Panic Fest Film Festival Coverage
Cannibal Mukbang review.
A cannibal love story. Aren’t they all?
Festival reviews will not contain spoilers.
Cannibal Mukbang
Directed by Aimee Kuge
Written by Aimee Kuge
Starring April Consalo, Nate Wise, Clay von Carlowitz, Randall Bowlin, Autumn Consalo and Benjamin Frankenberg
Cannibal Mukbang Review
Are all cannibal movies romances now? Obviously, there is something intimate…well…eating people. I’m not sure how that got translated to romance…but it’s certainly a recent trend. The obvious example is Bones and All…but Feed Me from the same year was certainly relationship-based cannibalism as well (minus the sex part). Cannibal Mukbang is all about the relationship. While (murdering and) eating people is a big part of the story…the relationship between the two main characters is what gets the most attention from the story.
A muckbang is a broadcast of someone eating food. That is the primary profession of Ash (April Consalo). The mousy Mark (Nate Wise) is instantly attracted to her. Even when she hits him with her car after they first meet. It turns out to be a blessing in disguise. Worried about being reported to the police…Ash takes Mark home to care for him. They fall for each other quickly. There’s just one little problem. Ash likes to murder and eat people.
This is a relationship movie first and foremost. It opens with Mark and Ash’s meet cute. There are several lengthy conversations as they get to know each other. The intimate talks of two people getting to know each other. The relationship progresses through Ash’s revelation. It takes Mark aback. But…he also really likes Ash. Ahh…young love. Oh…and he’s starting to have hunger pangs that can only be satiated by human flesh.
This is all a lot to take for the shy, reserved, Mark. His brother Maverick (Clay von Carlowitz) walks all over him. He’s the only family Mark has left after an accident that claimed their parents’ lives. He struggles with both his hunger and with his growing relationship with Ash. Especially when he begins to aide her in…acquiring the meat. She only kills bad people, after all. They have it coming, right?
Ash has a tragic backstory. It’s stylishly covered in a sequence presented like a 70s grindhouse movie. It’s a real highlight of the picture. So too is the blood and gore strewn throughout Cannibal Mukbang. It’s played more for entertainment than horror…but its some quality work. Writer/director Aimee Kuge achieves a distinct tone and style here and carries it throughout. It’s an impressive feat for a first-time director. She establishes herself as a talent to watch out for going forward.
Consalo and Wise are perfect. Mark’s sheepishness and lack of confidence feels earnest in Wise’s performance. Consalo has the showier (see how I refrained from saying meatier) part and she eats it up (well…I can’t win em all). It’s a tough line to walk. You have to see her murder and eat people…and still understand how Mark could fall for her. This is where consistently taking it back to the basics of a burgeoning relationship is important. Cannibal Mukbang makes the cannibal part important…but reminds us that it is only a part of their relationship. Even if it’s the toughest one to chew.
Their relationship is, appropriately, tested in unique ways. Mark seems more freaked out by Ash’s affection than her diet. He has low self-esteem and worries that she will wake up and realize he isn’t good enough for her. The murdering cannibal. The one who addicted him to human flesh. It’s a different type of relationship drama than most people deal with. But, strangely, still a recognizable one. The romance aspects of Cannibal Mukbang feel grounded. Even as they’re discussed over ground humans.
Cannibal Mukbang works as a dark comedy and as a horror romance. Conalo and Wise bring their specific characters to life without ever dipping into playing caricatures. Kuge infuses the movie with style and a consistent tone. Although the story changes into something new after Mark discovers the truth about Ash…the point of the movie never does. This is about two people with a lot of baggage trying to find their way through the early stages of a relationship. That baggage just happens to contain a severed head or two.
Scare Value
Despite some pacing issues, Cannibal Mukbang delivers a tasty horror comedy romance platter. The leads are great…especially after the blood starts to flow. The movie doesn’t let murder montages sidetrack the relationship aspect of the story. It presents a surprisingly realistic, and intimate, take on a budding relationship. It just also happens to be a story about eating people.
