Eva Mendes has slammed the government for its response to the 2005 hurricane in New Orleans, insisting officials have "failed" the city.

The Big Easy was left devastated by Hurricane Katrina when the levees broke and flood water wiped out many residential areas.

Stars including Brad Pitt and Sandra Bullock threw themselves into helping residents rebuild the city - but Mendes is adamant the government has not done enough to aid locals.

The sexy star filmed new movie Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call New Orleans there, and was stunned to see some areas had barely changed since the disast er.

She tells Fox News, "It was exciting because we brought business there, but it was pretty devastating. I was in shock at some parts, I hadn't been there ever so I was still in shock that this happened in our country.

"I felt we were somewhere else in certain areas. Our government failed this; you can see they failed this. It was pretty intense."