Blu-ray Review: Sophomoric ‘Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal’ Falls Flat

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CHICAGO – Boris Rodriguez’s “Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal” tells a laughably inane story ripe for B-movie matinées, yet insists on taking itself (mostly) seriously. The director has made no secret of the fact that he envisions his film to be a meditation on the “darkness of creativity,” and the price that must be paid in order for an artist to find sufficient inspiration.

That could easily make an intriguing subject for a motion picture (and has many times before), but Rodriguez’s metaphorical horror tropes are so obvious and synthetic that they bore when they should provoke. That isn’t to say the film is lacking in the acting department (it isn’t) or doesn’t have some spectacularly unnerving imagery (kudos to DP Philippe Kress), but on a story level, “Eddie” comes up mightily short. It might’ve made a fine short film, but at 83 minutes, it runs out of steam well before the final fade out.

Blu-ray Rating: 2.5/5.0

Thure Lindhardt, the fine Danish actor who was so captivating in Ira Sachs’s “Keep the Lights On,” plays Lars, a once-promising painter who lands a job at a struggling art school. Not only do the higher-ups expect him to produce great work while teaching there, thus boosting the institution’s reputation while saving it from bankruptcy, they also ask him to invite the school’s recently orphaned Quasimodo-like curiosity, Eddie (Dylan Smith), into his home. Eddie is a full grown-man who acts like a child and refuses to speak. Through a series of head-slapping events, the school is required to take care of the damaged man-child or risk certain closure. The tragedies that marked the his past years (his parents died in a “lawnmower accident”) have appeared to take a toll on his handicapped mind, unleashing a subconscious streak of brutality. Only after Lars agrees to take Eddie into his home does he discover his houseguest’s horrifying nighttime hobby (see film’s title). This inspires Lars to—paint. Nope, not call the authorities. Just get off on the rush of innocent bloodshed in order to fuel his creative drive. Turns out Lars is the real sicko of the picture, though Rodriguez can’t resist portraying Eddie’s victims as typical slasher film fodder in order to make their senseless deaths more palatable.

Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal was released on Blu-ray and DVD on August 6th, 2013.
Photo credit: Doppelgänger Releasing

Though Smith never speaks a word, the film may have benefitted from granting him more screen time. The sweetness and humiliation that he silently conveys during his waking hours are enough to make one wish that the script had treated him as a human rather than a cog in its plot. As for the laughs, they are few and far between, highlighted only by the voice of a local DJ (Simon Webb) who rivals K-Billy of “Reservoir Dogs” in his deadpan detachment, as he fawns over the hideously gory plots of classic operas. Make sure to stick around for the end credits, which contain another appearance by the DJ, as well the film’s biggest laughs.

“Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal” is presented in 1080p High Definition (with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio), and contains a standard making-of featurette, as well as Rodriguez’s genuinely frightening 15-minute short film, “Perfect,” which contains an unexpected jump scare more potent than anything in the main feature. Yet, like “Eddie,” it leaves the viewer feeling unfulfilled and frustrated, as if Rodriguez had decided to abandon the issues he attempted to raise. If there’s a linkage between this short and “Eddie,” it’s the idea that any full-on attempt at perfection can potentially lead to madness. Rodriguez’s films are far from perfect, but they do manage to linger in one’s mind long after others have faded into a haze of mediocrity.

By MATT FAGERHOLM Staff Writer HollywoodChicago.com matt@hollywoodchicago.com