Incontro nell'ultimo paradiso

Umberto Lenzi, the pioneer of disturbingly gory cannibal films, directs. A strange change of pace for this director and the jungle genre. Be advised, this is a dumb, unfunny slapstick comedy-adventure with cardboard characters and comic book villains. There's even a comedic fat guy thug who constantly falls down or gets conked on the head. Hilarious. Probably better in the original Italian as the English dubbing is horrible.

Our heroes are a pair of knucklehead dudes from New York who seem to have wandered in from some frat-boy sex comedy (which were popular at the time). After pointlessly wasting a half-hour of screen time, they get stranded in the Amazon jungle -- which just happens to be full of African wildlife. They stumble across hostile natives, semi-comic-relief criminal goons hunting for rubies, and Luana, a beautiful blond jungle girl (Sabrina Siani from "White Cannibal Queen"). Luana cavorts with a chimp, swings on vines, talks to elephants, swims topless, and does a classic Tarzan yell. After getting an eyeful of Luana, one guy says: "Edgar Rice Burroughs got it all wrong." (That's the funniest line in the film.) The dopey dialog is loaded with wisecracks that reference other films ("you got it all over Bo what's-her-name"). She grew up alone after her parents perished following a helicopter crash-landing. Among the many implausible plot points is the repair of the helicopter that's been rusting away for 16 years. We're also supposed to believe these clueless dolts can somehow refine crude oil sludge into gasoline without any technology. Okay, whatever...

The only saving grace is the absolutely gorgeous Sabrina Siani, one of the most appealing and sexy jungle girls to come down the pike. She wears a skimpy leather top and a barely-there thong that hides none of her fabulous caboose. Siani has the kind of perfect posterior that anthropologists should study and document for future generations. Fortunately, we have this film. Everything else in this dreadful "Sheena" rehash is instantly forgettable.

The iconic Italian director Umberto Lenzi became a cult filmmaker in several genres as Giallo, Peplum & Sandals, Poliziotteschi and mainly Jungle Adventures as CANNIBAL FEROX, in this specific niche came out the sexploitation Incontro Nell' Ultimo Paradiso featuring the eye-candy Sabrina Sianni in sexy tiny outfits allied in a strong humor oriented.

The plot is quite simple two dumbest guys travel to Amazon jungle for a touring, soon they get stranded into a deep forest, bumping up angry natives and later both are caught by a moronic gang of rubies smuggles, at night they sneaking away and daylight they meeting a naïve jungle sexy girl, hereinafter the smart one figure out escaping from there by a jammed helicopter meanwhile the lovesick wondering with gorgeous girl team up a bunch of natives to struggles against the gang.

Shot at Dominican Republic on those everlasting palm trees quite opposite with Amazon rain forest, whoever wrote the screenplay underpinned the offering in two key elements, firstly in dizzying sexy beauty of Sianni and also in many stereotyped characters as the gang leader Dupré and their fat, stupid and even stutter sidekicks, aiming for became it a delightful and harmful Sunday matinee, let it see easily.

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First watch: 1992 / How many: 4 / Source: TV-Youtube / Rating: 5.

Who would have thought that just one year after making one of the most notorious gore-exploitation films ever, "Cannibal Ferox", Umberto Lenzi would return to the jungle for a lightweight slapstick comedy?!? Two annoyingly bickering but essentially good-hearted heroes, a troublemaking but smart monkey, some rather inept crooks, and a few cannibals who don't eat anybody, and actually help the heroes defeat the bad guys at the end, are the main ingredients of this one, and if they don't sound too appetizing, maybe I should also mention the presence of Sabrina Siani in a self-made jungle bikini. This woman is A VISION: I would rate both her face and her body a solid 10 out of 10. There is no gore and the violence is of the "hit over the head with a coconut" variety, but the 20-year-old Siani provides some nudity and makes you go "Wow!" with the natural beauty of her form. The role of a female Tarzan fits her quite well too - she can swing on vines and ride elephants. The film is never very funny, but if you make it until Siani appears (about 30 minutes in), you'll make it all the way to the end. (**)

This film seems to be Lenzi's way of poking fun at his own cannibal gore films. Two college students decide to take a vacation to the Amazon. While in a small village getting supplies, they provoke the anger of a local scoundrel, whose ruffians beat them up. After renting a boat and sailing down the river in search of some good scenery, the two kids become lost and are forced to jump in the water to avoid a cascade. Now totally lost, they enter a small village, where the natives eye them mysteriously. It is here that they meet a bizarre jungle female, who happens to be the last survivor of a helicopter crash that occurred years ago. She soon develops a bond with the two adventurers, and many funny things happen throughout the movie. When compared to Lenzi's other jungle films, this is a distinct let-down. However, when viewed on its own merits, it proves to be a highly enjoyable and entertaining film. The Italian-language version is really the one to get, because all other versions either play up the comedy element too much, or try to present this film as another cannibal epic. This also contains a few well-used pieces of Budy Maglione's music--which shows that maybe Lenzi really DID want to spoof his previous films. Anyway, Sabrina Siani is excellent as the jungle girl, and Sal Borgese plays a great criminal. Director Lenzi proves once again that he is no novice when it comes to creating a believable, entertaining genre film. Well done!

Directed by Umberto Lenzi, Daughter of the Jungle is a tongue in cheek parody of both Tarzan and cannibal movies. Sabrina Siani plays the roll of Luana (a female Tarzan-like character) who was lost in the jungle as a child when her parent's helicopter crashes. Rodolfo Bigotti (Ringo) and Renato Miracco (Butch) are two goofy tourists who manage to get lost in the jungle, chased by cannibals and 'rescued' by Luana.

OK, the movie doesn't deserve a 6 based on it's production values, acting, direction, or story; but I give it that score because it's just damn funny. I watched the English dubbed version and the voices alone are hilarious... the brutish guy sounds like Pee Wee Herman while the main bad guy's voice and accent change throughout the movie, another character even cracks a joke about it. The dialog is no less funny as Butch constantly harangues Ringo and blames him for everything. Sabrina Siani is not the best looking girl but she's better than average although she carries a little more junk in the trunk than I personally care for. I give her props, she plays her role well and acts with extreme confidence even when topless. That last might seem silly but many women in film assume distracting, self conscious postures while topless. It's not a movie for everyone but fans of tongue-in-cheek comedies and cannibal movies might find it entertaining.