Human cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh or internal organs of other human beings. A person who practices cannibalism is called a cannibal. The meaning of "cannibalism" has been extended into zoology to describe animals consuming parts of individuals of the same species as food.
Cannibal films, alternatively known as the cannibal genre or the cannibal boom, are a subgenre of horror films made predominantly by Italian filmmakers during the 1970s and 1980s. This subgenre is a collection of graphically violent movies that usually depict cannibalism by primitive, Stone Age natives deep within the Asian or South American rainforests. While cannibalism is the uniting feature of these films, the general emphasis focuses on various forms of shocking, realistic and graphic violence, typically including torture, rape and genuine cruelty to animals. This subject matter was often used as the main advertising draw of cannibal films in combination with exaggerated or sensational claims regarding the films' reputations.
Grimm Love is a 2006 psychological horror film inspired by the Armin Meiwes cannibal murder case.
Fido is a 2006 Canadian zombie comedy film directed by Andrew Currie and written by Robert Chomiak, Currie, and Dennis Heaton from an original story by Heaton. It was produced by Blake Corbet, Mary Anne Waterhouse, Trent Carlson and Kevin Eastwood of Anagram Pictures, and released in the United States by Lions Gate Entertainment.
Automaton Transfusion is a 2006 American independent horror film written and directed by Steven C. Miller.
Cannibalism, the act of eating human flesh, is a recurring theme in popular culture, especially within the horror genre, and has been featured in a range of media that includes film, television, literature, music and video games. Cannibalism has been featured in various forms of media as far back as Greek mythology. The frequency of this theme has led to cannibal films becoming a notable subgenre of horror films. The subject has been portrayed in various different ways and is occasionally normalized. The act may also be used in media as a means of survival, an accidental misfortune, or an accompaniment to murder. Examples of prominent artists who have worked with the topic of cannibalism include William Shakespeare, Voltaire, Bret Easton Ellis, and Herschell Gordon Lewis.
The Hamiltons is an independent 2006 horror film directed by the Butcher Brothers. Cory Knauf stars as a teenager who must decide whether to help the victims that his older siblings have kidnapped.
The Attic is a 2007 American horror film directed by Mary Lambert and starring Elisabeth Moss, Jason Lewis, Tom Malloy, and Catherine Mary Stewart.
Freakshow is a 2007 American horror film which was made by The Asylum and directed by Drew Bell. It is an unofficial remake of the Tod Browning film Freaks. According to the film poster and DVD cover art, Freakshow is banned in 43 countries, though there is no mention of which countries banned it.
Armin Meiwes is a German former computer repair technician who received international attention for murdering and eating a voluntary victim in 2001, whom he had found via the Internet.
Days of Darkness is a 2007 American horror film written and directed by Jake Kennedy. Survivors of a zombie apocalypse, including a young couple played by Travis Brorsen and Roshelle Pattison, seek shelter in an abandoned military complex while they attempt to figure out what has caused the outbreak.
Green River Killer is a 2005 American crime film by Ulli Lommel starring George Kiseleff, Jaquelyn Aurora, Georgina Donovan, Shannon Leade, Naidra Dawn Thomson, and Shawn G. Smith. It is based upon the crimes of serial killer Gary Ridgway.
Diary of a Cannibal is a 2007 German-American horror film directed by Ulli Lommel. It is possibly inspired by Armin Meiwes, the "Rotenburg Cannibal". Lommel's film changes the account from a "Rotenburg Cannibal" to a young Los Angeleno girl who is corrupted by her new lover, a man who talks her into killing and eating him. The film has gained infamy for its highly scathing reception by critics and audiences, and has occasionally appeared in a few lists of the worst films ever made.
Long Pigs is a 2007 comedy-horror mockumentary film about two documentary filmmakers who follow a serial killer who has a taste for cooking with human flesh. The story is conveyed via found footage. Acting and special effects were provided by Chris Bridges, whose other credits include Saw III, 300, and the remake of Dawn of the Dead.
Home Sick is a 2007 American horror film written by E. L. Katz and directed by Adam Wingard.
Melancholie der Engel is a 2009 German independent arthouse horror film directed, shot and edited by Marian Dora and co-written by Dora and Carsten Frank. The film revolves around a dying man, Katze, who reunites with an old friend, Brauth, to return to an old house which holds a dark past. It received polarizing reviews, with some praise towards the cinematography, but most condemned it as hardcore exploitation with repetitive and meaningless depravity communicating its nihilistic message. Despite its negative reception, the film garnered a cult following within the extreme cinema community.
Marian Dora is the pseudonym most commonly used by an anonymous German art director, cinematographer, actor, screenwriter, editor, producer, composer, assistant director, makeup artist, special effects/sound/camera/electricity technician, and set decorator/designer, anagram of his actual name, occasionally also credited under several other pseudonyms including Marian Dora Bolutino, Marian Dora Botulino, Marian D. Bolutino, M.D. Botulino, Dr. M. Duran, Marian D. Botulino, M. Duran, Art Doran, M.D. Bolutino, A. Doran, Marian Bolutino and Marian Dallamano.
Debris documentar is a 75-minute 2012 German-language experimental independent dramatic art film, made in 2003 by Marian Dora.
Acts of cannibalism in Europe seem to have been relatively prevalent in prehistory but also occurred repeatedly in later times, often motivated by hunger, hatred, or medical concerns. Both anatomically modern humans and Neanderthals practised cannibalism to some extent in the Pleistocene, and Neanderthals may have been eaten by modern humans as the latter spread into Europe. Amongst humans in prehistoric Europe, archaeologists have uncovered many clear and indisputable sites of cannibalism, as well as numerous other finds of which cannibalism is a plausible interpretation.
