Episode 195: Cannibal Apocalypse (1980)

Cannibal Apocalypse… 1980 so right in my wheelhouse when it comes to the classics. John Saxon, a man with a stalwart wig that managed to endure movies with Bruce Lee and Freddy Kreuger. Came from nowhere really. I don’t know what prompted me to find it. But find it I did. I think it was referenced in another movie I saw recently, the write up for it anyway. And I got this on DVD. Why? To send to our pod sister across the pond, Steph at listeners of the dead.

So to it…

Cannibal Apocalyse  Apocalypse domani, lit. 'Apocalypse tomorrow', also known as Invasion of the Flesh Hunters and Cannibals in the Streets and was directed by an Italian director using an Anglocized alias for the US market. We have seen that a lot.

The plot A group of POWs get infected with a dangerous virus that turns them into cannibals. When the cannibal instinct becomes strong, the veterans create havoc on the streets of Atlanta.

It stars John Saxon (Enter the Dragon, Battle Beyond the Stars, Nancy's dad in the Nightmare on Elm Street movies) as a Vietnam veteran bitten by infected POWs who stars in a movie described as  both "interesting" and "silly" and that the film "contains enough blood and gore to make Eurocult fans happy, including some graphic flesh munching, a French-kissing scene that will scare the hell out of you, and a shotgun blast that has to be seen to be believed." 

I liked it. The PTSD element and the vetsploitation made it a lot deeper than the normal late 1970s early 80s zombies fare.

5/10