She Is Conann — Official Trailer

added: Fri, Jan 5th '24

French experimental filmmaker Bertrand Mandico takes the mythology of Conan the Barbarian and gives it a unique twist by swapping genders and infusing it with a Fellini-esque dystopian aesthetic. And from the looks of things, the result is a visually mesmerizing fever dream that blends equal parts psychedelia and barbarism. File this under, mind-bending head-scratchers.

Check out the official U.S. trailer for "She Is Conann," a post-apocalyptic sword-and-sorcery fantasy film with a matriarchal twist, drawing from the legacy of Conan the Barbarian and Sumerian myth. What sets this apart is its predominantly female and queer-friendly cast, led by Elina Lowensohn ("Let the Corpses Tan" and "Schindler's List"), Christa Theret ("Renoir"), Sandra Parfait ("Lupin"), Julia Riedler ("Luz"), and Claire Duburcq ("1917").

Bertrand Mandico's "She Is Conann," which he both wrote and directed, received favorable reviews when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year. The film is now set to arrive in the United States, debuting in select theaters on February 2, with additional cities to follow.

synopsis:
In a barbaric fantasy sci-fi trip through time, sword-and-sorcery mythology is bent, fractured, and gender-swapped by master visionary Bertrand Mandico in his third feature epic. Six lives, six eras, and six deaths mark Conann's poetic journey through different incarnations and lesbian loves. Guiding Conann through her many epic lives is Elina Lowensohn ('Amateur', 'Let the Corpses Tan') as Rainer, a Cerberus of many otherworldly dimensions whose paparazzi camera sees all. The perversity of 'The Wild Boys' and the hero's journey of 'After Blue (Dirty Paradise)' come together in this even greater handmade homage as Mandico ropes in influences as lush as 'Fellini Satyricon', 'The Night Porter', 'The Hunger', and Fassbinder's entire oeuvre to craft a moving portrait of a warrior trying to find her place while outside of space, time, and meaning. This official selection of Cannes Directors' Fortnight, Fantastic Fest, and Sitges "thrives on its own bizarre extravagance as it pushes the limits of substance and style" (Collider).

directed by Bertrand Mandico

starring Elina Lowensohn, Christa Theret, Sandra Parfait, Julia Riedler, Claire Duburcq, Agata Buzek, Nathalie Richard, Francoise Brion

release date February 2, 2024 (in select U.S. theaters)