This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Activists Go Native
Plot Overview
UC freshman (“I'm Jewish”) Justine (Lorenza Izzo) hails from a diplomatic family—her dad works for the UN—and hangs with blonde roommate Kaycee (Sky Ferreira). Noting a hunger strike pushing for janitor health insurance, Kaycee remarks, “Activism's so f___ing gay!” She doesn't know the half of it.
Justine drops in on a meeting at a Hungarian Pastry Shop where “creepy/charismatic” activist Alejandro (Ariel Levy) asks, “Have you ever had fantasies of saving a tribe?” In two weeks time a portion of the Peruvian Amazon rain forest will be obliterated for oil exploration, and one of its “ancient tribes will be gone forever.” The operation must be exposed (“You must shame them.”) Alejandro is leading an expedition there of about fifteen activists with their cameras and stream connection. Justine gets on board. Kaycee tells her, “Be careful; jungle's a dangerous place.” She doesn't know the half of it.
In the Peruvian jungle with their activist tricks, facing drawn weapons, they thwart the destruction of an area “protected by the Managua Treaty.” Then the Police Regional send them off in a bum's rush on a small plane that develops engine trouble, spins its occupants over easy, and drops them in on the villagers for lunch. It's out of the line of fire, and into the frying pan—to paraphrase a common expression. Fat lover boy Jonah (Aaron Burns) gets served first, the rest of them watching (“I can smell him”) and waiting their turns while “no-one's looking for us.” Except we get to watch it, helpless, on the big screen. Bon appétit.
Ideology
We did get to sit in on one of Justine's freshman classes and hear a lecture on “female circumcision,” i.e. “female genital mutilation (FGM).” This was complete with descriptions of the implements used and pictures of the bound, bleeding girls laid out for recovery. Said the female lecturer of this “global problem” encompassing parts of Asia, Africa & South America, “The villagers don't consider them women unless they go through this.” Well, the native village decide to make a woman of Justine and one other girl before they do what needs to be done to them. This takes oh, so gay activism to a-whole-nother level with the removal of their clitorides.
I believe a statement about FGM is what “Green Inferno” intends to convey, because cannibalism is rare internationally and nonexistent in Peru. It's just that the FGM operation is a quickie, no matter how graphic they make it, while the surrounding cannibalism can be drawn out, making the whole experience stick with you.
Several reasons suggest we focus on FGM. First, is Justine's declared Jewishness, which serves no other purpose in the movie. Erich Segal discusses in a novel: “one of the most fundamental and least discussed rules of Jewish marriage” (27).
It was a man's duty to make love to his wife on Friday night — a commandment based directly on Exodus 21:10. Moreover, this obligation could not be fulfilled in a perfunctory manner, for the law demands that he “pleasure” her. A woman may even sue her husband if he does not.
This, Deborah noted, partially explains the reason for giving husbands a hearty meal. And the smile on a Jewish woman's face when she prepares it.
There's also an instance in the village of one of the caged men masturbating to release tension. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. And Justine's little silver whistler pendant that her mother gave her, forged from her grandmother's silver, she passes on to a village girl (“This is yours.”) It may have symbolic significance.
The effect of this movie is to motivate one to activism against FGM. Back in the 1960s we had a slogan, “If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.” Female circumcision is strongly identified with Islam, as this passage from Owen West illustrates: (257)
“So I was saying, sir. It is a custom. That is all. Otherwise women get wild and cannot control. Devil-girls, yes?”“So you rob them of their pleasure buttons?” I'm debating Boom Boom on the merits of female circumcision.
“Is our way,” says Boom Boom sternly. “It is simple operation. No pain. You not understand.”
… ¶“You certainly see the reasoning. Cannot have the sex against Allah's wishes.”
From our ideological perspective we are trying to address Muslims about Western sensibilities, hoping they will accommodate a christianized society, and sometimes they can. The Qur'an (in places) allows respect for the “people of the Book”: (III. Medina.) “Of the people of the Book there is a nation upright, …. They believe in Allah, and in the last day, and bid what is reasonable, and forbid what is wrong, and vie in charity; these are among the righteous.” Sometimes Muslims will allow Christians (and Jews) to follow their own Book (the Bible) rather than have endless conflict with them: (XXIX. Mecca.) “And do not wrangle with the people of the Book, except for what is better.” With the King James Version (KJV) Bible saying, (Heb. 13:4) “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge,” we can argue that a woman should have all her parts to bring to marriage with her, without blemish, and still reserve Allah's judgment against “devil-girls,” yes.
