AFRICA ADDIO (1966)

This was a 1960's shockumentary from directors Jacopetti and Prosperi made after their big hit MONDO CANE. Fairly tame by comparison to more recent gross-out stuff like FACES OF DEATH, these early works have a much more artsy style and are actually filmed pretty beautifully for a genre that would morph into the gutter of depravity it became in the 1980's. We see real human executions and tons of animal slayings on display. Surprisingly the animal killings are the ones that linger in my mind most of all and seem the most senseless. Stay away if that kind of thing bothers you but for a view into the inhumanity of the human species towards nature and each other these documents do serve a purpose. There are a few different versions of this floating around. The AFRICA: BLOOD AND GUTS cut is much shorter and contains only the most violent shots, which comes off as pretty pointless and the original Italian language print is longer with some more animal violence and supposedly a more racist commentary.