3 reviews
Here's my reading of Dennis O'Rourkes excellent documentary.The film was made at a time 1987, released 1989, according to IMDb, when the Australian and western multinationals were making a presence into Papua New Guinea to exploit gold, copper, oil and mining interests among other things. It was around this time that the Bougainville rebellion started as a reaction to this exploitation of the people and resources and lasted 10 years and many were killed. The metaphorical statement O'Rourke is making is typified by eh American tourist at the end of the film stating she'll be back again next year with a truck to take away all the artifacts. She is carrying with her several wooden phallic objects a sure analogy for the white corporate raiders who have taken the manhood away from the locals
This cynical ethnographic documentary takes an anthropological tour of New Guinea with a group of European tourists. The relationship between the "civilized" Westerners, "savage" natives, and omniscient camera is very fascinating. Amusing moments of ignorance and lots of shots of some Italian chick's scrawny ass. "They're close enough," she says moments after encouraging a group of children to pose by her so she could have her photo taken.
In the microcosm of a relatively new tourist location like New Guinea the film makers nail their subject. Tourism twists the reality of both Tourist and the Host. What happens in every tourist destination on earth is revealed in its brutal infancy here. What is brilliant about the film is that it translates the Dialogue of both the German and other tourists and the Papua tribes. The desire of the tourists to have cannibalism restaged for them gets to the heart of the matter. This is a film everyone on a tourist board or in tourist locale MUST see. A great film about what we are doing >