The Mafu Cage

source: The Mafu Cage

THE MAFU CAGE is one of those magnificently strange movies that come out every so often. Cissy (Carol Kane) is a mentally disturbed woman who lives with her overwhelmed sister, Ellen (Lee Grant). Cissy is beyond challenging, and Ellen has been taking care of her since their father died. They moved stateside after many years in an unspecified region of Africa, where Cissy spent her entire life. Now, Cissy is unable to cope with this new, outside world. Therefor, the interior of their suburban home is a re-creation of Cissy's African memories, including a living room "jungle", continuous tribal dance music, and various primates. Unfortunately, Cissy is lost, and can't accept her new surroundings any more than she can face the death of her father. Add to this scenario that Ellen decides to start a relationship with a co-worker (James Olson), and Cissy's already fragile mind goes into full survival mode. Obviously, Ellen could / should have consulted a good therapist for Cissy long ago, but then, that would be an entirely different movie. So, Cissy degenerates into psychological oblivion, and deadly horror ensues. If you enjoy disturbingly bizarre movies, then a visit to the MAFU CAGE is highly recommended...

This movie was flat out weird. Carol Kane plays Cissy, a woman who dresses in African-type clothing and has literally turned the house into a jungle. Cissy lives alone with her older sister, Ellen. They only have each other and you can tell right from the back that Cissy has issues!!! She loves her sister dearly and longs to spend time with her. She sleeps with her sister at night as if she's a child and does things that maybe not many women do to their sisters. For instance, there's this one scene where Cissy is sleeping with her sister in a hammock and then Cissy begins to kiss and touch her sister while she's asleep and then you see the hammock turn over. Don't know what the heck that was supposed to mean. Then this other night, Cissy is telling her sister how she loves to be naked next to her and how she's the only person that's touched her breasts and all that stuff. Then Cissy is pouring hot oil over her sisters back and giving her a sexual back massage. WEIRD!!! Anyway, Cissy kills her pet monkey and threatens to commit suicide when she can't get another one. After cutting her wrist, her sister gives in and gets her another one. One day Ellen hears Cissy screaming and sees her beating the monkey to death with a chain. ISSUES!!!!!!!!!!!! Cissy then kills her sister's boyfriend, whom she hated. She then causes her sister to go crazy and eventually the sister dies. The quality of the DVD was very weak and dark. You can hardly see much of the movie but other than that....it was good!!! Once again, KUDOS to Kane!! She's excellent!!!! Every movie I've seen her in so far she blows me away. She's really good!!! I especially love it when she plays psycho characters like this one and the one from 'Office Killer'.

While perusing the 50cent rental section at the local video store, I came across "The Mafu Cage." Reading the flipside of the box led me to believe that this would simply be a run-of-the-mill 70s horror flick. However, it was hardly that; And very perversely bizarre. Cissy falls into the depths of insanity and general crackness while living with her older sister after her ape/monkey researching father dies... Riddled with tribal music, inferred incest and a living room converted to a jungle, I'd recommend "The Mafu Cage" to any who desire a high weirdness factor in their movies.

If you're going to make horror picture, you should make sure of the following: 1. It has an understandable plot. 2. It is scary. 3. It should filmed in enough light for you to know what's going on. This film follows none of the above criteria. In fact, the words "PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER" on the front of the DVD box must be the biggest lie in the English language. So what as it got to offer? Well, no attractive women, Carol Kane and whoever plays her weird sister in this are as ugly as sin. What they wear is quite nice, perhaps because they moved from Africa at the start of the film. Why do I mention this? Because the plot seems to revolve around the younger sister missing her old home to such an extent, she plays tribal music full blast all day long, and walks about in outfits that wouldn't look out of place on a shaman's wife. Eventually she hears voices in her head(?) and decides to kill and torture a few people in a cage they have built into their house. There is a rather grim ending. And that's it. I was seriously freaked out by this surreal movie, which I doubt even made sense to its director. What was she hoping to accomplice? If it was giving me a hernia, her efforts were an unqualified success. 0/10

Nobody going to say a word about Carol Kane's extraordinary performance? She was working with a series of animals, and having to ad-lib her character continuously. An amazing job by this superb and often overlooked actor. Regarding the film itself - boggle. It's been years since I saw it, but it blew me away at the time. Here's hoping some noble figure will step up and put it on DVD soon.

