Statross Reichmann (Jann Halexander) feels lost in the world, unloved
by both his black father and his mother's (Ester de Paris) family, and
thus is ignorant of his own roots. When he gets to see his mother though
for the first time ever, the two of them have nothing to talk about.
Though he is coloured, he lives with Hans (Philippe R.), a member of
the extreme right, who plays the dominant part in their abusive homosexual
relationship and who likes to insult Statross just for fun - which
repeatedly makes Statross break and find refuge in heavy drinking - which
usually turns him into a twisted parody of a Nazi.
But as if all that wasn't bad enough, soemthing evil is after Statross,
a phantom (Michel Xavier-Gérard) that kills off his friends (including
Hans), and that finally comes to get him to take him over to the other
side ...
Occident: Statross le Magnifique II is creepy to say the least,
a blend of human drama and horror that is not so much a effects-laden
spectacle but a mood piece - and director Jann Halexander, actually a
singer and musician first, is perfect in creating atmosphere, from turning
a beautiful, sun-lit forest into a dark and brooding place to amplify the
silence between Statross and his mother to turn Statross' Nazi-burstout in
a rundown bar into a tragic comedy to the haunting finale, all accentuated
by an eerie piano score. True, the film might not be appreciated by the
mainstream horror crowd used to action and effects, but whoever likes his
horror moody will like this one.
Recommended.
By the way, despite the title this one has little to do with the first Statross
le Magnifique, a short by Rémi Lange also written by and starring
Jann Halexander, other than the name of the main character and a
similarity in subject matter.
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