Ravenous
| Ravenous | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Antonia Bird |
| Produced by | Adam Fields David Heyman Tim Van Rellim |
| Written by | Ted Griffin |
| Starring | |
| Music by |
Michael Nyman Damon Albarn |
| Cinematography | Anthony B. Richmond |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Release date
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Running time
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100 minutes |
| Country | Czech Republic United Kingdom United States Slovakia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12 million |
| Box office | $2,062,405 |
Ravenous is a 1999 Czech-American black comedy horror-suspense film directed by Antonia Bird and starring Guy Pearce, Robert Carlyle, Jeffrey Jones and David Arquette. The film revolves around cannibalism in 1840s California and some elements bear similarities to the story of the Donner Party and that of Alferd Packer. Screenwriter Ted Griffin lists Packer's story, as recounted in a couple of paragraphs of Dashiell Hammett's The Thin Man, as one of his inspirations for Carlyle's character.
The film's darkly humorous and ironic take on its gruesome subject matter have led some to label it simply as a black comedy or a satire. The film's unique score by Michael Nyman and Damon Albarn generated a significant amount of attention. The film's production did not get off to a good start. Original director Milcho Manchevski left the production three weeks after shooting started. He was replaced by Bird at the suggestion of Carlyle.
During the Mexican-American War (1846 – 1848), Second Lieutenant Boyd, who is fighting in the United States Army, finds his courage fail him in battle so he plays dead as his unit is massacred. His body, along with the other dead are put in a cart and hauled back to the Mexican headquarters (throughout this journey blood drips into Boyd's mouth). However, in a moment of bravery, Boyd seizes the chance to capture the Mexican HQ. His heroism earns him a Captain's promotion but when General Slauson learns of the cowardice through which victory was achieved he posts Boyd into exile at Fort Spencer, a remote military outpost high in the Sierra Nevadas.
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Wikipedia