David Cronenberg isn’t slowing down at the age of 81, and why should he with body horror more popular than ever right now. Next month Janus Films will release his latest film, The Shrouds, and this is shaping up to be a big one for the legendary filmmaker as it explores death, grief, and loss in a more intimate way than usual.
Cronenberg has called The Shrouds his most personal work ever, as it was inspired by the grief he felt after his wife’s death in 2017. Originally envisioned as a Netflix series, the film stars Vincent Cassel as Karsh, an innovative businessman and widower who fashions a unique device that allows grieving family members to watch their deceased loved ones decompose in real-time. When someone breaks into Karsh’s cemetery and begins desecrating graves, including that of his wife, he must discover who and why.
Also in the cast are Diane Kruger, Guy Pearce, Elizabeth Saunders, and Sandrine Holt. Cronenberg wrote and directed the film, his first since 2022’s Crimes of the Future. He’s suggested this could be his swansong, as well, making this a must-see for his legion of fans.
SYNOPSIS: In an eerie, deceptively placid near-future, a techno-entrepreneur named Karsh has developed a new software that will allow the bereaved to bear witness to the gradual decay of loved ones dead and buried in the earth. While Karsh is still reeling from the loss of his wife from cancer—and falling into a peculiar sexual relationship with his wife’s sister—a spate of vandalized graves utilizing his “shroud” technology begins to put his enterprise at risk, leading him to uncover a potentially vast conspiracy.
The Shrouds opens in NY/LA theaters on April 18th, with a wider rollout on April 25th.
