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5 Tasty Cannibal Films to Inspire Your Summer BBQ!

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When you think of cannibal films, the first ones that come to mind are usually jungle set films that depict cannibalism primitively.  Films from the ‘70s and ‘80s like Cannibal Holocaust, Cannibal Ferox, and Emanuelle and the Last Cannibals, that created a subgenre of exploitation cannibal films. Yet, the exploration of cannibalism extends much further than the jungle, and while it’s more recently been used in coming of age stories like Raw and We Are What We Are, some of the most fun man-eating horror films inject humor or delectable edible delights into their tales. So while you’re firing up your grill this summer, here are five cannibal films that invoke that sense of summer fun or perhaps inspire your summer menu:


Parents

Parents

This Vestron horror comedy makes for a perfect summer viewing; it’s ‘50s suburban setting sees 10-year-old Michael struggling with the suspicion that his parents might be cannibals. His suspicions are spot on, of course, with dad Nick Laemle (Randy Quaid) bringing home the human bits and mom Lily Laemle (Mary Beth Hurt) cooking them up in ways that would make Martha Stewart proud. Tonally, it’s a strange movie, never quite knowing where to land in the horror and comedy spectrum, but it’s unique and weird enough to be worth the watch. Quaid and Hurt deliver delightfully creepy performances, and Lily’s dinner creations make you curious what long-pin meatloaf would taste like. That’s totally normal, right?


Motel Hell

Motel Hell

This fun horror comedy, in which a friendly farmer and his sister kidnap travelers, bury them alive up to their necks, and then harvest them for creating their famous smoked meat, elicited a positive review from Roger Ebert. It seems Farmer Vincent’s plucky charm and the tongue-in-cheek humor managed to woo the tough to please film critic, despite the “disgusting” cannibalism that would typically turn him off from the genre. Even the film’s tagline is tough to beat, “It takes all kinds of critters to make Farmer Vincent Fritters.” While we know what kind of critters it takes, it’s too much fun to watch Farmer Vincent in action to really care. Harry Dean Stanton was initially offered the role of Farmer Vincent, but I’m glad he turned it down; Rory Calhoun made the best type of scene-chewing villain worth cheering for.


Death Line/Raw Meat

Death Line Raw Meat

This 1972 British horror film was recut and released as Raw Meat in the U.S., and might seem like an odd fit for a summer themed list considering its cannibals dwell underground in the London Underground transit system, where much of the film takes place. Yet, despite its not very summer inspired setting, this film’s cannibals share a common theme among the rest on this list; they provoke a level of sympathy from their audience. The cannibals in Death Line descended from Victorian railway workers who were buried alive during construction and adapted to cannibalism and inbreeding to survive. It’s death of The Man’s cannibal mate that prompts him to go on a murderous spree in outrage and grief.  Though Death Line isn’t a comedy, it does mark a very rare turn for Donald Pleasence as the comic relief in the form of goofball Inspector Calhoun. Between the tragic take on the cannibals and Pleasence’s levity, this underseen gem should be on more cannibal themed lists than it has been thus far. Bonus: Donald Pleasence shares a scene with Christopher Lee, making this all the most interesting considering that Lee was John Carpenter’s first choice to place Sam Loomis in Halloween.


Lucky Stiff

Lucky Stiff

From writer Pat Proft, the man behind comedies Police Academy, Real Genius, and Scary Movie parts 3 through 5, this one is way more comedy than horror. Directed by Norman Bates himself, Anthony Perkins, the plot sets up like a cute rom com. You know, where a down on his luck guy meets a very attractive woman who is so smitten she instantly invites him to home for Christmas dinner. Except, her family is a bunch of backwoods cannibals descended from the Donner Party. So of course, it turns out that he’s what’s for dinner. It’s wacky and the humor doesn’t always stick its landing, but it’s a fun concept and notable for being only one of two features that Perkins ever directed. Those that want more gore in their cannibal comedies should steer clear though, as this one is light on the horror.


Delicatessen

Delicatessen

Ok, technically not horror, but this post-apocalyptic dark comedy is so pitch black and so surreal, that genre lovers will find much to appreciate here regardless. Written and directed by Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Alien: Resurrection), the plot revolves around an apartment building with a butcher’s shop on the first floor, where the landlord lures victims to slaughter by way of help wanted ads and then sells the meat to his tenants. Throw in an unemployed circus clown as the protagonist, and a feared vegetarian rebel group known as Troglodistes, and you have the makings of a very strange cannibal comedy. While most films on this list tend to entice with its long-pig offerings, Delicatessen is the sole stand out as one that makes a case for vegetarianism.


Bonus: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

Texas Chain Saw Massacre

It would be in poor taste (pun intended) to not include this formative classic, especially on a list that’s centered around family, summer heat, and barbecue. The film was shot in late July and August, smack in the middle of the oppressive Texas heat. With temperatures consistently hovering around 100 degrees daily, that summer heat is palpable on screen. While the cannibalistic family that spawned Leatherface is terrifying, there’s a tragic undercurrent to their existence.  Life and advancements in meat processing have left the family’s trade at the old slaughterhouse obsolete, forcing them to acquire new means of survival. The family patriarch proved he still knows how to barbecue, though. For fans willing to get a first-hand experience, you can book a cabin at the site of the gas station featured in the film, and enjoy some Texas BBQ while you’re there.

Horror journalist, RT Top Critic, and Critics Choice Association member. Co-Host of the Bloody Disgusting Podcast. Has appeared on PBS series' Monstrum, served on the SXSW Midnighter shorts jury, and moderated horror panels for WonderCon and SeriesFest.

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

LEPRECHAUN

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

LEPRECHAUN RETURNS sequel

Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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