La montagna del dio cannibale (1978)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Sergio Martino

Writers:

Cesare Frugoni (screenplay)
Cesare Frugoni (story)

Release Date:

April 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

When the price of lust is death..!

Plot:

A girl and her brother fly to New Guinea to look for a lost expedition, led by her husband, which has vanished in the great jungle.

Plot Keywords:

Jungle | Iguana | Animal Cruelty | New Guinea | Cruelty

Cast

Ursula Andress	...	Susan Stevenson
Stacy Keach	...	Professor Edward Foster
Claudio Cassinelli	...	Manolo
Antonio Marsina	...	Arthur Weisser
Franco Fantasia	...	Father Moses
Lanfranco Spinola	...	Consul Burns
Carlo Longhi	...	Phil, the pilot
Luigina Rocchi	...	Sura
Akushula Selayah		(as Akushla Sellajaah)
Dudley Wanaguru
T.M. Munna
M. Suki
Giovanni Masini
Franco Cuccu		(as Franco Cucco)
Franco Coduti		(as Gianfranco Coduti)

Also Known As:

Mountain of the Cannibal God (USA) (DVD box title)
Mountain of the Cannibals (Philippines: English title)
Primitive Desires (UK)
Prisoner of the Cannibal God (UK)
Slave of the Cannibal God (USA) (censored version)
The Mountain of the Cannibal God (International: English title)

Runtime:

99 min | Sweden:92 min (heavily cut) | USA:103 min (extended version) | USA:86 min (R-rated version) | UK:96 min (cut)

Country:

Italy

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Sweden:15 (heavily cut) | UK:18 (re-rating: 2001) (cut) | USA:Unrated (uncut) | UK:X (original rating: 1978) (cut) | Italy:VM18 (original rating) (1978) | Italy:VM14 (re-rating) (1993) | Finland:K-18 (cut) (1987) | Australia:(Banned) | Australia:R (cut) | West Germany:18 (cut) | New Zealand:R18 | Ireland:18 (cut UK version) | UK:(Banned) (1984-2001) | USA:R (cut) | West Germany:(Banned) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Central Province, Sri Lanka

Company:

Dania Film

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the snake eats the monkey, it is supposed to be natural footage of one animal eating another. There are many leaves around the shot, and one of them is very clearly added during editing to hide a device to launch the monkey into the snake's mouth. (A frame by frame analysis of this is on the unrated Blue Underground DVD.)

Movie Connections:

Edited into Mangiati vivi! (1980)

National Geographic Channel meets Italian Sleaze

Sergio Martino's 'Mountain etc' is somewhat an outcast in the notorious Italian field of cannibalism… This film has a bit more style, depth and – compared to such films as 'Cannibal Holocaust' or 'Cannibal Ferox' – you don't necessarily feel the need to take a shower after seeing it. It's actually better to compare this film with old-fashioned adventure-movies, actually…but with cannibals and a healthy dose of authentic Italian sleaze. Ursula Andress (still the finest, most ravishing Bond girl to date) stars as a strong woman who goes on an expedition, deep down the Guinean jungle, to search her missing husband. Her brother and another respected anthropologist (Stacy Keach) accompany her to 'Ra Ra Mu' … Roughly translated: the mountain of the Cannibal God, where a savage tribe still feasts on human flesh.

The first hour of the film is slow, atmospheric and surprisingly educational! Several sequences, portraying animal's hunting rituals, seem to come right out of a National Geographic broadcast and you're actually waiting for the voice-over to inform you more. The original, uncut release of Mountain of the Cannibal God contains a good share of violence and nudity, but it never becomes repulsive or nauseating. To be entirely honest: the 'horrible' cannibal tribe actually is rather lame. So, the fact they're only appear in the movie after the first hour is a good thing! Until then, you've got compelling adventure and Andress's ravishing body to keep you entertained. Highly recommended viewing!