Streaming Review of "Ravenous" by The Headless Critic

Ravenous (Les affamés) – 2018

Production by: Le Films Christal, Le Maison de Prod, Téléfilm Canada
Distribution by: Netflix



An outbreak in an isolated Canadian community is turning its inhabitants ravenous. With the infected becoming zombie like and attacking those uninfected, the survivors band together just trying to live another day. Deciding to head out of their isolated wooded town to a bigger city where they hope to find protection, the survivors learn this outbreak may be more widespread than just a local incident. The bloodshed to safety leaves a thick crimson trail behind.

Writer and director Robin Aubert brings us a French-Canadian version of a zombie-esque film. Beautiful cinematography in the picturesque rural woods of Quebec are constantly pleasing to the eye, even as they’re covered in blood. There’s plenty of blood including one of the best head explosions to use CGI I’ve ever seen in film. Aubert offers a different take on a zombie-like tale creating a tribal pairing of the “undead” not seen to this degree even in the later Romero work like Land of the Dead.

Ravenous or Les affamés (The Hungry) is slow at times building a relationship between the viewer and the characters but when in acts, it acts ravenously. These are not slow moving zombies. They act fast and attack. The brutality of a post-apocalyptic zombie afterlife is still similar to today’s The Walking Dead. Zombie fans should be pleased. Those burnt out on the sub-genre of horror might also find something to like on this refreshing take that adds a little bit more than just the mindless undead.

Available Now on Netflix

4 out of 5 Headless Critics