Alicia I love this movie so much

Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

sme_no_densetsu "Ravenous" is a horror movie set in California in the 1840's. After exhibiting cowardice in battle, an army lieutenant (Guy Pearce) is exiled to a remote outpost in the dead of winter. Soon after arriving, a mysterious stranger appears with a grisly tale of how he & his travelling companions were forced to resort to cannibalism after getting lost on the way to their destination. A rescue party is hastily assembled but it soon becomes apparent that the stranger is harbouring a dark secret.The story is fairly unique, making use of wendigo mythology which has its origins in Native American folklore. The narrative's a bit disjointed, though, and I don't think that it wrings all of the tension that it could out of the situation. The touches of black humour may harm more than help since they subdue the horror to a certain degree without really lending much of a satiric bite.The cast is pretty good, at least, especially for a horror movie. Guy Pearce may be a bit bland in the lead role but Robert Carlyle made up for that with a boldly villainous performance. The supporting cast includes some notable character actors like Jeffrey Jones, Neal McDonough & Jeremy Davies. David Arquette, despite being one of the top-billed stars (no doubt due to his involvement in the "Scream" franchise), didn't really add much to the movie.Director Antonia Bird had the unenviable task of taking over a few weeks into shooting after the original director was fired. The end result doesn't seem to reflect this turmoil, though I found the opening credits sequence to be jarringly out of place (which, to be fair, probably wasn't Bird's fault). I can't say that I was a fan of the score by Michael Nyman and (Blur's) Damon Albarn, either.In the end, "Ravenous" does a decent job with its premise even though the film doesn't quite live up to its full potential. It's worth watching but is unlikely to ever gain more than a cult following.

watty2010 It escapes me how anyone can possibly give this film higher than 1 out of 10. The characters are completely one dimensional, the pace of the film is all over the place, the acting is awful (especially considering the calibre of actors involved), the musical score is completely inappropriate and annoying and the plot is childlike. I don't know anything about the director of this monstrosity of a film but I wouldn't be surprised if I was told it was her first effort.Anytime anything happens or we think something might happen, the director blows it by making the scene so woefully laboured that any possibility of suspense evaporates and turns quickly to bored frustration. Throughout this viewing ordeal, I was wondering if I was watching a horror movie made for children by children.Some have described this as a black comedy. I would describe it as a train wreck.

David Arnold Ravenous is set during the American-Mexican War and follows the story of American officer Capt. John Boyd, who is transferred to a remote Fort after receiving a promotion. Not long after arriving at the Fort, a man by the name of Colqhuon arrives and tells them of the troubles that he and his group encountered, especially when his Colonel started to resort to desperate measures to stay alive.This obviously won't be a movie for everyone (then again, what movie is?) but if you enjoy watching dark, psychological thrillers then you really won't go far wrong with Ravenous.The gore in the movie - and the subject matter - is rather tame by today's standards (although may still make some people a bit squeamish), but that's not what this movie is about after all. It's basically a movie of survival and asks the question of how far would a person go to stay alive.Guy Pearce as Capt. John Boyd and Robert Carlyle as Colqhoun are undoubtedly the stars of the movie with Carlyle bringing a real menace and calculating nature to his character.The only real downside to the movie is the occasionally annoying music, which at times sounds like a cat being neutered without anesthetic. Thankfully it's not all the way through the movie so it's not enough to put you off viewing.Overall, this low-budget movie from 1999 is a pretty decent watch.

gavin6942 The promotion of Captain John Boyd (Guy Pearce) stations him at a fort where a rescued man (Robert Carlyle) tells a disturbing tale of cannibalism.One of the most interesting things about this film is that Milcho Manchevski allegedly sat in the director's chair for two weeks before being replaced by Antonia Bird. Manchevski gets no on-screen credit, leading one to wonder: were the things he shot replaced or merely uncredited? Regardless, this film instantly stunned those who saw it in 1999 and it remains a strong film today (2014). Not flawless, not the greatest film of all time, but one that probably still has not achieved its full recognition (and sadly so, given that Bird passed in 2013). While the performance by David Arquette is lacking (not surprisingly), Pearce and Carlyle give it their all, and Neal McDonough shows some of his best work.The F.W. Colqhoun character in some ways anticipates The Stranger from "30 Days of Night" (2007). This was likely not intentional, but their physical appearances and way of just appearing to let the audience know trouble is brewing is quite similar.The Shout! Factory release is certainly the definitive version thus far, with the added picture and sound of Blu-Ray. How much is new to this release is unclear -- there are over ten minutes of deleted scenes, an impressive three commentaries, and a few other goodies. The deleted scenes add a little to the background, and Bird's commentary on them make it clear why they were cut (primarily for pacing reasons).