So who’s the real evil person(s) here?
Long Pigs (2007)
Directed By: Nathan Hynes & Chris Power
The Prologue
The Blair Witch Project, The Last Broadcast, and to some extent Cannibal Holocaust are probably the earliest films I can think of that used the “lost footage/documentary” style of storytelling when it comes to film. Now days you got tons of these movies like Cloverfield, , The Last Exorcism, and many many more so to stand out you have to be different when it comes to that format, and I’m happy to report Long Pigs seems different. I’d even say it’s better done than even recent horror community favorite Lake Mungo, and that’s saying a lot.
The Movie
A couple of hopeful film makers in an attempt to gain notoriety and money (I assume) decide to take on the task of filming a man named Anthony McAlistar, who just so happens to be a 33 year old cannibal. The two tag along and slightly assist in Anthony’s psychopathic ways and even go as far as to study some of his victims and their families left behind. As the movie progresses the film makers just don’t seem to know when to say enough is enough and as you’d guess, that leads to trouble.
WOW! You know that’s about all I can say after shutting off this movie once I viewed it. Long Pigs is a very good film. It may rank along one of the better “lost footage/documentary” style films I have seen in a long time, if not ever. And at the head of this film is a man named Anthony Alviano in the role of Anthony McAlistar, the film’s subject and cannibal. Anthony is a very scary guy when you look at the big picture because you can’t tell off hand that he’s a bad person. He is likable, he seems like an OK guy you could hang with, he even seems to have a sense of humor but he is a very very evil man that kills people and eats them. But isn’t that the point? Showing you that it could really be anyone when it comes to pointing out killers?
I think the film also plays with your emotions as you watch. It’s sort of a dark comedy when you put it all into perspective and you may laugh at times when you probably shouldn’t. You also find yourself being sympathetic at times to Anthony after you’ve taken a closer look at him. But just the same as causing a few laughs, the film can play on other emotions as you take a deep look at the family of one of Anthony’s victims (a different kind of victim than the others), in a part of the movie that serves to remind you that while he may be good character, Anthony is by no means a good person. Also just as bad as Anthony, if not worse, is the film makers who continue to push things and lie to get their story, becoming just as evil in the viewer’s eyes as Anthony is.
Another great thing about Long Pigs is how realistic is comes off. Sure, there’s some creepy, hard to watch, yet funny things going down on screen at times, but it’s still done in a very real manner. I think the effects really stand out as well as we watch people be cut up as if they were a pig being slaughtered at some some slaughter house. Remember when making a a documentary style film that being realistic is key, and this movie to me passes that grade with an A because it never really looks fake to me that I can think of.
While this film was made in 2007, I haven’t heard anything about it until this year and I’d say if you want to take a chance on an independent film, then Long Pigs would be the film to take that chance on. It’s stylish, yet realistic. It plays with the emotions of the viewer with very good characters, and while it is a documentary style film it even does a little time jumping and inner cuts different things that make it that much better. Way better than I had hoped for and I can say I’d easily recommend it.
The Conclusion
A real treat for independent films as it mixes some black humor with some serious moment and seems to have a dash of gore to it that is realistic and reminded me of some of the films Toe Tag Pictures usually put out. It’s not a very long film so it doesn’t ware out it’s welcome and it’s a film I think many of you should be checking out.
The Rating (7/10)
Chucks website
