‘Species’ Review: A Visceral, Intelligently Fleshed Out Body Horror

Blood is only the beginning in Marion Le Corroller’s Species, which follows firmly in the trail pioneered by Julia DuCorneau but brings its own thoughts to the woman-in-a-man’s-world body-horror genre. Built around a fantastic scream-queen performance from Mara Taquin, who literally comes out of her shell in ways that will not be revealed here, Le Corroller’s film taps into the sinister sci-fi paranoia that feeds David Cronenberg’s early movies and throws in a hefty dose of social satire that recalls Nicolas Ray’s Bigger Than Life.

It begins with a dark but broadly comedic prologue set in a fast-food joint called Bloody Burger. Under pressure to keep things moving, the server has a fixed rictus grin for every customer, but the smile fades when he gets into a spat with an annoying TikTok influencer, who threatens to get him fired if he won’t give him his favorite Royal King burger. Finally, the server snaps; a red mist literally falls across his eyes and he knocks the influencer to the ground, where he repeatedly and savagely smashes his head into the floor.

The style is almost knockabout, with a color palette reminiscent of Coralie Fargeat, but Sanguine quickly evolves into its own thing with the arrival of Taquin as Margot, a medical student at a nearby hospital. Margot is eager to learn but finds herself too slow for the ER department — which expects every doctor to treat 25 patients a day — and especially her boss, Professor Virgile. Very much in the tradition of Cronenberg’s icily cerebral villains, Professor Virgile is one step ahead of Margot, correctly divining that she has come to medicine after the unnecessary death of a parent, which is why her turnover rate is so low. “Stop treating every patient like your mother,” she advises coldly, but reasonably.

Margot’s room is dark and dingy, more like a cell with its anti-suicide windows, and the mattress shows unsavory traces of what looks very much like blood. Nevertheless, she puts on a brave face and fits in well with the team, making friends with her easygoing neighbor Louis (Sami Outalbali). One of Margot’s first cases is a pregnant stock-market trader who suffers from insomnia and an ugly rash on her back. Margot goes to summon Professor Virgile, but the woman flees in her absence. Shortly after, Margot starts experiencing some of the same symptoms, beginning with unexplained bleeding that starts small — until the morning she wakes up covered in the stuff. Louis diagnoses hematidrosis, a harmless condition caused by stress, but as cases of unexplained violence skyrocket in the area — all accompanied by spots, rashes and other unsightly skin conditions — Margot starts to recognize a pattern.

It takes a while for the story to circle back to the burger bar, but it does so in a funny and wholly unexpected way that adds depth to the pulpy premise, drawing parallels with fast food and modern health care in an ever more punishing winner-takes-all culture. Key to its success is Taquin’s satisfying character arc, which gives the film its English-language title (rather than the original French one, Sanguine). The supporting cast, too, add an air of authenticity that helps with the suspension of disbelief when Margot realizes what’s actually going on.

But Le Corroller is definitely in charge here, orchestrating the squishy mayhem right up to the unusually bleak climax that fully delivers on the premise. If anyone has the remake rights to Larry Cohen’s It’s Alive, your director’s right here.

Title: Species
Festival: Cannes (Midnight)
Director/screenwriter: Marion Le Corroller
Cast: Mara Taquin, Karin Viard, Kim Higelin, Sami Outalbali, Stefan Crepon
Sales: WTFilms
Running time: 1 hr 22 mins