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15 out of 19 people found the following comment useful :-
humorous and beautiful, 2 May 2004
8/10
Author: accidentalmedia from Edinburgh

Simply stunning images. Well-shot, and expertly edited for maximum effect. The shots of the Japanese guys massaging cow's asses were particularly incredible. Though much of the shock was lost due to the effects of passing time and the condescending commentary, it is still interesting to see (the foie- gras sequence should be enlightening for anyone who still eats the stuff). Mondo Cane may have kicked off the shock-reality genre, but it reads as an interesting exploration of normality, raising questions about difference and anthropological methods. Well worth the two hours...

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10 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
The source of all those drive-in Mondo potboilers of the sixties is still quite a hoot today., 22 March 2004
Author: TheVid from Colorado Springs

As retro films go, Mondo Cane is still a refreshing take on schlock, documentary filmmaking, hilariously camp in it's motives and of more than passing interest in this age of reality TV. The setups and prurient approach that made these films popular at the time of their release is only re-reflected in the equally blatant, reality trash that has successfully been permeating TV since the turn of the new century. It's stunning just how the tastes of pop-culture audiences have changed in the last 50 years or so. A retrospective of the Mondo film genre is represented beautifully in a nicely-packaged DVD box set, which includes a terrifically interesting documentary on the two filmmakers, Jacopetti and Prosperi, who started the trend with this Italian potboiler back in 1962. MONDO CANE is not as dated as some would lead you to believe, particularly if you examine the motives behind it, and the method of it's humor and social commentary. Perhaps the most significant contribution MONDO CANE offers as a film chronicle, and undeniably the most artistic, is the Riz Ortolani/Nino Oliviero music score which includes one of the great melodies of the 20th Century, MORE. MONDO CANE is a "reality" movie sure to please even the most jaded multiplexer. Beautifully photographed and scored.

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8 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
misunderstood, 22 July 2003
Author: abxy6000 from Toronto, Ontario

Although i cannot say that this was an especially good movie, I can say that you should not see it as an exploitation of other cultures, but as a view of the world from an indifferent point of view. Even though the film might have been made as a way of shocking viewers and making a profit, you should take from it the fact that what seems shocking or unusual by us can be of nature to others, and things we do in our everyday lives can seem shocking to others. i give it a 6/10.

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9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
Fascinating., 3 January 2002
7/10
Author: gridoon

Uneven but fascinating documentary on bizarre customs around the world. It has a few dull stretches (the auto junkyard scene) and the narration sometimes gets a little too condescending. But there are also unforgettable scenes (the giant sea turtle that has lost any sense of orientation, great bullfighting footage) that make "Mondo Cane" essential viewing for anyone who is even mildly interested in cult films. (***)

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10 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
take this "documentary" with a grain of salt, 14 December 2004
Author: Sammy Eisenhower (imdb-3495) from Santa Cruz, California

please, as you watch this documentary, realize that although the narration is spoken in a straight, scientific tone, in actuality the narration is full of hyperbole, invention, and jokes. sometimes, the narration is close to the truth; sometimes, the narration is campy and silly. the tone does not change, however, and you are left on your own to decide what is real and what is not. it must be said that anthropologists and scientists were not closely consulted for this film. the fish found on tree branches and out of water have done that for 1000s of years. the atom bomb test did not suddenly cause that behavior.

one must even question whether or not the crew manipulated some of the scenes. for example, if a sea turtle is dying in the sun, how could it end up dead on its back?

please, watch this alleged documentary with a careful eye.

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9 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
seems quaint 40+ years later, 5 November 2003
Author: movieman_kev from United States

I recently picked up the "Mondo Cane collection" from Blue Underground. Seeing Mondo Cane for the first time, I was surprised to see how downright quaint it all seems. I'm sure it shocked people when it was first released, but, and maybe I'm jaded in saying this, it just felt like a slightly risque National Geographics episode. One sequence DID scare me though. Was it the decapitated bulls? NOPE. Was it the Chinese eating dog? new i know that happens. Right now you're thinking "What the heck can be so shocking??!!?" Well it was the segment of those old ladies exercising, all those blubbering wrinkly behinds... *shudders*

My Grade: B-

DVD Extras: 3 theatrical trailers (English, Italian & Usa); Radio spot; Poster and stills gallery; Location gallery; Lobby promo (5 minutes); & an essay on the Mondo phenomenon

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Bizarre mix of the amusing, disgusting and disturbing. Still powerful after 25 years!, 13 February 2007
Author: DVD_Connoisseur from England

Watching "Mondo Cane" some 25 years after it originally shocked cinema audiences, I still found myself experiencing a variety of emotions. Despite the dated presentation (in many ways, this actually enhances the weirdness of the whole experience), the film still packs a mild punch, even to this jaded viewer.

A combination of the amusing (would-be actors posing themselves for the camera and geriatric Hollywood residents working out on a variety of unusual equipment), the sad (turtles on a radioactive Bikini beach, having lost their ability to find water, head away from the sea and into the scorching sand and certain death) and the shocking (animal cruelty including bull fighting) results in a powerful cocktail.

The cynical, xenophobic narrator delivers a witty commentary while the proceedings unfold on the screen.

Superbly edited and scored, this is definitely a different viewing experience. A journey into bizarreville; 7 out of 10.

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7 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
Sensationalist, Dated, Bizarre and scatological Drive-in Movie, 2 July 2006
4/10
Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The first impression I have watching "Mondo Cane" for the first time in 2006 is of a sensationalist, dated, bizarre and scatological drive-in movie of the 60's. But I recall that when I was a kid, this movie was very commented in Brazil. Inclusive, our expression "mundo-cão" originated from the title of this movie. A great part of this film is a cheap exploitation of worldwide exotic costumes, most of them weird and shocking for Western civilizations, like a fake documentary with some funny observations spoken by the narrator as if they were true. But there is a few images that recalls National Geographic films, like the turtles that are misguided to the sea and die in hot sand. The Italian music score "Ti Guardero' nel Cuore" was a hit in the 60's in Brazil and it is still very beautiful. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Mundo-Cão" ("Dog World")

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
" Behold, the best of the worse. Isn't that what the world desires more of? ", 30 January 2009
9/10
Author: thinker1691 from USA

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. ****

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5 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
A group of voyeuristic documentarians follow the world's eccentric cultures, 2 January 2003
8/10
Author: Mike (rkoegel@earthlink.net) from Selbyside - St. Paul, MN USA

After viewing this I must say I was left mesmerized to a degree. You really don't know what is going on the other side of the globe. Some people claim that these events aren't real, and the images are just for a psuedo-documentary, but you be the judge. Me personally, I believe that those things are going on. Even though this film shows its age, it is still a very strong piece of work and will not be easily forgotten.

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