Italy/1980
Directed By: Ruggero Deodato
Written Gianfranco Clerici
Starring: Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen
Color/95 Minutes/Unrated
Region FREE
Release Date: July 1, 2014
The Film
There
are few films in the world with a reputation like CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.
Few films have been banned for their grotesque nature and brutality they
show on screen yet so heavily praised for being an expertly crafted
piece of cinema with a far deeper meaning than its shock cinema label
will let you believe. A first time viewing of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST will
definitely leave you with a memory of the film. From the extreme
violence, and gory effects to the completely real killing of animals on
screen. Your stomach will turn, you'll want to look away, and perhaps
you will. If you're watching the film for the first time with more than
violence and shock on your mind maybe you will begin to see the true
depth to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is
absolutely an exploitation picture. It goes all the way and back again.
Ruggero Deodato was even put on trial for murdering cast members and he
had to prove their existence to escape conviction. It was that
believable. It is no surprise that even to this day audiences are in
shock and awe over this film and may not be entirely sure exactly what
is real but beyond the savages, the gunning down of natives, the extreme
ways in which people are killed, the beheading and shooting of animals,
the people being impaled and general jungle horror within the film,
lies a single question at the end of the film - "I wonder who the real
cannibals are?".
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is brilliant in
every way. Ruggero Deodato was no stranger to the cannibal film at this
time having previously made Last Cannibal World (aka Jungle Holocaust)
in 1977 but this time he made something bigger than an exploitation
film. The late Riz Ortolani produced a beautiful and at times haunting
score for the film. The cast was pushed to their limits, literally in
tears at times during the production over things they had to do. It was
an all around effort by everyone involved to give 100% and make this
film and although Deodato has said in recent years that he wishes he
hadn't made the film I think the world of film, and perhaps in a small
way the world itself would be a bit worse off if that was the case. It
is true that despicable things were done in the film. Did animals need
to die on screen? No, but they did. And they were eaten. It doesn't make
it any less horrific but the impact it has on the viewer on a visceral
level can't be measured. And that impact leads to deeper thinking and
the importance the film brings.
The Audio & Video
Grindhouse Releasing gives CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST its first uncut Blu-ray ever with a
stunningly gorgeous anamorphic widescreen transfer. Detail levels are
incredibly strong from faces to textures of clothing and other items.
Colors are simply stunning, from the lush green jungles to the brown
skin of the natives and bright blue skies. Even the 16mm handheld camera
footage looks very good, without question the best it ever has.
Thankfully Grindhouse Releasing knows what they're doing and didn't
destroy the film by scrubbing it clean. This Blu-ray is still grainy but
it's a natural and attractive film grain, and not dirt and damage. The
DTS-HDMA 2.0 track is in English, the natural langauge of the film, and
sounds magnificent. The mix, of dialogue, score and surrounding sounds
of the jungle are all handled skillfully as to compliment each other
without ever becoming intrusive even at their most extreme. Levels are
stable and the crispness to this audio track is just lovely.
The Extras
I
could go on and on about the special features presented here in this 3
disc set, instead I'll simply break down each disc's content.
Blu-ray disc 1:
-Original uncut version of the film
-"Animal friendly" version of the film
-Audio commentary with director Ruggero Deodato and star Robert Kerman
-Audio commentary with stars Carl Yorke and Francesca Ciardi
-Large selection of trailers for Cannibal Holocaust
Blu-ray disc 2:
-11 interviews with key cast and crew members
-Large selection of extensive still galleries
-Selection of additional Grindhouse Releasing trailers
CD soundtrack
The Bottom Line
It
is official, there is no better way to watch CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST than
this release unless you have a pristine 35mm copy and place to project
it. I can't come up with a single flaw against this release, from the
brilliant A/V quality to loads of special features and the inclusion of
the entire soundtrack. This will go down as one of, if not the best
release of 2014 by any company anywhere in the world.
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is available
HERE
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