I'm sick and tired of reading bad comments about Ulli Lommel's films.I am a devoted fan of Ulli Lommel's movies and have seen many of them, this one "Diary Of A Cannibal" is one of his best so far. I was very impressed with it.Diary Of A Cannibal is certainly unconventional. It is part romance, part drama, and part horror, and the premise is interesting and original. The film examines the issue of cannibalism. There are not very many films that you finish watching and ponder afterwards, but I found myself lying awake thinking about this one after seeing it last night. It left me with a definite impression; both disturbed and curious.In the movie two people, a young man and a young woman, who are intensely in love, decide that the ultimate way to consummate their love for each other is by an act of cannibalism whereby the woman kills her lover and eats his heart, and he submits willingly to the act, and this is portrayed as the ultimate act of love. This obviously conflicts severely with social and legal norms in American society, and the girl is convicted and sentenced to prison for murder, as you would expect. The film mainly examines the ethics and the psychology of the act (not the gore), and interestingly, it seems to portray the act of cannibalism sympathetically, not at all objectively. I don't believe that this is wrong, maybe the film makers are just expressing their opinion, in any case it makes for interesting viewing and it was a bold film to make.The acting was good throughout. I sensed in the performances of the actors, particularly in that of Jilian Swanson (a very beautiful girl), real passion and feeling, and I really believed in and sympathized with her character and the inner conflict she felt because she played it so real, and with subtle conviction. The performances were subtle and morose which perfectly fitted the macabre and ponderous subject matter, and were entirely believable. The music was excellent, well suited, and well employed: very haunting and beautiful. The camera work is the typical realistic documentary style employed on many of Lommel's films, which I quite like because it brings immediacy and realism to the film, but clearly it irks many people who obviously prefer to remain more detached from the subject matter so it can be viewed purely as mindless entertainment. The only factor which costs this film stars in my opinion is the screenplay which could have been better. True, the dialog is minimal, the story is told mostly with images, but sometimes the script was a bit thin, and possibly could it have used some better script writing in parts.I think that the reason many people trash this movie, and Lommels films generally, is because they are too attuned to more conventional films and just want quick satisfaction without having to do too much thinking (blood, gore, violence, etc): this is typical of mainstream audiences, and obviously Lommel does not make films for mainstream audiences.I enjoyed this film and it left me with something to think about. I recommend it to anyone interested in cannibalism or anything related to it, or anyone looking for something a bit different.

I got this movie from the $1 section at my local video rental store. I'm sorry that I even spent that much on this movie. I actually turned the movie right off after about 20 minutes...and I've never done that with ANY other movie. It seriously looks like some man just took his home video camera and filmed two kids staring at each other in a van and then every once in a while threw in a clip of a shiny knife with blood. Oh my! I almost WANT people to watch this movie...just to seriously see how horrible it is. It's almost comical. But I wouldn't do it, that's about an hour and a half of your life you'll never get back.

I rented this movie looking for a typical gore-fest a la Romero. Was I in for a disappointment. It turned out the be the worst 82 minutes I've spent in a long time. Something could have been done with the story, reputedly based on actual events, but it was not. The set and location shots must have cast the production company hundreds of dollars. The were endless flashbacks that conveyed nothing and were put in solely to add some time to the film. It's a shame that there isn't some sort of "Gong Show" system that would have nipped this one in the bud before it contaminated the viewing public. I don't recall having seen an Ulli Lommel film before but at least I am now forewarned to stay away. Please, if anyone recommends this movie to you, I would suggest that they immediately seek professional help and counseling.

As no one has yet commented on this piece of trash I think it is my civic duty to warn people not to be tempted by the title into watching this. It is not a horror movie. There is no tension, no frights and very little gore, and that is badly done. I know Ulli Lommel has produced some of worst movies in history but this surpasses even those god awful efforts. Maybe Lommel's parents are to blame for encouraging him or maybe he's just some spoilt rich kid with more money than sense but either way, he should stop making films immediately. I believe the movie is taken from a book called "Diary of a Cannibal". I'm intrigued enough by the awfulness of the film to seek out this book and see if it is better. It must be.The entire movie is made up of flashbacks that are, more often than not, repeated over and over. The whole thing looks like it was shot through the bottom of a jam jar and the main actors do nothing of consequence throughout the whole turgid 80 minutes or so. If somebody offers "Cannibal" to you for free, don't take it. Just walk away because you will, most surely, regret the experience for the rest of your life.