I've been hearing about Cannibal Holocaust since I was a kid. It quite possibly has the most notorious reputation in all of cinema. When it was first released in it's native Italy back in 1980, the film was seized and the director and producer were arrested because it was believed that they actually killed these people for the film. Of course, after an investigation it was revealed that it was in fact not real.I have to be honest, I was a bit nervous before watching this. To sit down and watch what is so widely considered the most disturbing film ever made takes some balls, but of course I watched it. How could I pass up this opportunity?
To my surprise, there was a lot more to this film than just it's brutality. It actually has a message, and a powerful concept.
The story seems simple at first, but actually gives way to some complexity.
There is a group of four documentary filmmakers who are setting out to make a film about the native tribes of the Amazon. After all contact with them is lost, Professor Harold Monroe is tasked with finding them. He witnesses some of the horrors of the tribes along with us, but eventually befriends them. He finds the remains of the four people he was looking for, along with their camera equipment and film canisters. He brings the film back to the United States with the plans of using to make the film the crew could not finish.
This is where things get tricky. As he reviews the film with the film company that is producing it, they discover that it wasn't the tribe that was barbaric, it was the film crew. In order to get the footage they wanted, they burned and brutalized entire villages and then the tribe gets their revenge in equally brutal fashion. We then experience the battle between Prof. Monroe and the production company to release the footage. They of course want to make money, but Monroe knows the true evil that is captured on that film. We then sit in with the executives as they finally agree to watch the footage in it's unflinching and raw state. The final decision on what to do with the film I'll leave out, for those who can and will watch it.
This film works as a commentary on society, questioning who the real savages are and making money off of others' misery. It pushes the limits of cinema.
This is definitely a film for only those who know they can handle it. It's no joke. I am surprised and impressed by the actual weight of the story that has been overshadowed by it's shocking visuals.
Shock or not? Shock
Film: 3/5
Shock: 5/5
