Welcome to the Jungle

It was almost ten years ago that a little indie film came up out of nowhere on a tidal wave of hype and succeeded more than anyone could have imagined. The Blair Witch Project was a fluke that hit at the right time and it pushed the right buttons in the public. Many loved it, a lot of people hated it, but no one could deny that its shrewd marketing campaign bordered on genius.

Savvy viewers pointed toward Cannibal Holocaust, a hotly controversial 1980 film from director Ruggero Deodato, as a source of possible inspiration by the makers of The Blair Witch Project. Even savvier viewers pointed to Karl Edward Wagner's magnificent short story, Sticks, as an even more direct influence, but that's another story.

I guess it was a natural idea for a screenwriter or producer to make a film that was combination of Blair Witch reality TV and the now in-vogue gore film. Most specifically the Italian Cannibal films, such as Cannibal Holocaust. What was surprising that some pretty heavy Hollywood hitters were involved. Gale Anne Hurd, former spouse of Jim Cameron and producer of many blockbuster movies, was a producer of Welcome to the Jungle and it was directed by Jonathan Hensleigh, who helmed The Punisher and was involved in big league screenplays like Die Hard With a Vengeance, The Saint, Jumanji and Armageddon. Welcome to the Jungle seems more like the kind of film Roger Corman might produce.

I was excited about the idea, having been a fan of Italian Cannibal films for a long time. The material seemed ready-made for a great exploitation picture.

There was a bit of hype about Welcome to the Jungle, and some fans were intrigued. But it disappeared without a trace for several months. Not a good sign, but I've seen the same happen with good movies, so I kept the faith.

Finally, Welcome to the Jungle was released on DVD by Dimension Extreme. I got a copy on the first day, anticipating an entertaining, if probably not a great filmic experience.

I should have saved my money. Welcome to the Jungle was one thing that neither Blair Witch, nor Cannibal Holocaust was: boring. It resembled a made for TV reality show and it was about as convincing as one. We are introduced to two milquetoast couples who venture into the jungle to locate a long-missing person. In Blair Witch style they initially have fun, but begin squabbling and fighting amongst themselves. But in The Blair Witch Project, the unrest of the three documentarians added to the sense of unease in the film. In Welcome to the Jungle, I was merely agitated and unconvinced in the genuine plight of the unlikable cast.

By the time any cannibals arrive, it is too little and much too late. Despite some attempts to recreate the ghastly horror of Cannibal Holocaust, no suspense or real terror is generated.

At best, Welcome to the Jungle is an interesting idea for an exploitation ripoff picture. And there's nothing wrong with that. The genre's history is filled with ripoffs and quite a few of them are efficient in what they set out to do. And that is to entertain viewers. Welcome to the Jungle fails on all counts and that failure is more unforgivable than most because there was obviously a decent budget and more-than-adequate resources for the movie. Much more so than the average independent exploitation picture.