Cannibal Fog

Jonas Wolcher has taken yet another step forward in his development as a film maker. Cannibal Fog is a really interesting little gem.

I know that I will get beaten if I tell what inspiration I think lies behind this film. First of all I want to mention Marian Doras wonderful film Cannibal. "Du bist mein fleisch". Cannibal Fog is far from a copy of this film but you have a bit of the feeling hanging over you in combination with... Now I'll get beaten... Sergio Leones Once Upon a Time in the West. I know. It's two genres as far from each other as you can get, but the feeling, the tempo. The unavoidable journey through Linus fall guided by Malte. The film has different layers in form of the odd relation between Linus and Malte but also the controversial phenomenon of cannibalism in our modern society.

I must say that Jonas have been walking on a thin line here but managed to stay on it and not fall. I can recommend this film but don't see it as only yet another action. Try to follow the dark satire and the dark humor.

Well... Jonas Wolcher made another movie. His first outside the "Zombiejäger-verse". And how is it? It's different alright. Jonas Wolcer has returned to the style of his shortfilm "Zombienoid". The "jittercam" and "Micheal Bay-on-PCP-editing" is absent for the most part. The film is more slow paced, like "Zombienoid". There is the occasional random nudity and fornication (where does he get the people for those moments?), sloppy editing, regular Vargman Bjärsbo, bad use of music, b-movie effects, a deep-voiced dark magician with a skull-face (here a rip-off of Papa Emeritus II, not a fan but still) and the usual synth score.

This film is much more experimental than Wolcher's other works and follows a porn- and sex-addicted (through sex addiction is not real thing per see) catholic named Micheal who gets a new addiction: the addiction to human meat. Micheal hooks up with a woman named Lotta in a porn-esque scenario but can't stand his rising hunger. Micheal was having pasta in a cheap joint when a assassin shot a man and his blood splatted onto the pasta (Micheal does not notice a murder happening right beside him). It ends him Micheal starting to eat folks.

What to say about the script and acting? The actors are really, really stiff. Linus Karlgren as Micheal is dull dishwear. Ida Karolin Johansson who plays Lotta is only there to look sexy and be a body for Micheal to penetrate. Malte Aronsson plays Albin and is not much better. Dull and unconvincing. There are no good actors in this film to put it simply. Lars Lundgren in a small cameo is OK. To say he is the best actor in the film does not really hold up. The script is just as bad. The cinematography does not hold up for 5 cents. The film drags and drag. The pacing is... No there is no pacing. The film is 30 minutes to long and there are a ton of useless scenes or scenes that could have been cut down. Wolcher really needs to study how to build a scene, because he has no idea how to do it.

And there is apparently a real cannibal at the end of the film. Classy.

Now you might be inclined to wonder why I am knowledgeable enough to compare Wolcher's different movies. Am I an acquaintance to Wolcher. The answer is no. The closest thing I've come to any contact is some replies on forums. I am loosely acquainted with a friend(?) of him and said friend(?) did not have many nice things to say about him. But I digress. What I am is one of the few experts on Swedish horror (I can only think of two other people). There is a lot of s**t when it comes to Swedish horror but there is a lot more good stuff than most people give it credit for. I do have education as a filmschoolar and worked as a critic and I've made and am still making movies and I've made it my dubious area of expertise to map this part of Swedish film history. Why? Because there are gems that need to be put more up front and even if there is mostly mediocre and really bad films in this particular category, they at least tried. Unlike most of the people that complains. Wolcher, you are the worst director in Swedish history, but don't stop making films!

I just watched this film and it was a awesome and interesting film. The Story about modern day cannibalism and how it would work in a urban Environment was really interesting. I really loved the relationship between Malte and Michael. It reminded me of Luke Skywalker and Obi Wan.

This film is not be taken too seriously at its a dark comedy but ones you are in the right mood then you will really enjoy the 2 hours of cannibal fun.

Fingers crossed that this will turn in to a trilogy.

If I should say anything negative it would be that the dialog was not top notch all the time. But overall a great and un-understandable film.

I've watched Cannibal Fog before even trying to imagine what hides behind the title, and was pleasantly surprised.

Mixing my favorite genres of horror and dark comedy, the movie reveals itself to be really good done, dealing with taboo such as modern-times cannibalism in some other kind of way that we're used to watch on screens and successfully escaping well-known clichés.

Even though this movie is definitely not to everyone's taste, I'd highly recommend it to every fan of genre(s) who's looking for something different, something more than just bombastic, effects overridden cheap story soaked in blood.

Cannibal Fog is a movie slightly weird, in every kind not ordinary, but funny in any case.

"Cannibal Fog" mixes dark satirical attitude into an otherwise disturbing subculture of human desire. The story takes from both real event inspired situations, and pure erotica-fantasy. At times "Cannibal Fog" becomes a bit confusing as the two individual stories play out in a series of scenes that transition in choppy, abrupt situations during their linear and simultaneous journeys. The scene switching does move smoothly which at first seems annoying. This doesn't change much as the movie moves on but it doesn't take too long to understand that the two main characters' story's are playing out side-by-side.

The acting isn't stellar but the surreal, and very experimental theatrical nature of "Cannibal Fog" allows for sub-par acting. Most of the time this film presents as if we are the voyeur, peeping into a taboo world where the overly-sexualized persona opens up doors of food fetish and cannibal culinary prowess. Overall the film is a extreme expressionist piece that devours lust and greed in western society. There are a few shining spots in "Cannibal Fog" with the more somber, and darker introduction of Kim Sonderholm's character, Daniel Peterson. That, and the more humorous, disturbing tongue-in- cheek experience of sitophilia that plays out in a memorable dinner scene stand out in the movie.

The special effects in "Cannibal Fog" are practical ones that work on screen, create enough horror element to entertain a fan of the macabre, and at times are the only truly interesting aspects of the story. The surreal, dreamlike style of story telling and bizarre soundtrack help to create an atmosphere that is just as confusing, as it is effective in creating and amplifying the more emotional components of "Cannibal Fog". In the end though, the story doesn't create any real thrills, or chills, instead playing at a near monotone level of flat, steady-as-she-goes-neutrality. "Cannibal Fog" almost ends with the same amount of enthusiasm and energy as it begins.

Overall this isn't going to be a film for most horror fans, "Cannibal Fog" speaks to an audience as limited as the subculture portrayed within its dark, and disturbing subject matter. It is more on an art-house mix of exploitation/experimental character study. The ability of Wolcher to explore the darker side of human eroticism, and morbidity with such open candor shows real talent and passion for film making and story telling. Sometimes lifting the story up to a more intriguing piece of theatre, but most often than not the story gets crowded out by the constant inconsistency of the story's tone. Watch this one with an open mind, and a desire to indulge in something bizarre.