When the American Civil War breaks out, a family of French settlers must abandon their Missouri home to flee and go back to Paris.

In St. Louis, Missouri, 1863, a French family, attempting to abide by Napoleon’s strict rule of neutrality in the American Civil War, find their lives changed permanently when the occupation of American soldiers in the city and new laws disrupt their ability to remain impartial in the aftermath. Because of these circumstances, the family must make the difficult decision to return to France with a long, arduous journey east across the harsh terrain before sailing to Paris. Led by the taciturn but charismatic mercenary cowboy Victor, and with a bloodthirsty group of outlaws on their trail, this aristocratic family sees their bourgeois power structures begin to fall apart. Additionally, tensions run high between the patriarch Edmond, his pious wife Madeleine, their three daughters, freed-slave maid Layla, and their armed escorts. Although Victor is trusted with the task of accompanying them on their journey for guidance and protection, his past misdeeds catch up with him, thereby risking the family’s future and their safety.

David Perrault’s sophomore feature examines the Western through a European lens, exploring a highly specific period in a country on the verge of change. Eschewing conventional Civil War narratives, Perrault instead tells a revisionist story of characters seeking to avoid becoming collateral damage in a battle that is not theirs to fight. Cultures clash frequently, with results by turn tragic, romantic, violent, and even comedic, with committed performances from a largely female cast, Savage State is a feminist Western of uncommon lyricism.

Screened in French with English subtitles.

David Perrault  |  France/Canada/Belgium  |  2020  |  118 mins.