"Cannibal Apocalypse" is not a horror movie. The most gruesome deaths occur during shoot-outs; these sequences are more characteristic of Crime and Action genres than of Horror, and while there are a few scenes of people nibbling on each other, it's usually limited to just that.Instead, this film uses, rather explicitly, a metaphor to address emotionally weighty ambiguities relating to loyalty, leadership, and social disenfranchisement. To be clear, this metaphor was wholly intentional by the cast and crew; in an interview on the DVD, the lead actor explains the metaphor more clearly and concisely than I will be able to in this review.The general plot is that several soldiers, while fighting in Vietnam, contract (and this is the central metaphor) an ambiguous infection that makes them hungry for human flesh. It sounds like a set up for a fairly straightforward zombie or cannibal movie, but the focus is really on the soldiers' inability to readjust to society, as well as their desperation to be accepted as human beings. They're the "good guys" rather than the horror villains, and we sympathize with them as they try to find dignity in a world where they are fundamentally unable to "fit in." The film's protagonist is the former commanding officer. The most engaging aspect of the film, for me, was this character's difficulty in balancing his loyalty and obligation to support and protect his former troops with his obligation to serve the broader needs of society. I watched this film after recently being replaced as the president of a local organization, and perhaps for this reason, I found the moral challenges faced by this character entirely compelling. It asks the question, which really resonates with me, of how to follow through on an old commitment to lead, support, and protect a group of people after you are no longer officially recognized as their leader and no longer have any official powers with which to support or protect them.Anyway, it's pretty cool. Even on a superficial level, it's reasonably enjoyable; it's got all of the quirks you'd expect from an old Italian B movie, including goofy music, unnecessary nudity, etc. Recommended.

A cannibal-movie that actually tries and succeeds to be different. This movie transcends the cannibal genre and becomes something else. You'll have to get past the silly & inept Vietnam opening-scene, but then this movie turns into an urban tale of virus-outbreak. A cannibal-virus, that is. There's some violence, there's some drama, there's some nudity, there's some very nice gore and there are four cannibal-fugitives on the run. Awesome mixture that works! Add to that a satisfying ending, and we've got a hit! A hit with John Saxon in it, no less. "Cannibal Apocalypse" indeed feels, at times, a bit like Romero's "Dawn of the Dead" (1978), but the one movie that kept coming to my mind was David Cronenberg's "Rabid" (1977). So if you're tired of all those "half naked cannibals eating human flesh and slaughtering animals in the jungle"-flicks, and if Umberto Lenzi's "Nightmare City" (1980) just made you laugh instead of anything else, then go watch Antonio Margheriti's "Cannibal Apocalypse" (aka "Invasion of the Flesh Hunters"). And make 100% sure you get a hold of the uncut version.

Cannibal Apocalypse (1980) ** (out of 4) Italian mixture of horror and action has John Saxon playing a Vietnam vet still suffering from memories of a mission, which sent him back to the jungles to rescue two of his men who had been turned into cannibals. Years later back in Atlanta one of the rescued men (John Morghen) bites down on a woman and soon the cannibal virus is running wild. If you're expecting non-stop gore then you're going to get some but this film isn't as wild or over the top as you might expect since it does have a social message about vets. Overall the film isn't too bad but it's certainly not as entertaining as some of the genre's better movies. One big plus is the performance of Saxon who's really, really strong here. Morghen, best known for his role in Cannibal Ferox, is also fun in the over the top way that only he can do. The rest of the cast members are rather lame and don't add too much to the film. The biggest problem with the film is that at 96-minutes it runs too long and at times gets very slow and boring. I'm not sure what the point was of going for a social message in this type of movie especially when it was sold as exploitation but it wasn't needed. The action scenes are all cheap looking but they do have that certain charm that only an Italian B movie can have.

Although Ruggero Deodato's CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST takes the title of ultimate cannibal movie, CANNIBAL APOCALYPSE is a pretty good addition and takes the movie in new directions. John Saxon is pretty good as well, as a Vietnam veteran who experiences life with cannibals and finds when he returns home that he can't resist a taste for flesh.Italian favourite John Morghem turns up as worthy support and although he comes off no worse in this than he did in HOUSE ON THE EDGE THE PARK or CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD, he provides sterling support to Saxon as their predicament gets worse and worse.Some memorable moments of horror punctuate a rather neat-stylish film that is elevated above other Italian Zombie flicks and give the film an air of sophistication rarely achieved.