Reading an old issue of the superb British Horror magazine The Dark Side, I was surprised to learn that the 88 Films Blu-Ray/ DVD release of Man From Deep River (also reviewed), featured a long documentary as an extra about the most famous actress from the run of Italian cannibal films. Intrigued by the details of the doc, I decided to upgrade my Deep River, and got set to witness Me Me bite back.
View on the film:
Putting the life on screen behind her for decades as she became a police officer, Me Me Lai gives an excellent extended interview, where she details the differing directing styles of Umberto Lenzi (who loved to scream a lot) and Ruggero Deodato (who took a more calming, considerate manner to directing the cast. )
Following Lai's comments about her disgust at the animal killing scenes in the films, director Naomi Holwill does not shy away from taking a critical look at the genre, rather than taking the easy option of just offering fan service, as the wonderful mix of film festival programmers, movie makers and fans of the titles share their thoughts of the themes and ultra violence featured in the run of cannibal films.
Discussing her decision to leave the world of TV and cinema behind, Lai expresses her surprise at discovering how well remembered her cannibal run has become, leading to fantastic sequences of her taking part in Q&A's where she met Deodato for the first time in decades, and gets invited to be a jury member at a film festival in Spain,as The Queen of Italian cannibal cinema.