AFRICA, BLOOD AND GUTS Review On "Violent Maniac's Cage"

AFRICA, BLOOD AND GUTS

ALSO KNOWN AS: Africa Addio.

(1966, Italy)

DIRECTED BY: Gualtiero Jacopetti, Franco E. Prosperi.

From the producers of Mondo Cane comes a documentary which attempts to look at the effects of revolution and post colonialism in Africa. We first see the uneasy takeover of Kenya from British control in 1963. This is followed by scenes of Mau Mau terrorism, death along the Congo from a civil war, race riots, revolutions in newly formed countries like Zanzibar and genocidal slaughter of tribes by Rwandan natives. This is mixed in with images of dead animals on game parks and according to the narrators the film crew had barely escaped death themselves. One infamous scene has a group of natives moving in on a family of hippos as they spear the poor animals to death. They spare the baby only to inflict an even more cruel death as the animal is speared and cut to pieces as it dies a slow painful death. The narrators explain they were in the area to film native rituals yet the timing of their arrival made it more of a treat as they used the revolutions and political upheavals to make this film more exciting. Yet as with the earlier film the validity of such claims is questionable. There are numerous scenes which are too convenient and just don't seem accidental, the hippo scene in particular just screams of blatant exploitation which was probably staged intentionally for the camera. It is certain that people do die as their are scenes of political executions and death at the hands of natives. As with many of these films the message coming from the producers is that the departure of colonial white control has left these savages to prey on one another, yet again we find the comparison of our civilized society versus their barbaric ways. The implication that because they are black and primitive they are uncivilized would figure into so many films of this type well into this day and age. We do know that there is plenty of political struggle and death in Africa even to this day but never let the racists message of this film cloud your understanding. This is not a geniune documentary but merely an attempt at exploitation. The film was released in a number of cut versions, the American copy wore the label Africa Blood and Guts and had some of the more potent scenes deleted.

Review by: Losman

Email: losman@express-news.net

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