Léa Seydoux as Gabrielle, with George MacKay.
TWENTY YEARS FROM now, in Bertrand Bonello’s vision of the future The Beast, artificial intelligence has taken control after a mysterious event changed the course of history. To remove any chance of another calamity, the robots have created a machine that helps humans live out their ancestors’ past lives. They thus become emotionally numb – and therefore stable – in the present day.
The message is clear: if we’re not careful, technology will eat away at what makes us human. “It’s not that much science fiction,” the French filmmaker remarks. “It’s something we are going through now. I mean, technology, it’s a tool, and humans must be the master of a tool, not the contrary. And now it’s getting a little scary.”