"The Africa of the great explorers, the huge land of hunting and adventure adored by entire generations of children, has disappeared forever. To that age-old Africa, swept away and destroyed by the tremendous speed of progress, we have said farewell. The devastation, the slaughter, the massacres which we assisted belong to a new Africa – one which if it emerges from its ruins to be more modern, more rational, more functional, more conscious – will be unrecognizable.
On the other hand, the world is racing toward better times. The new America rose from the ashes of a few white man, all the redskins, and the bones of millions of buffalo. The new, carved up Africa will rise again upon the tombs of a few white men, millions of black men, and upon the immense graveyards that were once its game reserves. The endeavor is so modern and recent that there is no room to discuss it at the moral level. The purpose of this film is only to bid farewell to the old Africa that is dying and entrust to history the documentation of its agony"
On the other hand, the world is racing toward better times. The new America rose from the ashes of a few white man, all the redskins, and the bones of millions of buffalo. The new, carved up Africa will rise again upon the tombs of a few white men, millions of black men, and upon the immense graveyards that were once its game reserves. The endeavor is so modern and recent that there is no room to discuss it at the moral level. The purpose of this film is only to bid farewell to the old Africa that is dying and entrust to history the documentation of its agony"
— Opening Scroll (Italian version)
Africa Addio ("Farewell Africa"), also known as Africa: Blood and Guts, is a 1966 Italian mondo film written, produced , and directed by Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco E. Prosperi (of Mondo Cane fame).
The film is a sensationalized account of the end of colonialism in Africa and the war and bloodshed that subsequently ensued. As with most films in the subgenre, it purports to be a documentary, though the vast majority of the footage is staged. It is noteworthy in part for having the only combat footage taken of the Congo Mercenaries, and the only known visual evidence of the violent pogroms against Arabs and Indians in the aftermath of the Zanzibar Revolution.
This film provides examples of the following tropes:
- Atrocity Montage: Graphic footage of historical events include the massacres of Arabs and South Asians in aftermath of the Zanzibar Revolution, mass slaughter of endangered animals in game reserves, and the only combat footage of 5 Commando mercenaries deployed during the Congo Crisis.
- Bulungi: The film notably covers the initial stages of this trope, with the transition from colonial rule to independence being more often than not portrayed in an unflattering light.
- Darkest Africa: An especially horrifying modern-day example, depicting post-colonial Africa as a hellhole torn apart by civil war, pillage, and bloodletting.
- During the War: The film is notable for featuring actual footage from the Congo Crisis and the Portuguese Colonial War in Angola and Mozambique.
- End of an Age: The film also follows the twilight of European colonialism and the ensuing turmoil in 1960s Africa.
- Gory Deadly Overkill Title of Fatal Death: Africa: Blood and Guts, though only the US version had this title.note
- Hired Guns: The Congo mercenaries are shown as having their own reasons for fighting in the middle of Africa, be it opposition to communism, the thrill of combat, or simply trying to get away from something. All the same, there's money to be made.
- Mondo: Despite the film's claims of being a documentary, the authenticity of a lot of the footage is questionable. Among other things, the exact same two helicopters, a Bell 47 and a Hillier UH-12, are used throughout the film, including one scene where one of them is supposedly being flown by game wardens. Some of the footage is undeniably authentic, such as the scenes depicting the Congo mercenaries and the Arab massacres during the Zanzibar Revolution. But the idea of Boers leaving Kenya in cattle-drawn wagons or hippopotamuses being slaughtered en masse to provide cheap food seems pretty dubious.
- Re-Cut: The US version was heavily edited to focus exclusively on scenes of carnage, with the runtime reduced from two hours to 80 minutes and the narration rewritten to play up the sensational aspects. Jacopetti and Prosperi were not involved with the US edit and disowned it.
- Scenery Porn: In-between the scenes of death and destruction, there are some very nice shots of the African landscape.
- Soundtrack Dissonance: One of composer Riz Ortolani's trademarks. Sad, flowing melodies play over scenes depicting the aftermaths of brutal massacres and similarly violent events.
- Unwitting Pawn: The African militia fighting and dying in the Congo Crisis are portrayed as unmourned, hapless pawns of the wider Cold War standoff between the superpowers.
- Vestigial Empire: The filmmakers portray Portugal as such, describing their hold over Angola and Mozambique as the crumbling remains of a once vast, prestigious domain, wracked with insurrection and guerrilla warfare.
