Ruggero Deodato, along with Sergio Martino, are both anomalies in the Italian exploitation stable of directors. They stick to genre films and follow the rules as gospel: Gore, T&A and cheese are requirements that are not to be omitted from any of their movies. Where they differ from the likes of Umberto Lenzi or Bruno Mattei (R.I.P) is that they bring a level of intelligence that you would expect to find in Argento’s, Soavi’s of even Fulci’s best works. Anyone who has seen Deodato’s...

Umberto Lenzi could be the man responsible for both the creation and the destruction of the Italian cannibal cycle. If it wasn’t for his 1972 effort Deep River Savages (A.K.A Man from Deep River) it’s likely we wouldn’t have had the genre’s crown jewel, Ruggero Deodato’s Cannibal Holocaust. Lenzi would go on to make the infamous Cannibal Ferox in 1981, that takes all the extreme elements of Deodato’s classic, but leaves the intelligence of that film behind, resulting in a truly offensive...