Guest Author - Andy Boxall

For good reason, it is one of the more taboo subjects discussed in movies and certainly not one to be chatting about over dinner (even if it is with a nice Chianti). Very few people pop into their local rental store looking for an example on a whim and those that do, rarely do so again. It always takes a strong stomach, an honest understanding of film and a healthy sense of humour to, and I use the word with caution, ‘enjoy’ a cannibal movie. Yes, eating your fellow man whether cooked or raw, in revenge or out of desperation is only ever talked about in hushed tones and could surely never be a part of mainstream cinema.

Of course, if you read that line again you will realise, if you haven’t already, that it is a total lie. One of cinema’s most respected actors, Sir Anthony Hopkins, portrayed the most famous cannibal of modern times, Dr Hannibal Lector, in 1991s Silence of the Lambs. A movie that not only gained Oscar’s, but attracted people who usually dislike horror cinema to exclaim how great the movie was! How is this possible when the main villain took such joy in munching people?

It’s because Silence was horror-lite. It was a thriller masquerading as something far more horrifying and everything scary about it was generated by your own mind, which granted is the scariest way, but really not the way for a true cannibal movie. So, sorry to disappoint anyone who has overheard a conversation in some bar about sick cannibal movies, I wouldn’t recommend butting in and saying how unfortunate it was that Red Dragon didn’t improve on Hannibal.

Neither would it be appropriate to talk about Alive nor how it was based on truth. That movie was rated 15 in the UK, believe me, it was not a cannibal movie. Cannibal! The Musical could creep in later, but only when you have proved your metal by talking about the hard stuff, the stuff of legend. Want to be a horror aficionado? Want to be astounded at the lengths some directors/studios will go to to make a quick buck? Want to try to understand why Germany was one of the biggest markets for these movies? Read on…

To grab the attention of these hypothetical horror geeks, a good introduction would be the infamous Hong Kong Category III movie Bunman: The Untold Story. Although not primarily a cannibal movie in the traditional sense, the level of gore and violence found in its 96 minute runtime has earned it many bans throughout the world. Unhinged restaurant ‘owner’ Wong serves up the former restaurateurs to everyone including the police on the case as the best meatballs the town has ever tasted. As you can tell, fun for all the family here.

Next, hit them with the 1999 Guy Pearce/Robert Carlyle movie Ravenous. Darkly amusing, a little gory and surprisingly watchable, this little seen cannibal movie takes myth, legend and fantasy and inserts cannibalism into the mix to create an enjoyable and unique film. By not launching into the obvious choices (which we are about to cover) you will show you true, ahem, appreciation for the subgenre.

It’s left to those naughty Italians again to really define the genre. By using the words ‘cannibal’ or ‘holocaust’ in the title of your movie, you always attracted the wrong type of attention (be it the censor, HM Customs or your mum), but when Ruggero Deodato put the two together, one of the most extreme and notorious films ever made was created. But lets not blow our bolt yet, there is still plenty to see and do at Cannibal World before doing the ‘big ride’!

Talk of films such as Cannibal Ferox, camp, gory, badly acted celluloid nonsense, and Cannibal Apocalypse, which is more of the same. Jungle Holocaust was director Ruggero Deodato’s pre-Holocaust attempt and is actually pretty good. Mountain of the Cannibal God and Emanuelle and the Last Cannibals are both softcore/hardgore mixes with Mountain being the better of the two, but still not what you would accept as being ‘good’. Eaten Alive, Man from Deep River and the Spanish entry Cannibal Man should also be slipped into the conversation.

Other releases that deserve a mention include Anthrophagos the Beast, Don’t Go Near the Park, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Hills Have Eyes. Left field choices include the obvious Manhunter et al, American Psycho and Sin City. But the daddy will always be Cannibal Holocaust. A film so uncompromising, violent, and terrifying it will stay with you for a very long time. More so than any other cannibal movie, it deserves an article all of its own. Watch out for it soon.

After listing all of this to your new friends at the bar (who should by now be ashen-faced and backing slowly away), you can officially call yourself a cannibal movie expert. But, seriously, is there anybody out there who wants that title?