Papaya - Die Liebesgöttin der Kannibalen

I finally obtained a copy of this very obscure D'Amato film. After successfully tolerating both "Erotic Nights of The Living Dead" and "Porno Holocaust," I found it necessary to further push the limits of my tolerance with this, another D'Amato porno/horror galivanting-in-paradise film. First off, I don't speak German, and since this film only exists in a German dubbed print I had to get what I could out of the body language, of which there was quite a lot, albeit of the sexual kind. I couldn't help but snicker at myself about what I have become. Here I am watching a more than likely 8th generation bootleg in a language I don't even speak. Yet I am intent on seeing it and have no inclination to stop it. Have I gone insane? Has the awesome power of Italian Horror Sleaze turned me into one of its own zombies? Though this film is terrible, it possesses a charm that I can't resist. It is the same charm that has afforded me the will to watch about %50 of D'Amato's output. The beautiful Caribbean scenery, the sexy women, the pig slaughter, the leg-crossing oral castration that opens the film, all culminate into one rediculous, schizophrenic movie. I guess that is what most of D'Amato's horror/porn films are...schizophrenic. Worth watching if you are a hardcore D'Amato fan, otherwise don't buy into those video bootleg companies who try to promote it like its some crazy, gory, sex filled cannibal romp Because its not. There is plenty of softcore sex, some gore but not much. There is only one scene of cannibalism (not counting the castration scene). This film can be sometimes found under the title "Papaya: Love Goddess Of The Cannibals." From what I could tell, this film had more to do with Voodoo then cannibalism. Nonetheless, I liked the film, I love D'Amato and I don't apologize for indulging in this kind of sleaze. Cheers Joe! May you rest in peace!

Papaya dei Caraibi simmers with a heavy tropical atmosphere and erotic undertones but never quite delivers on its potential, ultimately leaving the viewer adrift in a haze of slow-motion sensuality and half-formed ideas. Shot on location in the Caribbean, the film does benefit from a lush, sun-drenched visual palette that gives the impression of a fever dream caught between a travel brochure and a pulp novel. The cinematography leans into the exoticized terrain, favoring golden light, soft focus, and lingering close-ups that sometimes feel more voyeuristic than artistic. There are moments when the atmosphere clicks, briefly conjuring an almost hypnotic spell, but too often it's undercut by lazy editing and repetitive imagery that drains the energy from the screen.

The performances range from serviceable to wooden. Melissa Chimenti, who plays the enigmatic Papaya, certainly has the screen presence to anchor the film's erotic edge, and her portrayal does hint at deeper complexity. However, the script gives her little to work with beyond seductive stares and ritualistic gestures. The supporting cast appears more functional than inspired, drifting through their roles with a kind of disaffected detachment that mirrors the film's own lack of urgency. Dialogue scenes are flatly delivered and often poorly dubbed, stripping any emotional nuance from interactions that are already thin on substance.

What undermines Papaya dei Caraibi most is its confused tone. It flirts with horror, exploitation, and socio-political commentary, but never commits fully to any of them. The result is a muddled narrative wrapped in titillating imagery, where the sexual content is more prominent than the story itself. D'Amato, no stranger to mixing genre and eroticism, seems less interested in telling a coherent tale than in stringing together provocative scenes under a veil of island mysticism.

Joe D'Amato seems to be Italy's answer to Jess Franco. As most of you no doubt know, this means he made a ridiculous number of exploitation films and pornos. Like Franco too, his output usually has the feeling of a man with a little bit of talent making a film with great speed and little concern for the end result. In fairness, Franco did at the very least direct some interesting and stylish erotic horror films but in the case of D'Amato it's simply trash all the way.

Love Goddess of the Cannibals is a sexploitation movie in the guise of a cannibal flick. Presumably it was retitled to this moniker to cash in on the brief cannibal craze in Italian cinema circa 1978-81. I say that it must've been repositioned to exploit this craze after the event because the movie has extremely little flesh-eating action. Come to think of it, I'm not even sure if there was any at all. What it does have though is lots and lots of sex and nudity. There are several endless soft-core fumbles that are surprisingly dull, all things considered. The best part in the film I thought was the native ceremony where some naked people get down and dance to some hilariously inappropriate 70's Euro funk. Sadly, there aren't too any other highlights for anyone who is not a D'Amato disciple. The pacing is pretty terrible and not a whole lot really seems to happen although the Caribbean location is admittedly quite diverting and does give the film a certain exotic flavour. It stars Maurice Poli of Rabid Dogs fame. It's a bit of an artistic fall for Maurice working under the great Mario Bava, only to then be prancing around with his John Thomas flapping about in a Joe D'Amato flick four years later.

I saw this for the first time recently after reading a review of BA_Harrison in which he praised the end twist which kinda made me see this one otherwise i aint no fan of such movies. Honestly, apart from the good boobs, the only saving grace is the twist. This movie doesnt even come close to the cannibal genre. Its very misleading. On a Caribbean island, a nuclear power plant is to be erected against the will of the natives. The natives use a tropical beauty in seducing n killing off the engineers of the project. A journalist gets involved into the act of murder, cannibalism (minor castration), drugs, rituals n sex after meeting an engineer.

If you're looking for gore in this film, you'll probably be disappointed. Apart from two brief moments of cannibalism and the slaughtering of two dead pigs, there is nothing else worth mentioning. I believe that this time D'Amato's heart was more in the erotic aspect. And he either got lucky or he got smart with the casting here, because it is spot-on: the actress who plays Papaya has a face that looks a little like Pam Grier's and a body to die for (and some men do!), and the blonde female lead is even more gorgeous, and a fairly capable actress as well. The true climax of the film is a 3-minute lesbian scene between them that is very well-done - one for the anthology books, as these things go. To sum up, as a horror film this gets a ** but as an erotic film it gets a ***.