Porno Holocaust (1981)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Warning: This review contains graphic descriptions of sex

 

 

 

AKA: Sex Killer: Mutant Overgrown Man-Child, Orgasmo Nero II - Insel der Zombies

 

 

Dir: Joe D'Amato

 

 

Starring: Mark Shannon, George Eastman, Dirce Funari, Annj Goren

 

 



The early 1980s was certainly a unique time for film; one we’re unlikely to experience anything of it’s like again. I mean, when else could a movie like Porno Holocaust possibly be made?

The second instalment in my Joe D’Amato season is a sleazy cocktail of gore-filled horror and hardcore pornography that only signor Massaccesi could dream up. It’s a film I simply find fascinating in a rather bizarre way. Probably because this is a movie very much of its time; something that one could not possibly comprehend existing in today’s world.

Italian porn star Mark Shannon heads up a team of scientists (George Eastman, Dirce Funari and Annj Goren) who take a trip to a remote Caribbean island to investigate suspected effects of radiation pollution. Once there however, they are stalked by a vicious mutated zombie who begins picking off members of their expedition one-by-one.

 



Of course, this synopsis of the movie’s plot doesn’t account for the many scenes of hardcore sex that occur throughout. It’s this unique cross-over of pornography and horror that’s the films major attraction for me.  Modern day porn is so formulaic; its producers wouldn’t dare propose an idea like this. This would all be academic if the horror elements didn’t deliver, but, though not perfect, it works. The gore set pieces and the monster’s make-up effects aren’t phoned in as you might expect. It seems there was a genuine effort made to make the horror elements convincing. 

 

The flip side to the porn/horror crossover is that this is probably not an ideal movie for porn lovers. The jump from the erotic to the grotesque would be quite off-putting if you were simply watching this movie for arousal. But then again that’s the great thing about Porno Holocaust: it can’t be pigeon holed. 

 

Another bone of contention with critics of this film – one that I’m inclined to agree with – is the length of its running time. Porno Holocaust clocks in at just short of two hours. That’s an awful lot of time to spend on a story that involves people fucking on an island and being bumped off by a zombie! Though I personally didn’t find the film boring, I did have to stop myself checking the clock at times.

 

Many of these Italian exploitation films can be for the most part forgettable, but they often contain a scene(s) that will stick in your mind after the film has finished. This might be a nice gory special effect, a really gross moment or just something downright bizarre. In Porno Holocaust such a scene arrives around the half-way point, and it involves the monster sticking it’s erect zombified penis into the mouth of a woman and killing her with it’s toxic semen! Wow.

Porno Holocaust will probably bore a lot of people with its bare-bones story, plodding pace and over-long running time but it’s interesting if you’re looking for something a bit more ‘out there’ from the usual sexploitation stuff.