Mondo cane (1962)

A "shockumentary" consisting of a collection of mostly real archive footage displaying mankind at its most depraved and perverse, displaying bizarre rites, cruel behavior and bestial violence.

Directors:

Paolo Cavara, Gualtiero Jacopetti

Writers:

Paolo Cavara, Gualtiero Jacopetti

Stars:

Stefano Sibaldi, Rossano Brazzi, Yves Klein

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Stefano Sibaldi	...	Narrator (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rossano Brazzi	...	Himself
Yves Klein	...	Himself
Henning Skaarup	...	(Danish Narrator)

Storyline

Nominally a documentary, this film combines a number of unrelated sequences (both real and staged) -- including a South Pacific "cargo cult", the ritual slaughter of a bull, tribal dances and rituals, and a visit to an ornate pet cemetery -- all focused on the lurid, sensational, and eccentric.

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Plot Keywords:

amputee | disturbing | controversial | bull | slaughter | 

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Taglines:

The Picture Everyone is Talking About!

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Genres:

Documentary | Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

30 March 1962 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Mondo Cane No. 1

Filming Locations:

Bismarck Archipelago, Papua New Guinea

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cineriz

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min 91 min (cut) 97 min (re-release: 1970)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was initially rejected for UK cinema and only passed in 1963 after 14 minutes of cuts with heavy edits to the animal killings, scenes showing German drug addicts, and the killing of a man by a bull.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: All the scenes you are about to see are real and were shot as they were taking place. If sometimes they seem cruel, it is only because cruelty abounds on this planet. And anyway, the duty of a reporter is not to make the truth seem sweeter, but to show things as they really are.

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Cannibal Holocaust II (2017)

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Soundtracks

Ti guarderò nel cuore (More)
Music by Riz Ortolani & Nino Oliviero
Lyrics by Norman Newell

User Reviews

" Behold, the best of the worse. Isn't that what the world desires more of? "

This planet which many humans believe is theirs, has so many mysterious aspects that when a cinematic camera and light are turned on it, are interestingly illuminated like the elusive creatures of the night. A world traveler may go seeking the strange, the unusual, the bizarre and occasionally the forbidden and often find much more than he bargained for. That is what the film "Mondo Cane" is all about. It is a black collection of the many unusual parts of our strange world. The film travels around the globe seeking out the odd customs of various people and offers them up as interesting fare to the ambivalent traveler, the timidly interested and the curiously morbid. In each country visited, we find that what one nation finds disgusting, another finds tolerable. One nation offers up unusual human sexual practices, which another country often finds offensive, tasteless and guttural. Animals in one country are revered, honored and treated as royalty. Yet in a neighboring nation, these same beasts are prepared as special delicacies fit for consumption. Women, boys and pain seeking parishioners are accepted as sacrificial fodder. Viewers are treated to the world's most primitive customs and often as not we see ourselves at the very depth of depravity and learn it is not polite to stare, which we do anyway. A frightening movie, but one which reveals more about us than we care to know. Still, one cannot turn away without wanting to see 'MORE' which happens to be the Theme Song of this same picture. ****