Cannibal! The Musical (1993)

The sole survivor of an ill-fated mining expedition tells how his taste for gold was replaced by that of human flesh.

Director:

Trey Parker

Writer:

Trey Parker (screenplay)

Stars:

Trey Parker, Dian Bachar, Stephen Blackpool

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dian Bachar	...	George Noon
Stephen Blackpool	...	Black Cat
Stan Brakhage	...	Noon's Father
Dan Brother	...	Guard #2
Duster	...	Liane
Brad Gordon	...	Mills
Ian Hardin	...	Shannon Bell
Dave Hardin	...	Drummer
Edward Henwood	...	O.D. Loutzenheiser / The Cyclops
Jon Hegel	...	Isreal Swan
Andrew Kemler	...	Preston Nutter
Steve Jackson	...	Sheriff of Lake City
Jessica James Kelly	...	Tiny Tim / Baby Packer
M.K.	...	'The Dropout' (credit only)
Martin Leeper	...	Sheriff of Saguache (as Marty Leeper)

Storyline

Alfred Packer was a mountain guide and sole survivor of a party of pioneers that got lost in the mountains in winter. Accused and convicted of murdering and eating his travelling companions, he was to be executed by hanging.The movie begins at his trial, where he pleads his innocence to an unsympathetic audience. Only reporter Polly Pry will listen to his story, which is then related to the viewers in the form of flashbacks. As Packer and his gold-prospecting clients make their way through the forests and mountains, they encounter bemused Japanese Indians, an unimpressed group of mountain men and the brutal Rocky Mountain winter, all of which inspire the travellers to break out into song and dance.

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Plot Keywords:

mountain | song | flashback | rocky mountains | reporter | 

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Taglines:

In the tradition of Friday the 13th Part 2... and Oklahoma comes the first intelligent movie about cannibalism!

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Musical | Thriller | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for comic gore/violence and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Troma

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

30 August 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cannibal! The Musical

Filming Locations:

Lake City, Colorado, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$125,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Avenging Conscience, Cannibal Films Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min 97 min (video)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Packer's horse is named Liane after Liane Adamo, Trey Parker's former fiancée. Parker discovered that Adamo was having an affair, so he gave her name to "the horse that would let anyone ride her."

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Goofs

During the argument about musical keys, Frenchy says "The relative minor is three half tones down from the major, not up!" The scripted line was supposed to be, "The relative minor is three half tones up from the major, not down." Thus establishing his further knowledge (or lack thereof) of music theory.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Title Card: The film you are about to see was originally released in 1954. Upstaged by the overwhelming popularity of "Oklahoma!", it's short lived theater run was canceled, and "Alfred Packer: The Musical" soon fell into obscurity. The original negative, re-discovered just last year, has been painstakingly restored using state-of-the-art color enhancing and computer reconstruction technology. The film's violent scenes have been edited out for your viewing pleasure.

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Crazy Credits

(At the end of the closing credits) Due to the graphic nature of this film, it should not have been watched by small children.

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Alternate Versions

The movie was altered, some would say drastically, between release to cable channels and its DVD release. The former, only really available on bootleg VHS, has a much different audio mix, with fewer sound effects/comments, and some sound effects altered. It also includes the "Don't Be Stupid" song, which is nowhere to be found on the Cannibal disc.

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Connections

Referenced in Take (2008)

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Soundtracks

That's All I'm Asking For
Music & Lyrics by Trey Parker
Produced by Rich Sanders
Performed by Trey Parker, Dian Bachar, Ian Hardin, Jason McHugh, John Hegel and Matt Stone
Arranged by Sean Hedgecock & Trey Parker
© 1993 by The Avenging Conscience, Inc.

User Reviews

Showcase for Trey Parker's talents

"Alferd Packer: The Musical" is an early showcase for Trey Parker's various talents: acting, writing, directing, composing and singing. The man is virtually doing it all by himself and with low to no budget. As a movie made by a film student "Alferd Packer: The Musical" (or "Cannibal: The Musical" as the movie is commonly known) is breathtaking and it's almost scary that if it hadn't been for the Christmas Card incident nobody would have recognized Parker and his movie.

From today's point of view, however, "Cannibal: The Musical" isn't among the funniest things Parker and Stone (who's in the movie, too, but wasn't involved as much as in later projects) have ever done. Much like "Orgazmo" and "BASEketball" the two comedy greats can't really convince in real life movies. The jokes are kinda slow and strewn in between and the whole thing just isn't as funny as "South Park" or "Team America".

Still, one must not forget when this movie was made and how. For a student movie this is a great, no, gigantic achievement. The songs are every bit as hilarious as latter day material by Parker and - I'll say it again - they showcase some serious talent for writing melodies. So, yes, "Cannibal: The Musical", this strange mixture of Comedy, Musical, Western and Horror (just a wee bit) can be recommended to every fan of Parker and Stone.