Cannibal Carnage Returns: Exploring the Gore-Filled Depths and Claustrophobic Terror of ‘Anthropophagus II’ on DVD from Syndicado!
First of all, I have to say that I’m a super huge fan of Joe D’Amato’s original nasty, Anthropophagus. I recall seeing it as an early teen quite by accident. One of my dad’s friends lent him a copied tape with The Burning on. We enjoyed it, however the second movie on the VHS happened to be Anthropophagus and that thrilled us far more.
Personally, most of Joe’s films have a sort of hazy atmosphere. They also begin with a bit of fire, then start a casual slow burn until mass eruptions of horror, blood, and total trash blow your head off.
Anthropophagus II (Man-Eater) was reported by yours truly a while ago (see Antropophagus 2: A Return to Joe D’Amato’s World article here) then again upon it’s release date (see Black Lava Entertainment: A Fiery Eruption of Horror Films on the Horizon article here). I’ve waited with frantic anticipation to view what could be a perfect homage to the old school of nasty, or a bad imitation with a few good intentions.
It’s actually both…
Partner in Gore, Willow (incidentally she adores the first one too), and I settled down and were happily stunned by two things to begin with — the music is just brilliant. Heavy in chilling sounds that work well throughout due to the gloomy locations, and the effects are delicious. As we start up, we see glimpses of a terrified human being tortured, pieces ripped off, chunks sliced, etcetera. Anthropophagus II shows absolutely no mercy.
The story goes that a group of women — badly dubbed women — have planned to study the effects of being in a nuclear bunker for a weekend. No way out, zero way to contact the outside world, minimum supplies. These students are your typical gaggle of cannibal meat — feisty one, angry one, bitchy one, quiet one… the list goes on. Basically, there is no one you care for, but when is that the point? This is The Descent but with characters you are waiting to die in hideous painful ways.
Led by Nora, their tutor, they meet with a twitchy weird caretaker who isn’t very friendly. He explains how there’s two sections that run for miles, the open to public parts, and then the area they’re entering. One door in, which, as arranged, he locks as Nora says, “See you on Monday.”
All the while we’re seeing brief shots again of a so far unseen person at work mutilating men and women. As the caretaker had said, some people have stayed around in the past and are never seen again. The gang assumes that’s a tourist trap bit of yarn to be scary.
The bunker is a hulking brute. Totally essential to the film by adding claustrophobic sensations plus general mood. It’s amazing. “We’d love to explore that.” said Willow. We sometimes wander into abandoned buildings for adventures. Doesn’t matter if the edifice in question is dangerous, we’ve both figured we’ll likely die together in one some day or get terrible injuries. Anyhow, the bunker just looks amazing. It’s in Lazio, Italy, apparently, so might be worth a holiday.
Angela is a more aggressive type of person, whilst Betty, for instance, is an easily panicked girl. Sonia is more in-between, but her dubbed voice is like nails on a chalkboard. That’s three examples of the cast. However, they’re all adequate enough as their numbers start to deplete. It doesn’t take long in fact. After bedding down for the night, a couple wander off and find themselves lost amongst the labyrinth maze of passages and rooms. Quite an effective moment begins the gradual massacre, there are gasmask wearing dummies everywhere… good place for a cannibal to hide.
The introduction of the gore shows a big vest-wearing bloke feeding his child, so we gather the kid has now grown up. Hmm, he’s just a skinny fella with a deformed drug addiction face. In the first film, George Eastman was a genuine monster. I know in this age we have a lot of smaller killers in movies, like smaller wrestlers, but now and then it doesn’t hurt to have a gigantic throwback. Anthropophagus II really could have benefitted. Unlike the Maniac remake (see Maniac (2012) DVD Review from Metrodome Distribution here) in which the size worked well. I’m just not sure with this. It does make sense when you have the big twist finale reveal, but I wasn’t prepared.
Willow, meanwhile, was practically applauding the many graphic scenes of gore. The makeup and effects truly are remarkable. Nothing is held back. We have stabbing, decapitation, a skinned face, cannibal brain surgery, gouging, the list is endless. David Bracci who worked on Argento’s Mother of Tears as well as Terror Firmer and the 2015 version of Violent Shit, really builds and creates disgustingly detailed visions of crimson and suffering. The effects are probably centre stage in this fun movie.
And that’s what it’s about — shut your brain off horror thrills. Nothing more, nothing less. It certainly captures much of the essence lost from that bloody era of Italian cinema, where anything could happen, and it generally did!
Director, Dario Germani is without a doubt a maestro at using his locations. You can almost feel the creeping vines of claustrophobia and panic down the endless tunnels and corridors. Shadows play a huge part as they aren’t too dark as to lose the atmosphere, and not too light as to reveal too much (by the way, he has another instalment coming soon: Anthropophagus Legacy).
As the last of the women nervously wander in the darkness seeking a way out, or a way to fight this brutal cannibal, you kind of feel that the conclusion isn’t going to live up to expectations. And unfortunately, it doesn’t, but it could have been worse.
After waiting a long time for Anthropophagus II, I certainly wasn’t let down in any way, apart from the appearance of the flesh chewing bloke, but, as I stated, it sort of makes sense. A lot of work and love for the first has gone into this, for that alone Anthropophagus II gets nearly top marks from Willow and I.
The DVD from Syndicado is a basic affair with just a menu and such, but the quality of picture and sound is cool. Don’t let any snotty nosed wannabee reviewers tell you otherwise. This is definitely worth a watch. It delivers what you require for a night’s butcher shop style entertainment.
AKA: Man-Eater, Der Menschenfresser ist zurück
Directed by: Dario Germani
Written by: Lorenzo De Luca
Produced by: Giovanni Paolucci
Cinematography by: Dario Germani
Edited by: Marco Iacomelli
Music by: Simone Pastore
Special Effects by: David Bracci
Cast: Monica Carpanese, Alberto Buccolini, Giuditta Niccoli, Shaen Barletta, Jessica PIzzi, Chiara De Cristopharo
Year: 2022
Country: Italy
Language: English
Colour: Colour
Runtime: 1h 21min
Studio: Halley Pictures
Distributed by: Syndicado
DVD SPECS:
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Region: NTSC R0
Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL:
– Trailer