Cannibal Holocaust is one of the most notorious and possibly ugliest films ever made. It's so extreme the filmmakers were brought to trial in Italy. And all this is great, we want to see films that push the limits of good taste and explore extreme territory, right?
However, I am finding the older I get the less I want to be offended. I recently watched Cannibal Holocaust 2 on Youtube (click here) and found that while it was much more lighthearted than the original I actually enjoyed it more.
Here are five reasons I feel Cannibal Holocaust is a better film than Part 1:
2. There are no violent rape scenes in Part 2.
In the original film a documentary film crew violently rape a native woman while laughing it up and recording the whole incident. Rape is a very terrible thing and I'm sure Part 1 director Ruggero Deodato was only trying to illustrate how truly awful it really is. Still, seeing this act portrayed on film could trigger a rape survivor, forcing them to relive to the whole trauma all over again. Part 2 does have a scene where lead actress Elvire Audray has here virginity forcibly taken with a corn cob (?!) or bamboo shoot or something but I feel this is less reprehensible than man on woman rape.
3. Less white guilt so I don't have to feel bad.
In Part 1 you're seeing South American natives eating human flesh but the real monsters are the white documentarians who rape, kill and start fires for fun and to make a better documentary. In Part 2, heroine Catherine Miles tries to help a crippled native by beating his leg with a club then tying the leg to a piece of wood. The leg heals and the native once again can be a man. There is however a scene in Part 2 where white men shoot machine guns at natives from a helicopter then make racist comments while beheading them. It is a small subplot though.
4. Part 2 is a love story.
The main theme of Part 2 is the love story between a native and Catherine Miles. He is the strongest of the tribe and also the best hunter and warrior. As such he could have his pick of any woman in the tribe. He feels true love for the fiesty and cantankerous white woman he kidnaps and spends most the film proving his love and doing whatever it takes to win her affection. She hates this man because she saw him decapitate the heads of her mother and father. After much difficulty they finally fall in love. And isn't love what life is all about?
5. It has a happy ending... sort of. (Spoilers)
Part one is a found footage film. All of the main actors are only seen in recovered film after they are all dead. So their friends and fellow scholars recover the film cans and find out what scumbags they were. The End. Catherine Miles is found guilty of murder and spends many years in a mental institution. She gets out though and gets married and lives in a big city and has a kid. She is okay although pretty distant. The narrator says the native dude killed himself but I am wondering how he would have known that because the tribe is completely isolated from the outside the world. I decided narrator just made that up.
To be fair Part 1 was better in ways so here is a second list:
However, I am finding the older I get the less I want to be offended. I recently watched Cannibal Holocaust 2 on Youtube (click here) and found that while it was much more lighthearted than the original I actually enjoyed it more.
Here are five reasons I feel Cannibal Holocaust is a better film than Part 1:
- No animals were killed by the filmmakers in the sequel.
2. There are no violent rape scenes in Part 2.
In the original film a documentary film crew violently rape a native woman while laughing it up and recording the whole incident. Rape is a very terrible thing and I'm sure Part 1 director Ruggero Deodato was only trying to illustrate how truly awful it really is. Still, seeing this act portrayed on film could trigger a rape survivor, forcing them to relive to the whole trauma all over again. Part 2 does have a scene where lead actress Elvire Audray has here virginity forcibly taken with a corn cob (?!) or bamboo shoot or something but I feel this is less reprehensible than man on woman rape.
3. Less white guilt so I don't have to feel bad.
In Part 1 you're seeing South American natives eating human flesh but the real monsters are the white documentarians who rape, kill and start fires for fun and to make a better documentary. In Part 2, heroine Catherine Miles tries to help a crippled native by beating his leg with a club then tying the leg to a piece of wood. The leg heals and the native once again can be a man. There is however a scene in Part 2 where white men shoot machine guns at natives from a helicopter then make racist comments while beheading them. It is a small subplot though.
4. Part 2 is a love story.
The main theme of Part 2 is the love story between a native and Catherine Miles. He is the strongest of the tribe and also the best hunter and warrior. As such he could have his pick of any woman in the tribe. He feels true love for the fiesty and cantankerous white woman he kidnaps and spends most the film proving his love and doing whatever it takes to win her affection. She hates this man because she saw him decapitate the heads of her mother and father. After much difficulty they finally fall in love. And isn't love what life is all about?
5. It has a happy ending... sort of. (Spoilers)
Part one is a found footage film. All of the main actors are only seen in recovered film after they are all dead. So their friends and fellow scholars recover the film cans and find out what scumbags they were. The End. Catherine Miles is found guilty of murder and spends many years in a mental institution. She gets out though and gets married and lives in a big city and has a kid. She is okay although pretty distant. The narrator says the native dude killed himself but I am wondering how he would have known that because the tribe is completely isolated from the outside the world. I decided narrator just made that up.
To be fair Part 1 was better in ways so here is a second list:
1. Part 1 had a way better soundtrack.
It so strange how arguably the most disturbing movie ever made could have the one of the most beautiful soundtracks I have ever heard. Riz Ortolani's Cannibal Holocaust theme is truly a masterpiece!
2. Part 1 made a lot of money.
Part 1 grossed more in Japan in it's theatrical run than E.T. Big bucks all over the world.
3. Part 1 was a social commentary.
I have heard that Part 1 was a commentary about the Italian Mondo films of the 60's and 70's. All great horror is a metaphor so I give props to the original in that regard.
4. Not a cannibal tribe in Part 2.
The tribe that stars in Part 2 is a head hunting tribe and not a cannibal tribe. Kind of makes the title pointless.
5. Part 2 is not even a real sequel.
Yes, Part 2 is a sequel in name only. I'm guessing the producers named it Cannibal Holocaust 2 to try and cash in on the notoriety or the original. Other movies have done the same thing as well. I still liked it better though.
Mormo has supported the punk rock and underground movie communities for over ten years with press, videos and merch. He suffers from psychic borderland syndrome and the only way he will feel better is if you join his mailing list at www.mormozine.com.
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