L’Etranger
Sixty years after Luchino Visconti, François Ozon has adapted a monumental work of literature for the screen – ‘The Stranger’ by Albert Camus.
In 1930s Algeria, apathetic Frenchman Meursault (Benjamin Voisin) shows total indifference to life. His daily life is soon disrupted by his neighbour, Raymond Sintès, who draws Meursault into his shady dealings. Until one blisteringly hot day, a tragic event occurs on a beach. Ozon has said: “The themes in the book could hardly be more topical: an emotionally absent hero detached from the world, confronting our mortality, the individual’s quest for meaning in an increasingly alienating world.” Shot in moody, period-appropriate black and white, this was one of the highlights at the 2025 Venice Film Festival. Cast includes Rebecca Marder, Swann Arlaud, Pierre Lottin and Denis Lavant. ‘A crackling yet tasteful erotic charge’. Screen Daily. (Subtitles)
France 2025 François Ozon 120m
