re:mote voices

Title:Boy Eats Girl
Cast: Samantha Mumba, David Leon, Laurence Kinlan, Tadhg Murphy, Sara James, Mark Huberman, Paul Reid
Director: Stephen Bradley

The Irish zombie film Boy Eats Girl finished the FrightNight showcase at the Glasgow Film Festival, bringing us towards the 12 hours of film mark. Talking to the organisers between films, it seems that Boy Eats Girl has actually been quite controversial, though I hadn't heard of it prior to this festival. There are a couple of references to suicide early on the film, and when there were a couple of suicides shortly after the Irish release of the film it was suggested the film was to blame. There was some move to have the film banned, which nearly succeeded, though the prevention may have come too late.

Nathan (David Leon) and Jessica (former pop-star Samantha Mumba) have been friends for years, but Nathan wants to be more than friends. Under pressure from his other friends, Nathan is finally going to try asking Jessica out, try and tell her how he feels. However, events conspire against them, and while Jessica is in fact interested, Nathan manages to be left with the impression that she has betrayed him and gone off with someone else. He goes home, drinks heavily, then hangs himself.

Of course, the fact that his mother is working on the refurbishment of the local church when she stumbles across a collection of voodoo paraphenalia means that isn't the end of the story. With, in theory, the best of intentions, Nathan's mother brings him back to life. But something goes wrong, and Nathan starts getting cravings, which it doesn't take long for him to pass along.

Boy Eats Girl in a post Shaun Of The Dead genre has a lot of potential, though one can only assume it was down with a lower budget than Shaun. The film on the whole is a little on the light side, skimping on plot or character depth. Instead it concentrates on propelling itself towards its gruesome climax. The zombie massacre that the film builds towards, coupled with the tongue in cheek approach it retains throughout, are what really make Boy Eats Girl a memorable film, and likely the most enjoyable of the day.