Sheitan, which is Arabic for "Devil," is a French self-described "Erotic Comedy Horror Film"- but even that wild description doesn't quite do it justice. The plotline isn't dissimilar from the story of the last Christmas-based thriller I reviewed, Body: On the night before Christmas Eve, a group of friends get an invite to go party at a sprawling mansion upstate, where they run afoul of the groundskeeper and things slowly-but-surely spiral out of control.
However, the execution is wholly different, to say the least. For one thing, this is French horror we're talking about, and if you're not familiar, French horror is a wholly different animal than American horror, to say the least. While not as insanely violent as something like, say, Martyrs or Inside- both of which were later remade to lesser, more whitewashed ends for American audiences- it's nonetheless hard to imagine this one being remade in America at all, especially in this particular PC social climate.
For one thing, it pretty much checks all imaginable boxes that could potentially upset someone with a penchant for being easily offended. There's casual racism, homophobia, xenophobia (particularly towards Arabs- ironically enough, given that title), sexism and scenarios in which women are downright harassed within an inch of their lives by horndog men, even if it stops short of outright rape. Actually, there's also scenes in which a man is also borderline attacked by a sexually voracious woman, so... a little something for everyone to be offended by?
To make matters even worse, there's a female role which is clearly played by a man and there's animal abuse, some of which looks to be real- and some of which is, I kid you not, sexual in nature- though, once again, it stops short of out-and-out bestiality, thank God. Basically, the whole film's a ninety-minute trigger warning for those with more delicate sensibilities.
And yet, for those who can get past such things in the service of watching something so decidedly left-of-center, boy is it something to behold, to say the absolute least. But yeah, to say this film isn't for everyone is putting it mildly. Of course, if you're at all familiar with European horror- much less Asian horror, in general- you know that's par for the course if you're going to watch a foreign film of this sort. When Europeans and Asians make a horror film, they do NOT hold back in most cases.
Although, if you read the above description, you know going in that it's also intended as sort of a dark comedy of sorts as well, which is to say, we're intended to laugh at these characters, not with them, as it were. I'm just saying that, if you're more used to American humor, then European humor may take some getting used to, and some may not find this funny at all, but instead, completely offensive. For the rest of us that can get past such things, though, Sheitan is undeniably a hoot, if an admittedly acquired taste.
The "fun" begins with a group of friends partying at a local French nightclub on the night before Christmas Eve, where the DJ spins the popular, amusingly offensive hit single by gangster rappers Sheitan, the first of several references to the title scattered throughout the film.
There's alpha male Ladj (Ladj Ly, The World is Yours), a ladies' man who seduces the bartender, Yasmine (Leïla Bekhti, A Prophet), in spite of having a girlfriend that calls him seemingly non-stop throughout the film. Ladj's right-hand man is Thaï (Nicolas Le Phat Tan), who picks up the comely Eve (Roxane Mesquida, Kaboom, Kiss of the Damned).
Rounding out the bunch is perpetual sad sack Bart (Olivier Barthélémy, The Burma Conspiracy), who can't pick up a girl to save his life and is basically the dictionary definition of uncouth. Bart ends up getting into a fight with the boyfriend of a girl he tries to dance with that wants no part of him, ending with Bart getting a wine bottle to the head and kicked out of the club for his failed endeavor. His friends begrudgingly agree to leave, compelled in part by Eve's invitation to her parents' mansion in the country to spend the holidays.
Her parents are out of town, she says, so they'll have the place to themselves- or so she claims. As it turns out, there's also a groundskeeper, a total wackadoodle by the name of Joseph (Vincent Cassel, the Ocean's series, Jason Bourne), who lives on the property with his mostly unseen wife, Mary (also Cassel!), who is pregnant and expecting any day now. Note the names and the fact that the film is set in the run-up to Christmas, as they will come to be a factor later on in the proceedings.
Joseph, who takes a shine to Bart in particular, is gregarious and outgoing, and wastes no time in inserting himself into the gang's festivities, in spite of his wife's condition. When the group arrives, they are a bit disappointed to discover that the mansion in question is more than a little dilapidated, and just as alarming, is filled to the brim with creepy dolls, as Eve's parents are dollmakers and now run their business from inside the home. Mind you, these aren't just your standard issue creepy dolls- there's also freaky puppets and mannequins: think Tourist Trap.
A little let down, but with no money and no other major plans for the holidays, and with the prospect of hooking up with the ladies at hand- and possibly a comely local as well for Bart- they decide to tough it out, in spite of the spooky surroundings. As Christmas Eve day continues, things only get weirder, as the crew goes to the local hot springs and are set upon by some skinny-dipping locals, most of which are male.