In this movie their resident drug dealer hides his stash in a hollowed out copy of Herman Melville's, Moby Dick. We sometimes speak of literature by referring to its author, e.g. saying ‘I like Melville‘ to mean you liked a story about a white whale. This metaphor can be applied to Solomon's (Eccl. 4:13-14) “Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and foolish king, who will no more be admonished. For out of prison he cometh to reign; whereas also he that is born in his kingdom becometh poor.” The writings of the poor child are the diminished usages of early English words and expressions in the 1611 vintage KJV due to attrition over time, while the dominating king who will not be corrected is the writings of Bibles in contemporary English influenced by worldly speech in an unsavory way, just as one picks up bad (speech) habits in prison. In this movie the (better) “poor and a wise child” is the freshman Justine who lost all her possessions (save skimpy bra and panties) there in the jungle, while Alejandro in the pocket of the oil companies won't listen to anyone, and he manifests the worst of human nature there in his jungle cage.
The difference as applied to Bible translation of Heb. 13:4 that we need to convince the Muslims not to practice FGM is noted by a pastor Criswell in his study Bible:
13:4 The first clause has no verb in Greek. If “marriage is honorable in all” is read, the statement becomes a refutation of asceticism, which downgraded marriage. If the imperative is implied, “let marriage be,” the statement becomes a call to purity within marriage.
The King James Version refutes asceticism and can be used to oppose the Muslim practice of FGM. All other modern versions that I've seen—save the NKJV that just muddles it—make it instead “a call to purity within marriage” which the Muslims could use to promote FGM. If we're to come to them as a “people of the book,” we need to show that this verse is in the book we are the people of, not as people of the verses using whatever book suits us at the time. As my minimalist activism I voted against our new (otherwise good) preacher who uses these modern FGM versions in his sermons, although I'm diplomatic in listening to them, as was Justine diplomatic in reporting to the UN on the warm welcome she received by the tribe. However, in the sequel we seem to be set up for, it'll be a matter of, “we need to talk,” because the practices of that tribe just aren't compatible with 21st century civilization, as in church I find the modern English bible versions are a part of the FGM problem.
Production Values
“The Green Inferno” (2013) was directed by Eli Roth. It was written by Guillermo Amoedo, Nicolás López, and Eli Roth. It stars Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Aaron Burns, Sky Ferreira, Nicolás Martinez, Kirby Bliss Blanton, Magda Apanowicz, and Matias Lopez. Izzo's acting is sensational once the activists make the Amazon; her fear is palpable. The extras are real native villagers who'd never even seen a movie before this crew arrived, but they rose to the challenge.
MPAA rated it R for aberrant violence and torture, grisly disturbing images, brief graphic nudity, sexual content, language and some drug use. It was released on 25 September 2015 (USA), in Canada on 8 September 2013 at the Toronto International Film Festival. It's also known as: “Caníbales.”
Some Christian missionaries arrived at the village singing Jesus songs on their boats when, unaware there was a movie shoot in progress and seeing the skeletons and dead bodies props, they started singing the songs louder. Then they were told it was for the movie, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Filming location for the activists' staging area was Santiago, Chile.
The full orchestral of Manuel Riveiro gives the film an appropriately ominous sense of portent. The lurid makeup effects done by a team under legends Gregory Nicotero and Howard Berger sure do the trick. They use practical effects that could be shown in broad daylight and still look realistic. Cannibalism special effects are enough to turn one's stomach. “The Green Inferno” hardly uses any CGI. The cinematography of Antonio Quercia is stunning in its vivid clarity, it's what makes the film.
Review Conclusion w/ Christian Recommendation
This is not a feel-good movie. It leaves one feeling icky all over. Its greatest redeeming feature is that it forces an awareness of female genital mutilation that exists on a global scale. When I reviewed Nancy Rue – The Faithgirlz! Bible: New International Version whose helps were directed to girls of the age range when FGM is practiced on them, I thought surely she'd include some defense against it, but instead she seems to set them up even more. I'm thankful that this movie came along. That said, it's pretty macabre, not for queasy stomachs. But you know, when the nightmares come, just sing louder. Don't leave too early because there's a final scene that impinges on the end credits.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Edge of your seat action-packed. Suitability For Children: Definitely Not Suitable for Children of Any Age. Special effects: Amazing special effects. Video Occasion: Good for Groups. Suspense: Don't watch this movie alone. Overall product rating: Four stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture is taken from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Software, Print.
The Criswell Study Bible. Authorized King James Version. Nashville | Camden: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1979. Print.
Segal, Erich. Acts of Faith. New York: Bantam Books, 1993. Print.
West, Owen. Sharkman Six. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. Print.
bibles.n7nz.org