Eli Roth has made a name for himself directing gore-drenched, over-the-top horror flicks like Cabin Fever and Hostel I and II. His newest, The Green Inferno, follows a similar plot line to his other movies: young, good-looking people go on a trip, encounter some very unfortunate circumstances, and then die in bloody and horrific ways.

Why mess with success?

Justine (Lorenza Izzo) is a college student intrigued by a group of hunger-striking students trying to raise awareness about the people of the rain forest. Alejandro (Ariel Levy), the leader of the group, challenges her to break out of her comfortable existence and travel with him and others to Peru to stop bulldozers from…er…bulldozing their village for the precious natural gas under the ground.

Their trip (spoiler alert!) does not go well, and they end up crashed and stranded right smack dab in the middle of cannibal country.  Ring the bloody dinner bell, kids.

Yummy

I liked this movie, didn’t love it. Maybe my expectations were too high after waiting for nearly two years for it to be released (it’s been stuck in studio limbo ever since receiving positive word-of-mouth back in 2013). Some have complained that The Green Inferno is nothing more than a rip-off of Cannibal Holocaust, and I see where one could easily get that idea. But Roth has been very open about his love of that notorious Ruggero Deodato film, and considering that CH’s original title was actually “The Green Inferno,” I like to think of this as more of an homage than a copycat.

I just wish I liked it more.

Stay sharp!

The first 40 minutes or so tested my patience something fierce. Awkward dialogue unconvincingly delivered (Alejandro’s line, “You must be a freshman. Only a freshman would speak with such insolence,” made me laugh out loud) bogged down the proceedings and produced more eye-rolling than even my 6-year-old niece can manage. Also, remind me never to see another movie with Sky Ferreira in it. I wanted to zap her with some defibrillator paddles. Twice. Anything to get some life into her.

Once the cannibals show up, Roth kicks it into high gear, and the body parts fly. The make-up effects are really good, very convincing and disturbing (full disclosure: one of the make-up artists is a friend). As the body count rises, and the circle of live friends dwindles, nerves are frayed and desperate measures are called for.

Welcome committee

Its obvious that Roth was having great fun with these later blood-drenched scenes, and if gore is your goal, you won’t be disappointed. If you’re looking for a terrifying intense horror movie from beginning to end, well…lower your expectations by about a third, and then come on in. Soup’s on!

Uncle Mike sez: check it out, just don’t get your hopes up too much.