Scheiß auf den Tod

The movie starts with a Chester Himes quote--a big clue to its atmosphere. Both gritty and haunting, the story concerns illegal cockfighting in France (minimal carnage), with a lot of overlaid metaphor. "Cock, man, same thing." This is a typically slow, thoughtful Claire Denis film (does any woman take on more masculine subjects?). Everything is played under the surface; in fact, the images and montage are so strong, it might as well be silent. Key motivations are implicit, not explicit. Alex Descas, as the Caribbean cock-trainer, is the soul of the movie, as a man fatally in love with another man's wife.