Search - Mondo Balordo on DVD

Movie Release: 1968 DVD Release: 08/31/2004 Format: DVD - Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 26 mins Studio: Alpha Video Members Wishing: 0 Genres: Culture & Society, Shockumentary, Gender Issues

The excesses and eccentricities of the 20th century once again go under the cinematic microscope in this shockumentary inspired by the international hit Mondo Cane. Mondo Balordo documents a wide variety of strange and unsavory behavior, ranging from teenage dueling clubs in Berlin where facial scars are a badge of honor to Japanese photographers who stage bondage scenarios with nubile young women to satisfy the demands of certain specialized magazines. Also included for your edification are women who bleach their hair using camel's urine, nightclubs catering to cross-dressers and lesbians, midget rock & roll singers, a dancer who is convinced he is the reincarnation of Rudolph Valentino, and Peruvian field hands who have learned to use the cocoa leaf to get them through the workday. Boris Karloff provides narration for the American-release version. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Boris Karloff narrates this English-language version of an entertaining but run-of-the-mill '60s shockumentary, which at least gets a decent presentation on DVD. Mondo Balordo has been transferred to disc in the full-frame aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and the image looks strong and clear, with the elements in good (if not superb) condition. The audio has been mastered in Dolby Digital Stereo (though the soundtrack is stubbornly monophonic), and there are no multiple language options (though one song performed in German includes Italian subtitles, which doubtless is useful to someone). As a bonus, a short version of Sinister Menace, a drug-scare short cobbled together by Dwain Esper on the scourge of drug use in the Middle East, is included. While hardly perfect, this is a good buy for trash film enthusiasts, especially at its budget-line price. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide