featured extras menu.

From my experience, if you want to watch better made European cult films to turn your stomach & shock your unsuspecting friends try Jorge Grau's excellent "Let the Sleeping Corpses Lie", Lucio Fulci's living dead epic, "Zombie", Piero Pasolini's tirade against fascism, "Salo: 120 Days of Sodom" or Corali's violent sexfest "Baise-Moi".

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: So.....
Review: You're snooping around on the Cannibal Ferox page because: A) You have some basic Italian horror film knowledge(Fulci, Argento), and have heard about this film through a fanzine, other dvd trailers, websites, creepy Italian horror fan friend. Or B) You've already seen this film and are just curious what other people think of it. Well, like all films of this genre, you're gonna hear both ends of the spectrum. If you already have the basics of Italian horror, then you know how this gamble works. Personally, I think this film is great. Only Italian directors would risk death by filming in a real jungle for authenticity. Only Italian directors would use real natives in the film. Only Italian directors would expose their actors and crew to potential animal attacks and disease from the jungle environment just so you, the viewer, can enjoy an hour and a half of trashy junkfood cinema. I adore Italy! I adore Umberto Lenzi! This movie is quite fun. We get a group of people running into a cannibal tribe in the South American jungle. Two of these guys are cocaine dealers(every Italian horror flick seems to slip the cocaine in there), the rest are students. There is a message here, basically the same message as Cannibal Holocaust: DON'T .... OFF THE NATIVES! These cannibals would leave everyone alone if they weren't provoked, which our coke dealers gladly do(another message?). Well, because of these two schmucks, the entire group is gonna pay.....and pay dearly. Regardless of the lousy acting(except for Giovanni Radice who is always good in these films), you do kinda feel sorry for these students(maybe not so much for the blonde) because they end up fighting for their lives when they really had no bad intentions towards the tribe. But this film has everything you look for in this kind of movie. From the funky opening tune, you know it's gonna be a gem. Maybe it could have done without the New York subplot which is ultimately pointless, but these scenes go by quick and aren't terribly boring. Get it? You bet you should! Your wife will hate you for it, but you deserve a gift don't you?

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Average Old Cannibal Film: Didn't Live Up To The Hype
Review: Banned in 31 countries? Most violent gore film of all time?

Unfortunately I missed out on this film during it's initial run and have just only seen it for the first time on this DVD. It was recommended to me through a friend.

A dated film that has an interesting enough story, but of course with hype like I previously mentioned, I was in it for some racy stuff.

I had heard that real animals were killed in this film so I wasn't really looking forward to those scenes and they may have disturbed me, but with just two major animal death scenes, it wasn't much, and they weren't badly tortured either which was fine for me.

I waited for the cannibalism, and human torture in the film. Halfway through it you finally get a little. Cutting off genitals and eating them, etc. suppose this should have been gruesome for me but so many other films I have already seen up to now have had this or even worse in them. The only scene I thought was neat was the death of the blonde by an interesting impaling.

Still, I am happy I know what people are talking about now when they mention this film. There are so many other films old and new that I can ramble off that have increased the 'shock' value that this film must have had during it's initial release. Films like Bloodsucking Freaks, and others come to mind.

I'm sure it was shocking at the time, now it's a conversation piece and getting pretty dated.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: These Cannibals mean Serious Buisiness!!!!!!!!
Review: I finally recieved my dvd version of this film from amazon.com...and I love it!!!! This dvd includes awesome stills from the production set,Umberto Lenzi interview,and so much more.There's even a hidden grindhouse 1997 footage re-release on this dvd if you know how to find it. About the movie itself...hmmm,ok it's gross as hell lot's of decapitations,mutilations,disgusting body piercings,and three animal deaths that are real.I tilt my hat to amazon.com for selling this one,it's great,gross and fun to watch with friends.I can't wait for amazon to get hold Ruggero Deodato's "CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST" because I will be the first one to make the purchase.I LOVE YOU.AMAZON.COM

