The thing about D'Amato, is he can take the most straight-forward film and make it over-the-top and sleazy...and that's why he's one of my favorite directors. He always goes just a little "too far" and I commend him for that. In ANTHROPOPHAGOUS - ol' Joe is up to his old tricks - but this time, he saves his over-the-top elements til the end for maximum impact, and otherwise weaves a pretty atmospheric (yet admittedly slow-paced) horror film. Not the constant shock-fest of BUIO OMEGA, nor the all-out sleazy exploitation of EROTIC NIGHTS OF THE LIVING DEAD - ANTHROPOPHAGOUS is more of a serious horror film with some "shocking" scenes thrown in for good measure.<br /><br />This one starts with a group of vacationers who decide to head to a secluded island for some R&R. Turns out the island is nearly uninhabited, and when the vacationers get stranded there - they start to piece together what happened to the original inhabitants of the island. Turns out a cannibalistic weirdo still roams the island, just waiting to pick off anyone who crosses his path. And soon enough, the vacationers will get to meet him face-to-face...<br /><br />A lot of people down ANTHROPOPHAGOUS for it's slow pace - which I can't really argue - but overall, the film is handled competently. The story is drawn out slowly and the island sets and backdrops are simultaneously beautiful and yet still creepy and atmospheric at the same time. The "bad-guy" is also suitable creepy and bugged-out looking - and the gore scenes at the end make up for the slow pace as the last 20 minutes or so are pretty fast-paced. There are some decent throat-bitings with tons of blood - a decent intestines-eating, and of course, the notorious fetus-eating scene which is the reason that the un-cut version of this film is so sought after. That scene is pretty cool - but is very short and still appears to be cut down. Overall, not my favorite D'Amato film - I'll still stick with BUIO OMEGA or EMANNUELLE IN America - but ANTHROPOPHAGOUS is worth a look too, if you go into it knowing that you'll have to wait a while for the "pay-off"... 8/10