Mondo Cane 2

"Mondo Cane 2" is little more than a quick cash-in on the first film's popularity. The giveaway is the fact that, although the film runs shorter than the original, it somehow contains less interesting footage. Some powerful sequences do exist (the tortured kids, the baby flamingos that die because their waters have been contaminated by a nearby factory), but on the whole the film is much inferior to the original, and the narration is often cheeky, hokey and annoying. (**)

Mondo Cane 2, is a second film in the popular Mondo Cane documentary series. The film is Italian although it is dubbed into English. Like, Mondo Cane this film doesn't just focus on one subject for it's documentary but several rather. Such scenes include Mexican children eating candy in the shape of body parts, a Buddhist who sets himself on fire and a concert where man are slapped to the tune of the music being played. I enjoyed Mondo Cane 2, just like I enjoyed the original Mondo Cane. It is beautifully filmed and all of the scenes right until the very end are fascinating and intriguing. The narrator also gives us some neat facts and during the movie you will once again wonder how some of this footage was filmed. The directors behind Mondo Cane and Mondo Cane 2, would later go on to do more films in the series including Africa: Blood And Guts and Goodbye Uncle Tom. Mondo Cane 2 is another entertaining and fascinating film and I look forward to seeing other films in this very intriguing and entertaining series.

*A guaranteed laugh or more, some may feel like shedding a tear, but all-in-all I thought Mondo Cane 2 was great for a claimed, 'shockumentary'. Far better than the shockumentaries: Faces of Death(which were for the most part fake), and Traces of Death(which was more shocking, but composed of death, accidents, and etc caught on tape accompanied by crappy metal music). The Mondo Cane movies are an Italian version of a National Geographic documentary slapped with sarcasm and exploitation--some of which was amazing footage of the cold hard truth we should all be exposed to. The English dubbing made it easier to watch, yet in some areas they would have done better with subs. The score, like the first's, was appropriate and fun. Overall, it met my expectations after watching the first, and I plan to continue with the series.

Second in the popular shockumentary series is less violent and disturbing than its predecessor, but still has its moments, and packs a punch for squeamish viewers. More bizarre human practices include bug-eating, African slave trade, war, and a dying tribe of primitives in Africa. This last sequence is fairly sad, but most of the other footage is just exploitation for the sake of making another bizarre chronicle of oddities around the world. These films are somewhat educational, but their highly exploitative nature takes away from the credibility. Still, if you liked the first one...

Mondo Cane 2 is on the same league as its predecessor. A lot of gory, shocking scenes and also some lighter and comic ones just to even things out. The commenting remains smart but some scenes start to seem rehearsed or directed. I think it's not so spontaneous and unprompted any more. Nevertheless there are some memorable moments, especially the maimed and crippled kids by their exploiters. Definitely for tough stomachs. I don't think it should be in Mondo Cane anyway, because this is not a ritual or something similar, it's just a criminal action.