We open in Toledo, Ohio, with the charming Michael (O'Lachlan), singing along with Cherish as he buys bags of burgers to feed to Deirdre (Millgate), who celebrates hitting 600 pounds. Meanwhile, Australian cyber-crime investigator Phillip (Patrick Thompson) has just finished a ghastly cannibalism case in Hamburg (of course!). Back in Sydney, he finds Michael's website and realises something's not right in Toledo. So off he goes to pursue the case, which gets far grislier than he could have imagined.

It seems that only Aussies could successfully combine a creepy fetish scene with a police investigation thriller and infuse it with character shadings and a thoroughly warped sense of humour. On a visceral level, the film keeps us fairly queasy all the way through, with brief interludes in which the fit cast members strip off to show us their beautifully toned bodies in contrast to the monstrous, extremely convincing fat suit Millgate and others wear.

Disturbing touches are clearly designed to freak us out and keep us on edge. And screenwriter Galvin works in just enough character depth. Even though it's fairly simplistic, flashbacks and other scenes make both Michael and Phillip much more than merely cat and mouse. Both are haunted by their pasts as well as bad decisions they continue to make. Amid the carnage, O'Lachlan and especially Thompson create fascinating characters that are morally complex. As Michael asks, "Who's the real sociopath?"

Leonard gives the film a lush, over-coloured style that combines with webcam-style footage to make the whole thing feel like an internet nightmare. The fact that it was filmed in Sydney actually helps; nothing looks quite right. Michael's neighbourhood feels like an evil parallel-universe version of Desperate Housewives' Wisteria Lane. And the themes are intriguingly developed as well--codependence, consumerism, the ripple effects of bad parenting, even the difficulty of really trusting someone. Surprising stuff to find in a gruesome, gripping thriller.

themes, language, violence, grisliness, sexuality, nudity

2.Dec.05