The commentary, also, is often unbelievably crass and patronising. As a group of people experience some form of mass-hysteria in a deconsecrated Italian church, our narrator ponders - "What are they shouting? Nothing that could possibly make any sense."

The film is much less evenly paced than Mondo Cane, and suffers as a result. "Shocking" sequences where women dance around in toilet-paper dresses whilst horny onlookers thrust bottled water upon them, go on for far longer than is necessary. Such sequences also recall the much-more prevalent racist attitudes of the first instalment. Western women are never shown completely topless, whilst "natives" are allowed to dander around exposing breasts, bums and most of what is lain in-between. The suggestion seems to be that since these indigenous people, be they from New Guinea or the Philippines, are little more than animals anyway, it's hardly worth getting in a fuss about their nudity. The notion is offensive in the extreme, and leaves an unpleasant taste in ones mouth regarding the smugness of the ideals herein.

But it's still worth watching, as a much more kitsch, camp and yet still disturbing on occasion bout of cod-anthropology and tongue-in-cheek globe-trotting. The most amazing footage, however, arrives barely fifteen minutes into the picture, as a group of Mexican police officers partake in some incredibly dangerous target practice. Volunteers line up, holding balloons under their arms which are popped by bullets, or gripping chalk between their teeth, the item blasted in half while they remain unscathed. One marksman even blows the flame off a candle being held at arms length by some ridiculously brave participant.

Mondo Cane 2 would benefit greatly from a bit of the old trim-and-tuck, but still manages to be wildly entertaining and curiously nauseating, often simultaneously, and offers at least three sequences that are disarmingly hilarious.

The Duke resides over at Mondo Irlando. Pop in, have a biscuit, and discuss Filmic Affairs.