SYNOPSIS Querelle (Brad Davis) is a sailor on shore leave in the French port of Brest. Following an argument, in which he stabs and kills his drug-smuggling partner, he seeks shelter in a nearby brothel. After befriending predatory madam, Lysiane (Jeanne Moreau), Querelle embarks upon a voyage of highly charged and sometimes violent sexual self-discovery that will transform him forever from the man he once was…
THE LOWDOWN Adapted from Jean Genet's infamous 1947 novel, the final film in celebrated director Rainer Werner Fassbinder's career is a powerful tale of lust and murder that has gone on to become a cult classic. Brad Davis plays the title character, the ruggedly handsome and lethal sailor who sets both men and women’s hearts aflutter, including Franco Nero’s closeted officer and Jeanne Moreau’s aging chanteuse. Not one of Fassbinder’s best, but its potent themes, surreal staging and Davis’ narcissistic performance make it a fascinating oddity.
THE UK DVD RELEASE The Artificial Eye Blu-ray and DVD release presents the film in its 16 x 9/ 2:35:1 aspect ratio with a choice of English, German or French languages, with English subtitles. The extras include an introduction by Tin Drum director Volker Schlöndorff (in French, with subtitles), and the mini-documentary, Twilight of the Bodies: Fassbinder in Search of Querelle (33mins, in French with subtitles).
Available on Blu-ray and DVD, and also available to stream on-line from Artificial Eye Films on YouTube
