The Soul Eater
Directors: Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo
Writers: Annelyse Batrel, Ludovic Lefebvre
The boogeyman never looked so terrifying as it does in, THE
SOUL EATER, a thriller with the horrific elements directors Julien Maury and
Alexandre Bustillo are known for.
A pair of quite different investigators arrive in Roquenoir,
a run-down town in the French mountains, and wind up approaching the same case
from two different directions.
Commander Elisabeth Guardiano (Virginie Ledoyen) has been
sent to look into a married couple’s grisly murder, and Captain of the
Gendarmerie Franck De Rolan (Paul Hamy), from the “department of alarming
disappearances,” intends to track down a group of missing children.
Their missions turn out to be linked, and one of the
elements tying them together is “The Soul Eater,” a local boogeyman legend
intended to encourage kids not to wander off into the woods. This creature may
not be a myth after all, and as strange details about the double killing come
to light and more bizarre deaths occur, Guardiano and De Rolan are drawn toward
a shocking truth.
THE SOUL EATER uses the classic pacing of giallo films, and
each twist and turn only increases the viewers anxiety as Guardiano and Frank get
closer to uncovering the grisly truth of what is plaguing this French town.
Both Guardiano and Frank are motivated by different personal
demons that help viewers feel some empathy, so they have a well-rounded experience
of emotions as the story unfolds.
Additionally, the use of some common clichés like “the
rundown town that used be a main tourist attraction,” “no one is who you think
they are,” and even The Soul Eater fable itself, distract the viewer until you’re
hit with a well-done twist that completely shifts the film.
The last half hour is a punch to the gut as the true horror
unravels, literally one horrifying room at a time. But again in true thriller
fashion, a somewhat poetic ending allows viewers to walkaway with some relief.
THE SOUL EATER is a slow burn that doesn’t implode on itself and ends in a satisfactory smolder.
I only caution parents to prepare themselves for a hard
watch in the last third of the film.
Keep directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo on your radar like I have since their first film INSIDE and you won’t be disappointed. Their storytelling is chef’s kiss.
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