Inevitably, Bart gets into a fight with one of them as well, and he is also at odds with local lady Jeanne (Julie-Marie Parmentier, Evolution), who turns out to be Joseph's niece that he gleefully offers up to sleep with. While attractive, her extreme willingness and forthright nature puts him off and he ends up fighting with her as well. (It's implied that Bart may well be a virgin, or at the very least, sexually inept.)
As night settles in, each of the guys pairs off with the girls, with Bart attempting to glom onto Eve, in hopes of establishing a threesome, which Thaï isn't too keen on, for obvious reasons, but eventually allows when Eve seems into the prospect.
Or is she? It's kind of hard to tell as she keeps pushing the boys away from her throughout the night, but ultimately, she gives in and takes the two to her bedroom. Either way, it doesn't quite happen, as the hook-up is interrupted by the locals playing a decidedly horrific prank on Yasmine, who promptly wants to leave, much to Joseph's chagrin, who admonishes them for throwing a wrench into his plans, which are still hard to figure out at this point.
It's also at this point that things begin to go off the rails completely, and I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen it, but suffice it to say that words wouldn't do it justice, to put it mildly. If this is an "erotic sex comedy," then it's clearly one more influenced by David Lynch than any typical old-school French bedroom farce, though there are elements of that, what with Eve bouncing around between the two guys. However, the horror element is admittedly hella disturbing, and may stick with some unsuspecting viewers unsure how all of this will turn out. Answer: it's not a house party any sane person would want to attend.
As you might have noticed by some of the names of the characters, religion hangs heavy over the proceedings. Ladj is Christian, Yasmine is Muslim, and Bart is an atheist, and all of that figures into the plot if you know your religion. However, as per the title, much of it is the inverse of what one might expect, which is to say, a Satanic spin on Christmas and various Bible and Quran stories- note that, in addition to Joseph and Mary, there's also Eve, and what happens to Yasmine is likely meant as a dig on Muslims. Even what happens to Bart is signaled by his admitted Atheism.
As aforementioned, the title, Sheitan, means the devil- or perhaps more accurately, in this context, Satan himself. Here, in a perverse flip-flop of roles, it is Joseph that represents Satan, and what he's up to is pretty out there, and decidedly not very Christian. Also pay close attention to the story he tells at the dinner table, which heavily foreshadows some of what is to happen. Honestly, after a certain point, the film is virtually indescribable, TBH. To say that it might not be everyone's cup of tea is putting it mildly.
I should mention, this being a French film, there are subtitles involved, so if you don't care for that, this may also not be the film for you. If there's a dubbed version, I'm not aware, but I personally hate dubbing, as words not fitting the actors' mouths takes me right out of a film, so I didn't even bother to look for a dubbed version. You might feel differently. As far as I could tell, there isn't a Blu-Ray, so you'll have to stick to DVD for this one, though a 2-Disc Special Edition is available in the UK or via import for you fellow Americans.
The film was directed by Kim Chapiron (Dog Pound, Smart Ass), who co-scripted as well, along with father Christian. The eye-catching cinematography is by Alex Lamarque, who did camerawork for The Da Vinci Code and Arthur & The Invisibles the same year. His work here is similar to the fast-paced energy of Trainspotting at times, though, to his credit, he knows when to hit the brakes later on, when things get creepier.
Honestly, though, the film is worth seeing for Cassel's performance alone, which is over-the-top by even his standards, which, if you're even remotely aware of his acting career, is truly saying something. His Joseph is a true force of nature, barreling through the film like a hurricane, as he plunges towards his ultimate goal, which, like I said, has to be seen to be believed.
You also probably won't be able to unsee his turn as his character's own wife, Mary, either. Also, keep an eye out for a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo from Cassel's then-wife Monica Bellucci, as well- she's the vampire girl in the movie the cashier is watching at the convenience store. She couldn't have played his wife in this? Oh well. Maybe even she didn't want to touch this one- understandably.
Despite all the stuff I was talking about, though, the film isn't very Christmas-y. There's nary a decoration in sight, and you'd only know it was Christmas time at all from the conversations about it. Also, as you might have guessed from the above description, this is probably not the sort of film you want to watch with your family, or certain easily upset friends, lol.
But for those who like a challenging watch, boy, does it deliver the goods. If you like your Christmas movies more left of center, it doesn't get much more left of center than this. It's like Get Out, in a weird way, if it were set at Christmas time, and focused more on religion than race.
Although, there are certainly undertones of racial tension- note the ethnic slurs Joseph tosses at Thaï, Ladj and Yasmine, for instance. It definitely has a lot going on underneath the surface than most exploitation films, that's for sure, which will certainly inform subsequent re-watching: which loyal readers know is always a plus for me.
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