EIFF 2012: Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal

While we don’t know for sure how Eddie: The Sleepwalking Cannibal was pitched to investors, we’d like to think it was something along the lines of: "Rain Man, except Tom Cruise is a Danish artist and Dustin Hoffman eats people in his pants." Thure Lindhardt plays Lars, who's struggling to find the inspiration to paint; Dylan Smith plays Eddie, a sweet simpleton with some unfortunate nocturnal habits. In a twist on Frankenstein, the real monster isn’t necessarily the one ripping off heads, as Lars identifies evisceration and murder as his muse, and manipulates his trusting, somnambulistic lodger accordingly.

A softly screwball supporting cast – including Paul Braunstein’s deerstalker-wearing sheriff and Stephen McHattie’s Mafioso-style art dealer – compound the film’s endearing eccentricities, and if the pervasive immorality is a partial barrier to enjoyment, the wit and gore mostly carry the slack. While the macabre appeal fades a touch en route to its charmingly daft denouement, Eddie’s icky-comic tale nonetheless offers plenty to chew on. [Chris Buckle]