The Carnivores | SXSW 2020 Film Review

Anyone who has ever had a relationship with a person who loved their pet a bit TOO much can related to the basic construct of director Caleb Michael Johnson’s The Carnivores. A unified partnership is already a daily struggle, but toss in the divided attentions of a dog-owner whose focus is solely on the health of their animal? Forget about it. Your relationship will just have to wait. Possibly forever.

Tallie Medel stars as Alice, a monotone bank clerk struggling with depression stemming from a distinct lack of quality time with her girlfriend, Bret (Lindsay Burdge). In her defense, Bret is also dealing with the ongoing health issues affecting her beloved dog, Harvie. Riddled with cancer, Harvie has been on the decline for some time, pushing Bret and Alice deeper into debt to pay for the treatments, while simultaneously causing a rift in their relationship.

Events come to a head when the psychological toll on Alice becomes too high and she begins losing time and sleepwalking around the neighborhood. Occasionally with Harvie in tow. Furthermore, Alice – who along with Bret is a vegan – becomes somewhat enamored with meat. She gawks at it, she fantasizes about it, she craves it. When Alice awakens one night with only a leash in hand and no sign of the dog anywhere, both women embark on a dark spiral downward in pursuit of what actually happened to dear ole’ Harvie.

Caleb Michael Johnson employs a dreamlike, David Lynchian aesthetic to the proceedings throughout the film, primarily in relation to Alice. Though the film comes together at the end, both thematically and organically, it does tend to wander a bit too hazily towards its eventual conclusion.

Tallie Medel wears this mix of confusion and obliviousness well though, as Alice toys with her inner demons and what she may possibly be capable of in order to rekindle her relationship with Bret. Medel dons the mask of a wounded animal, swallowing horrid implications of Harvie outweighing Alice’s importance to Bret with a confident restraint. Quite often the film begins to careen off the tracks into the absurd, especially in several moments where the script seems to meander away from its own story, before Medel’s captivating performance draws the focus back into frame.

Lindsay Burdge is given a fairly straightforward role, as Bret essentially pines incessantly for Harvie for most of the film. Yet her increasing frustration and rage over her missing animal consistently rings true with anyone who has ever loved and lost a pet. Oblivious to Alice’s ongoing pain, Bret continues the thread of a relationship eating away at itself from the inside.

If you are a fan of abstract, surreal storytelling supported by strong central performances and a fascinating relationship dynamic, then The Carnivores has more than enough meat for you to chew.