RAVENOUS (1999)
Manifest Destiny. It's been used to justify wars, genocide, and pretty much every disgusting colonialist ideal under the sun. It also happens to be one of the taglines for RAVENOUS (1999), a horror-western directed by Antonia Bird, and starring Guy Pearce and Robert Carlyle. This movie is an exploration of colonialist greed and the ease by which white men can justify horrific acts in the name of survival.
RAVENOUS takes place during the Mexican-American war and tells the story of Captain Jon Boyd, recently promoted to his rank after being the lone survivor in his unit and capturing a Mexican command post. Unfortunately for Jon, his survival was the result of cowardice, and as a result, his promotion comes with a new posting to the remote outpost Fort Spencer. It is here, surrounded by other outcasts and misfits, that Jon Boyd will be forced to come to terms with greed, colonialist barbarism, and other more direct threats to his being.
Unafraid to wear its themes proudly, the opening scene is a bloody affair, intercutting shots of Jon Boyd’s bloody act of cowardice with his own struggle to eat particularly bloody steak at the celebration dinner afterwards, all while a funhouse mirror version of “Hail Columbia” blares on in the background. This scene is a perfect microcosm of what awaits the viewer in the rest of the film, from bloody violence to colonialist metaphor.
RAVENOUS is a messy film, not because it tackles particularly new themes or challenging content in an awkward way, but because it's unafraid to frequently and jarringly mix up the tempo for the sake of the story.
A perfect example is a scene that occurs within the first half of the film. Jon Boyd (Guy Pearce) and his unit have been lead to a cave by F.W. Colqhoun, (Robert Carlyle) under the auspice that a cannibal is currently holding a number of people hostage.
Jon Boyd and Private Reich (Neal McDonough) descend into the cave to seek out any survivors or bring this cannibal to justice. Meanwhile the rest of his unit and a manic Colqhoun wait outside.
The soundtrack grows more and more intense here, building to what feels like an inevitable climax of violence.
The sequence that immediately follows this one, portraying a desperate chase through the woods as Jon Boyd and Private Reich attempt to catch the cannibal, is scored almost entirely by a jaunty banjo track.
Voices are singing, hands are slapping thighs, and a banjo and fiddle are just playing away.
Despite this the scene is played completely straight, any ensuing comedy the viewer enjoys being incidental and entirely the result of the banjo suite. It’s weird, but it works.
Damon Albarn, famed songwriter of the virtual band Gorillaz (but at this point the frontman and primary lyricist of Blur), along with Michael Nyman (Minimalist composer whose most mainstream score was likely 1997’s GATTACA) are the masterminds behind RAVENOUS’ soundtrack. The deep dark minimalist tracks in this film only serving to really highlight the bright and surreal ones. It never achieves the heights of Sergio Leone, but it doesn’t really have to. Once again, risks were taken here, and I think it paid off more than failed.
The production of this film was also heavily troubled, going through two other directors before finding Antonia Bird. Even after being hired, as FOX 2000 was insistent on not delaying the shooting any further, the director was only given ONE WEEK to prep for the production. All of this is to say that considering the challenges faced by cast and crew, this movie is an absolute triumph.
Speaking of triumphs, Guy Pearce and Robert Carlyle are an utter joy to watch, having a near-electric chemistry in the latter half of the film. If you've ever enjoyed the will-they-won't-they drama of an enemies to lovers story, there's something for you here. Whether in Guy Pearce's portrayal of a stoic man pushed to the brink of temptation, or in Robert Carlyle's sneering flirtation held at blade's tip, there's good stuff here. Secretly, my biggest hope is that if I can get enough people to watch this film, I'll get to see some fanfic or fanart or at least a Robert Carlyle Fancam. He deserves it, and so do all of us.
Finally, I think it's important to address a major misstep RAVENOUS makes. As this film takes place in North America and draws much of its horror from the taboo of cannibalism, it decides to make use of a creature from the folklore of the Anishinaabe peoples. This is a myth that does not belong to anyone outside of these peoples, and it’s not my place to tell you whether it’s misrepresented here. As an aside, I would love to read or watch any content from an Anishinaabe creator on the white media that has either used the name or folklore. If you’re a creator that’s done just that, or you know of a creator that has, please don’t hesitate to let me know on twitter so I can signal boost!
I can’t say enough about Martha (Sheila Tousey), as she even has one of my favorite arcs in this film, simply because she's presented as a sea of reason in the otherwise roiling mess of the raving white colonizers that employ her. At one point, literally telling our protagonist that he isn't special, and that what he sees as holding a near-mystical grip on him is simply greed. She survives this film, as if to really nail home the message that this "Manifest Destiny", this cannibalistic greed, is a colonizer sickness exclusively.
It may be flawed, but RAVENOUS is worth watching—maybe not during dinner if you're having any red meat. It's currently available for rental or purchase on all digital platforms. If you want a physical copy, you can pick up the Blu-ray from Shout Factory’s Scream Factory imprint. Bon Apetit.
