Intense and Disturbing, CANIBA Finally Hits U.S. Theaters

After touring the festival circuit in 2017, Véréna Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor's highly disturbing documentary Caniba is finally being released in the United States courtesy of Grasshopper Films. Caniba is playing theatrically in New York during October. Then, the film screens in Los Angeles in late November. Dates in other cities are currently in the works.

Caniba tells the story of notorious Japanese killer Isseu Sagawa, who murdered and cannibalized Renée Hartevelt in 1981. The killer is still alive, but he is mentally ill and physically incapacitated. With the help of his brother Jun, Isseu Sagawa tries to tell his story.

The subject matter is creepy enough but what makes this documentary so powerful are the aesthetic choices made by the directors and a series of truly unexpected narrative turns. Caniba immerses the viewer in the private world of the Sagawa brothers and reveals some horrible realities that most of us would rather ignore.