Maybe it didn't deserve a straight 10 rating, but certainly 9 . I didn't watch this movie as the ratings weren't very good and some of the feedback was downright abysmal. How wrong they are . And although this movie dates back to 1978 which makes it nearly 45 years old by now it still was captivating by today's standard. It certainly is not a horror movie , but a very well made psychological thriller. The performance by Carol Kane as the mad sister Cissy was absolutely convincing. And for once the ending was not open for interpretation by the viewer, but completely in line with the story. I just regret not have watched it before. Highly recommended.

"The Mafu Cage" follows two sisters (played by Lee Grant and Carol Kane) who reside in a dilapidating mansion in the Hollywood Hills, built by their renowned anthropologist father. The younger sister (Kane) is mentally imbalanced, spending her days in the company of various monkeys, while the elder (Grant) attempts to live a somewhat normal life. Naturally, conflicts begin to arise. While marketed as a horror film, "The Mafu Cage" is more of a psychological thriller with shades of horror--in truth, it is a character study, and a rife exploration of a strange, insular world crashing against "normal" society. The central plot here is a power struggle between two sisters who grew up in highly unusual circumstances, and who are unable to reconcile their circumstances with the everyday world--one of them, because she simply does not want to, and the other, because her sister is holding her back. The film plays out with all the trappings of a Greek tragedy, and even when it goes a more salacious route, it is remarkably well-acted. Lee Grant is fantastic as the elder sister stuck between two worlds, while Carol Kane is riveting as the disturbed younger sister who cannot function outside of her deceased anthropologist father's lair of artifacts and primates. The crumbling Los Angeles mansion in which most of the film unfolds has a stark California gothic look, obviously inspired by "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?". Overall, "The Mafu Cage" is a potent, unusual film. It excels as a psychological thriller, largely because its lead performers are completely keyed into the material. Though not particularly pleasant, "The Mafu Cage" is disturbing and thought-provoking. 8/10.

I recently acquired a Wizard Video VHS copy of The Mafu Cage in a large lot of tapes I received. I instantly knew it looked right up my alley and interesting, so I set it aside to view later. Two nights later I popped it in the VCR...Wow! I was shocked that I had never seen or even heard of this interesting, bizarre, yet original flick. It's hard for me to say anything bad about this movie except for the fact that it seems to be a "lost" or "set aside" piece of cinema that not many have seen. (not sure if it has been released on DVD or not) Everything from the rich colors, the acting, and the story line lead to a film that seems to depress the individual as a previous review stated, haha. I personally enjoy when a movie, music or any piece of art actually makes you "feel" emotions. This is one of those movies that should not be missed or taken lightly. Carol Kane is amazing in her role as Cissy.

This adaptation of a play by Eric Wesphal stars Lee Grant and Carol Kane. They're cast as sisters who live in an old mansion; Kane is clearly very disturbed and is also very childlike. She pitches fits when she doesn't get her way and also resorts to emotional blackmail. Grant has a very tough time playing nursemaid to her younger sibling, but had made a promise to their dying father that she always would take care of her. When Grants' co-worker (James Olson) expresses a romantic interest in her, the thought of a man coming between them drives Kane even further into insanity. Kane always has been a unique and remarkable performer; "eccentric" would be a kind way to put it. This independent, now somewhat obscure feature showcases her to great effect. In fact, she's all too convincing, in a role that was improvised to an extent, and which requires her to work extensively with an orangutan named Budar. Grant is no less impressive, as the kind of character that naturally earns some sympathy. It can't be easy looking after someone like Kanes' character. (Although it must be said that leaving Kane to her devices at a crucial point was a disaster waiting to happen. This viewer realizes that it's an essential part of the plot, but still doesn't exactly ring true.) A highly engaging Will Geer, as a character named Zom, and Olson provide fine support, but "The Mafu Cage" is first and foremost a vehicle for the two talented ladies at the centre. It's also decidedly unpleasant in its psychological approach (characters take turns being victimized in the title location), and it must be said that people who take exception to animals being mistreated on film (even if the scenes had to have been simulated somehow) will want to give this film a pass. Notable assets are the production design / set decoration (the main room of the abode has an African jungle theme), and the striking, atmospheric score composed by Roger Kellaway. This was an interesting venture for the director, Karen Arthur, who made only a few feature films over the course of her career. It even touches upon such taboo subjects as incest. Overall, it's something unusual for seekers of cinematic curiosities. Six out of 10.