After tearing into the 2000s horror scene with the shocking and memorable New French Extreme entry Inside (a.k.a. À l’intérieur), filmmakers Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo have led a string of inconsistent follow-ups. The falloff began with the divisive Texas Chainsaw Massacre prequel Leatherface (2017), and then kept on with the middling aquatic haunter The Deep House (2021). Sadly, their latest effort, The Soul Eater (Le Mangeur d’âmes), shows no signs of the duo returning to form anytime soon.
Mix parts of True Detective with parts of any generic Scandinavian or hinterlands procedural thriller, and you get The Soul Eater. This plodding and predictable story begins with the two main characters, a pair of polar opposites, butting heads over a pair of cases that turn out to be connected (quelle surprise). The ragged gendarme Franck de Rolan (Paul Hamy) and the surly Elizabeth Guardiano (Virginie Ledoyen) don’t see eye to eye at first, with the latter preferring to work alone, yet once they get past their minor differences, they find some semblance of cooperation. As hackneyed as this sounds, at least it’s handled without any emotional theatrics. There is a sense of realism to this mismatched team, even if both characters are underdeveloped despite their actors’ sturdy performances.
What brings the two detectives to this small and unassuming part of France is first a bizarre care of murder-suicide — with the victims’ son left badly traumatized but alive — and then an unsolved series of child disappearances in the area. As said earlier, the cases intersect, although how so is neither a shock nor satisfying. Then enters what is now a new requisite of any contemporary European crime story: a potential folk-horror element. This region has its own boogeyman, of course; a supposed demon called the Soul Eater is brought up several times to establish the presence of the uncanny in this universe. Yet, is this horned demon really responsible for a couple’s dual fatality and the baffling abductions of kids? It would seem that way, based on the directors’ suggestive scenes of the creature’s existence.
Regretfully, The Soul Eater wins nothing in the originality department. The police cases may be of some interest for casual true crime enthusiasts, but the outcome is painfully pedestrian. In all fairness, this screenplay was penned by other parties rather than the directors: Annelyse Batrel, Alexis Laipsker, and Ludovic Lefebvre. Between the three, they have little experience other than what is presumed to be a love of detective TV shows and films. Maury and Bustillo do imbue instances of wild violence and action on occasion; the flashback of the grisly murder-suicide sticks out in an otherwise banal production. Is that enough to salvage the rest? No, not at all.
Permitting the likely fact that this directing pair will never reach the height of their career again, this restrained and cliché-ridden procedural story is borderline watchable. Will it leave any lasting impression on viewers or the crime genre down the line? It’s safe to say that won’t be the case.
The Soul Eater premiered at Fantasia Fest 2024.
Tales from the Paulside 
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