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Boring as hell
Review: Cannibal Ferox is a real sorry case of movie making, boy does this director stink. Italian horror directors are not exactly the Romero's or Raimi's of this world and this crap movie is proof, well truth be known a lot of crap Italian horror movies prove this. Take away all the animal cruelty out and you'd be left with a big steaming pile of s***. Cannibal Ferox is only for those who feel that this pile dooh was screwed out of an Oscar nomination for best foreign film.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: What's The Point?
Review: I question the purpose of this movie. It is gore scene by gore scene a clone of the amazing movie, "Cannibal Holocaust". When directors set out to update or enhance a true original, they either fail or fail miserably. (Go see Texas Chainsaw Misery, Take 2) Newjacks to the extreme horror category might be taken back by the over the top visuals but this movie is still a crappy remake. At least Cannibal Holocaust is trying to make a point .... a nasty one, but a point never the less.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Make Them Watch It... Again And Again And Again...
Review: You know I always found it very hilarious how people get worked up over these films... Cannibal films in general always seem to evoke very passionate arguments from groups like PETA and other animal rights activists, almost all of whom have never even SEEN the film. I guess that was acceptable back when the only way you could see something like this was to hunt down a fifth-generation bootleg but not anymore...

Ahhh the many wonders of DVD!!! Now anyone with access to a computer and just a few dollars can experience, dare I say it, AUTEUR Umberto Lenzi's thoroughly distasteful masterpiece CANNIBAL FEROX in the comfort of their own home without having to deal with shady connections and incomprehensible static to squint through. Yes, that's right, Grindhouse Releasings have presented CANNIBAL FEROX in an absolutely stunning (well, compared to previous bootlegs anyway) widescreen transfer that's uncut AND uncensored... more for you guys to enjoy!!!

The story itself really isn't what's important here but rather the hoopla surrounding the film and the controversy that it's caused over the years. The plot itself is secondary (if you must know, it's about scientists who venture into South America to prove that cannibal tribes don't exist and the fate that befalls this ill-advised expedition) to the increasingly gruesome set pieces that Lenzi pulls the actors through during the (main) course of the movie. Anyone who has seen any of these cannibal films before knows what to expect.... various body parts are chopped off, people are eaten, lots of the red stuff (most of it VERY fake looking) is spilled, and gratuitous overacting undermines any "message" (yeah, right!) the filmmakers were trying to get across (to be fair, Deodato's CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, the creme de la creme of cannibal films, is perhaps the only entry that has elevated itself over the exploitation trappings that surround it into something more).

The real draw to these films, like it or not folks, is the animal violence. Yes, that's right, real animals are killed in this film, some of them shown quite graphically. I'm not going to argue on the morals involved here but its best if I warn you now before you let your five year old daughter watch this thing with you and it ends up traumatizing her for life... Despite the fact that those of you out there with a taste (pun intended) for the genre will probably see the humor in it, this is pretty harsh stuff and it's not recommended for those with weak stomachs and a close personal connection to animals (except those aforementioned animal rights extremists who deserve to sit through the film that they so diligently criticized sight-unseen).

That being said, CANNIBAL FEROX is also absolutely hilarious in an "I can't believe they just did that" kind of way... I guess it's kind of like how people slow down on the highway to catch a glimpse of a road-side accident... you know that what you're trying to see is going to disgust you but you just can't turn away. I'd say CANNIBAL FEROX is like that, only add in unintentional humor, a sleazy sub-porno atmosphere, and a groovy soundtrack...

John Morghen (who always manages to find himself in these sorts of films, even though he claims that he hates hates hates HATES them in the commentary track) steals the show here, well except for the cannibals themselves. Now if only Grindhouse Releasings would hurry up and finish their ludicrously-delayed special edition release of Deodato's absolutely brilliant CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. Until then, this fantastic DVD will do just nicely. Lenzi and the cannibals never had it so good!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great!
Review: Grindhouse Releasing did a great job by remastering Cannibal Ferox to its original form. The DVD is great. The images are a little murky, but that's due to the film's budget. The extras are OK. For the part about it being banned in 31 countries, I can see why. The violence, especially that committed toward animals is graphic, despite some killings that are obviously fake, which is obvious in many Italian horror movies. The movie is good, but can get borish a little bit. The dubbing of course is not great. Some of the dubs don't match the tone of the actors. The best role has to go to John Morgen. Any role he does grab attention. Having him as the villian brings life to the story. This movie is one of the best to come out of the Italian horror movie genre. If you want to catch other ones, try to see The Beyond, Cannibal Apocalypse, and Zombie.


<< 1 2 3 4 .. 8 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates