Love the intro.
To sum up without giving away, it’s about cannibalism and a mythology of “gaining another’s” strength through it. It’s also about morality vs. self-preservation and decadence.
First act: a bit creepy (moreso as it nears the end), and darkly humorous at points (in line with the intro, but under rather adverse conditions). It works fairly well, for me at least; the creepiness
and dark humor mesh together and don’t cancel each other out at all. Even the music and camerawork seem to be in on it.
Personally I think the first act goes on a little bit too long – it’s setup, I welcome and understand, but perhaps a bit too much of it at a bit too slow of a pace.
Then a foreboding interlude after the very important plot point.
Second act: the humor fades (with a brief return near the end) and it becomes, for the most part, a dark drama. Much more consistently tense and creepy, somewhat philosophical, more thought-provoking, and more compelling in general.
The ending is decent in more ways than one.
I particularly like the way in which the film portrays those who dismiss morality and quote against it as a “weakness” as being themselves weak, unable to keep in check the most base impulses, slaves to their own dangerous yet pathetic ethos because they have become the embodiment of it, not because they believe in it. For the most part, that is…there are always exceptions, rare though they may be.
Self-preservation is the opiate of the masses, as I am ultra fond of saying.
Grade: B-