Slave of the Cannibal God (1978)

Apparently the uncut version of this is banned in Australia, so I was very interested to check it out. In our basic story, we have Susan (played by Ursula Andress, who was apparently in her forties when she made this) and her annoying brother Arthur, who wish to go on a secret expedition in the New Guinea jungle to find her husband who has been missing. They meet up with a friend of her husbands who believes where he might be, but it's believed he is on a cursed mountain, which we come to learn is called the Mountain of the Cannibal God. This movie is really beautifully shot. Many of the scenes look like something out of the national geographic channel. The scenery is stunning in parts. Really gorgeous. The acting is also really good, something that I'm not used to with Cannibal flicks. And when we finally meet our Cannibals, they are really scary looking dudes. The masks they wear was a nice touch. Really creepy. Though of course, you can still expect the animal cruelty, which is rampant throughout the whole film. I think this one has the most animal cruelty scenes. It gets pretty unbearable, so animal lovers beware.However, for the most part during the movie, I kept thinking to myself, "This is a gorgeous movie, I loving it, but I don't understand why it's so extreme to be banned. Sure the animal scenes are cruel, but it's a bit tame compared to the other flicks...." Well, I hadn't gotten to the ending yet. Trust me, my jaw hit the floor during the end. It actually gets pretty damn scary at the end. Like a more extreme version of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Those interested in extreme cinema can expect some really graphic scenes including a bestiality scene. Damn!Final thoughts? Yeah, this one was a really good one. Looked quite expensive to make as well. I found myself very much engrossed in the whole thing. For a Cannibal exploitation movie, it's very well made and highly captivating. Highly recommended!

"The Mountain of the Cannibal God" is an action adventure film intertwined with intrigue, shock and candid looks at nature and those closet to it. This is far from other films that share the tag as this goes for realism rather than fantasy or heroism, is a party pooper when it comes to fun, and is steady with violence and gore to appease a depraved fan of horror compared to someone looking for a safe and easy ride in the jungle.This is going for a documentary feel with an intimate look at how beautiful and cruel the wild can be. A group of brave westerners with some natives are assembling a trek to this mysterious, remote mountain in New Guinea. When the urbanized natives steer clear and give warning even if it means saving someone, take heed. Though the party members are tightening their boots and stuffing their packs with purpose no matter the peril. But maybe that's because they have their own hidden motives to drive them forward or that cannibals are just things for the imaginative daydreamer. Just maybe.There's credible tension between the characters as they battle the terrain and encounter deadly animals, along with experiencing inquisitive peaks into odd customs and superstitions along the way. A big sensationalist draw here is there are non-simulated animal vs animal and man vs animal attacks. Its stark and unnecessary realism will be argued from here to the moon, but it ultimately creates an environment where no one is safe and it could be your turn at any moment, so best to keep a blade handy and one eye open when you sleep.Time is taken with "Cannibal God" to pace the story and build up surprises. The atmospheric and sometimes downright uncomfortable music leaves emotion on the screen like another appendage of the actors. This is structured so the audience feels the tension as much as the performers do in the moment it's occurring. It gives the film a sense of believability over other Mondo cinema that falls short of maintaining that the events taking place could actually happen. Compared to "Alligator" and "Island of the Fish Men," this is by far the best in the Sergio Martino, as I like to call it, "westerners-in-the-wild" trilogy starring the late Claudio Cassinelli due not only to a bigger budget but most importantly a more refined focus. (Also submitted on http://fromblacktoredfilmreviews.blogspot.com/)

"Normal" movie-watchers wouldn't probably rate this type of sleazy Italian trash any higher than 4/10. But when it comes to Italian cannibal-movies, these films should be judged by different standards and different rules apply to the genre. I say MOUNTAIN OF THE CANNIBAL GOD delivers the goods. It's entertaining, adventurous and contains a healthy dosage of cannibalistic gore and nudity (provided by a gorgeous-looking Ursula Andress, amongst others). Of course, there's also the obligatory violent wildlife stock-footage and cruelty-to-animals scenes. I myself am not in favor of such scenes, but one can always close his eyes for a few seconds when they come on. Regardless, this is certainly one of the better cannibal-movies I've seen so far.

This video nasties was known as Prisoner of the Cannibal God in Britain, and banned until they cut 2 minutes and 6 seconds. They re-released it in 2001. The cuts were presumable some of the killing of animals to satisfy PETA, but they still managed to gut an iguana. or, maybe it was some of the unnatural things done to a pig once they reached the mountain.There is a lot of animal killing in the film, but it is the same stuff you would see on Wild Kingdom, but maybe for a little longer than you are used to.There is also Ursula Andress. Not like you remember her in Dr. No. No, this is the real deal. All her glory is revealed to us.Be prepared for some real gore and sex in the mountain kingdom, as well as some strange action.Claudio Cassinelli, last seen in Flavia the heretic turns out to be the hero in this movie of deceit and horror.