Saw this film while it was making the college circuit in 1999 on 35mm. I was a working with the University of Iowa's Bijou Theater (a premier venue for independent and art house style theater) when this film came in. Cannibal! The Musical is an ingenious effort for Trey Parker and the rest of his cast and crew. Parker leads the way from Provo, UT to Breckenridge, CO which provides the perfect journey for his motley cast to find out who they truly are.
This film works on a number of different levels. First it is a send-up of the musical play and film, Oklahoma!, and with it, the entire Western genre. This, combined with a truly morbid plot line makes wonderful juxtaposition. Combine this with a self-assured independent film making style and some of the best and quirky one-liners and sight-gags and you have yourself a work of art.
The film opens with a most bloody and comical rendition of 'how it happened' as told by the prosecuting attorney in Mr. Packer's trial. If you can't make it through the opening, you won't enjoy this film. The sequence is self-consciously over-the-top, and it gets better on the second viewing, since you will remember each lovable character. What I appreciate most about this film though, is the way in which the actors are truly encouraged to 'be themselves.' Each character is both a caricature of Western genre archetype intertwined with their modern counterpart, an actor or actress who has dreams and ambitions which may or may not be too far removed from those of the part they are playing. This dichotomy charges each actor as they can shift between the cardboard cut-out and the flesh and blood person that they are. In the end, Cannibal! The Musical, is a story of survival with a good moral lessons which must be delivered with proper doses of; dooming prophets, Nihonjin Indians, cyclops ranchers, villainous trappers, bar fights, public hangings, raging rivers, impenetrable mountains and a most deadly cold winter.
Cannibal! The Musical should be seen by anyone interested in the film making business. Created by amateurs, it set the watermark mighty high for up and coming writers, directors, producers, and actors. So what are you waiting for, go order the film on Netflix, buy it at Walmart, or better yet, go get it from your local independent video store... (like Hut Video, or That's Rentertainment if you're in Iowa City).. and sit back and reclaim the little known history of these extraordinary Coloradinians and Americans.
This film works on a number of different levels. First it is a send-up of the musical play and film, Oklahoma!, and with it, the entire Western genre. This, combined with a truly morbid plot line makes wonderful juxtaposition. Combine this with a self-assured independent film making style and some of the best and quirky one-liners and sight-gags and you have yourself a work of art.
The film opens with a most bloody and comical rendition of 'how it happened' as told by the prosecuting attorney in Mr. Packer's trial. If you can't make it through the opening, you won't enjoy this film. The sequence is self-consciously over-the-top, and it gets better on the second viewing, since you will remember each lovable character. What I appreciate most about this film though, is the way in which the actors are truly encouraged to 'be themselves.' Each character is both a caricature of Western genre archetype intertwined with their modern counterpart, an actor or actress who has dreams and ambitions which may or may not be too far removed from those of the part they are playing. This dichotomy charges each actor as they can shift between the cardboard cut-out and the flesh and blood person that they are. In the end, Cannibal! The Musical, is a story of survival with a good moral lessons which must be delivered with proper doses of; dooming prophets, Nihonjin Indians, cyclops ranchers, villainous trappers, bar fights, public hangings, raging rivers, impenetrable mountains and a most deadly cold winter.
Cannibal! The Musical should be seen by anyone interested in the film making business. Created by amateurs, it set the watermark mighty high for up and coming writers, directors, producers, and actors. So what are you waiting for, go order the film on Netflix, buy it at Walmart, or better yet, go get it from your local independent video store... (like Hut Video, or That's Rentertainment if you're in Iowa City).. and sit back and reclaim the little known history of these extraordinary Coloradinians and Americans.