At first he is hailed as a hero by the American army for taking over an enemy command post and he is promoted to the rank of Captain. But when it is discovered that he had played dead while his fellow soldiers were fighting and dying all around him, he is branded a coward. In the eyes of the army, although Boyd behaved in a cowardly manner, that is how he had managed to get behind enemy lines and take over the command post. So the army elite decided not to strip him of his rank or have him shot, instead they "reward" his cowardice by sending him to a remote army outpost in the cold, deserted Sierra Nevada mountains.

Fort Spencer is a small outpost manned by a ragtag company of army officers - Colonel Hart, who is in charge; Major Knox, the perpetual drunk; Private Toffler, the company chaplain; Private Reich, the athletic fighter; and Private Cleaves, the cook. There is also a local Indian, George and his sister Martha who assist the company in whatever needs to be done. There are hardly any visitors at Fort Spencer and there is frequent boredom among the officers. One night a mysterious stranger shows up at the Fort, half dead. After he is revived he tells everyone that his name is F. W. Colqhoun and he proceeds to tell a heinous story of cannibalism that he had experienced and that he had escaped from a madman. I will not reveal anymore of the plot. It is a very exciting and heart pounding film with a great ending. Although it is quite gory it is not just pointless drivel. It deals with interesting issues such as immortality, power, temptation, weakness, and guilt. There are also comic moments as well.

Under the direction of Antonia Bird, Ravenous is provocative and riveting, accompanied by a thrilling soundtrack. The acting all around is superb. There are particularly fantastic and memorable performances from Robert Carlyle as Colqhoun, Guy Pearce as Boyd, Jeremy Davies as Toffler, Neal McDonough as Reich and Jeffrey Jones as Hart. All in all it is a riveting film but be careful if you have a weak stomach.