| Ravenous | |
|---|---|
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Ravenous_ver1.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Antonia Bird |
| Written by | Ted Griffin |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Anthony B. Richmond |
| Edited by | Neil Farrell |
| Music by | |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12 million |
| Box office | $2 million |
Ravenous is a 1999 horror comedy Western cannibal film starring Guy Pearce, Robert Carlyle, Jeffrey Jones and David Arquette.[2] The film, which is set in 1840s California, was directed by Antonia Bird and filmed in Europe. It was not a box office success and failed to recoup much of its $12 million budget. However, despite initial reception being mixed when released, it has since garnered a reputation as a cult film.[3]
Ravenous had a troubled production history. Issues over budget and shooting schedules were still ongoing when filming was about to start in Slovakia. After the original director Milcho Manchevski was fired three weeks into production, he was replaced by Bird at the suggestion of actor Robert Carlyle. Michael Nyman and Damon Albarn composed the film's score, which generated a significant amount of interest for its quirky and inventive use of loops, instruments and musical structure.[4]
Screenwriter Ted Griffin wrote a script that combined elements from the Donner Party and that of Alfred Packer, the real-life "Colorado Cannibal" who survived by eating five companions after becoming snowbound in the San Juan Mountains in the 1870s. However, the film's plot also serves as an overt criticism of manifest destiny through its use of cannibalism. By turning the act into an insatiable hunger, the voracious need to eat human flesh is equated to the all-consuming pursuit of power and wealth that was inherent to the expansionist attitudes of those seeking to settle the American frontier in the 19th century.[5] The film would be the last theatrical release to feature John Spencer.
- ^ a b "Ravenous (1999)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on June 21, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ Ehrlich, David (October 27, 2015). "Why 'Ravenous' Is the Greatest Cannibal Western Ever Made". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on July 7, 2022.
- ^ Evangelista, Chris (October 11, 2019). "31 Days Of Streaming Horror: 'Ravenous' Is A Cannibal Cult Classic". /Film. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
- ^ Draper, Sam (May 6, 2020). "Ravenous – Damon Albarn & Michael Nyman". www.lovehorror.co.uk.
- ^ Abrams, Simon (June 18, 2014). "Forgotten Flick Ravenous Is the Best-Ever Manifest Destiny Cannibal Comedy". The Village Voice.