Mondo Cannibale
Encyclopedia
Mondo Cannibale is a 1980 cannibal film
by prolific Spanish exploitation
director Jesús Franco
which starred a 17-year-old Sabrina Siani
. It is one of two cannibal films directed by Franco starring Al Cliver
, the other being Man Hunter (aka Devil Hunter, aka Sexo Canibal).
Mondo Cannibale is considered even by Franco himself to be the worst cannibal film ever made, due to its slow pacing, bad acting, terrible special effects and awful camera work. An uncut DVD was released by Blue Underground
. The DVD features an interview with Jesús Franco and the French theatrical trailer. Franco said in the interview that he only did the two cannibal films for the money, and admitted he had no idea why anyone would want to watch them. He said that Sabrina Siani was the worst actress he ever worked with in his life (next only to Romina Power).
The film is notable for the fact that it shares an amount of footage with 'Cannibal Terror' (1981). While many sources suggest that Franco's footage was 'borrored' for 'Cannibal Terror', a closer examination reveals that there are more connections than this between the two films. Both films share a number of locations, cast, and even dubbing actors. Some connections which suggest more than a mere borrowing of footage are:
Sabrina Siani is the eponymous White Cannibal Queen of 'Mondo Cannibale', and also appears (as a fully clothed adult) in a bar scene in 'Cannibal Terror'.
Several shots of the dancing cannibal tribe in their village are common to both films, and several shots appear only in one or the other.
One actor with a very distinctive face and large Mick Jagger type of mouth is seen in 'Cannibal Terror' in no less than three roles (two cannibals and one border guard) and is also quite visible as one of the cannibals devouring Al Cliver's wife in 'Mondo Cannibale'.
Of course, in addition are the obvious cast parallels of Olivier Mathot, Antonio Mayans, both of whom have starring roles in both films.
Cannibal film
Cannibal films are a sub genre of exploitation film made mostly by Italian filmmakers through the 1970s and 1980s. This sub genre is a collection of graphically gory movies that usually depict cannibalism by primitive, Stone-age natives deep inside the Asian or South American rain forests...
by prolific Spanish exploitation
Exploitation film
Exploitation film is a type of film that is promoted by "exploiting" often lurid subject matter. The term "exploitation" is common in film marketing, used for all types of films to mean promotion or advertising. These films then need something to exploit, such as a big star, special effects, sex,...
director Jesús Franco
Jesús Franco
Jesús "Jess" Franco is a Spanish film director, writer, cinematographer and actor. His career took off in 1961 with his cult classic The Awful Dr. Orloff, which received wide distribution in the United States and England...
which starred a 17-year-old Sabrina Siani
Sabrina Siani
Sabrina Siani is an Italian film actress. Under this name or pseudonyms such as Sabrina Seggiani, Sabrina Sellers and Sabrina Syan, she has starred in numerous films, mostly sexy & violent cannibal films and barbarian "sword-and-sandal" movies...
. It is one of two cannibal films directed by Franco starring Al Cliver
Al Cliver
Al Cliver is an Italian actor who is perhaps best known for starring in horror and exploitation films, especially ones by directors Lucio Fulci and Jesús Franco.-Career:...
, the other being Man Hunter (aka Devil Hunter, aka Sexo Canibal).
Mondo Cannibale is considered even by Franco himself to be the worst cannibal film ever made, due to its slow pacing, bad acting, terrible special effects and awful camera work. An uncut DVD was released by Blue Underground
Blue Underground
Blue Underground is an American company specializing in releasing authoritative editions of cult and exploitation movies on Blu-ray Disc and DVD....
. The DVD features an interview with Jesús Franco and the French theatrical trailer. Franco said in the interview that he only did the two cannibal films for the money, and admitted he had no idea why anyone would want to watch them. He said that Sabrina Siani was the worst actress he ever worked with in his life (next only to Romina Power).
The film is notable for the fact that it shares an amount of footage with 'Cannibal Terror' (1981). While many sources suggest that Franco's footage was 'borrored' for 'Cannibal Terror', a closer examination reveals that there are more connections than this between the two films. Both films share a number of locations, cast, and even dubbing actors. Some connections which suggest more than a mere borrowing of footage are:
Sabrina Siani is the eponymous White Cannibal Queen of 'Mondo Cannibale', and also appears (as a fully clothed adult) in a bar scene in 'Cannibal Terror'.
Several shots of the dancing cannibal tribe in their village are common to both films, and several shots appear only in one or the other.
One actor with a very distinctive face and large Mick Jagger type of mouth is seen in 'Cannibal Terror' in no less than three roles (two cannibals and one border guard) and is also quite visible as one of the cannibals devouring Al Cliver's wife in 'Mondo Cannibale'.
Of course, in addition are the obvious cast parallels of Olivier Mathot, Antonio Mayans, both of whom have starring roles in both films.