The Shroudsfrom seminal directorDavid Cronenbergpremiered at Cannes this week,but its journey began as a concept for a 10-episode series pitched to Netflix. During a press conference for the sci-fi thriller, Cronenberg revealed thatNetflixexecs rejected the project (viaThe Hollywood Reporter). According to Cronenberg, the streamer’s executives liked the script for the first episode but did not want to move forward after the second episode.
“They said – and this is a very Hollywood thing to say – ‘It’s not what we fell in love with in the room,'” Cronenberg said. “Later, I felt that what they fell in love with in the room was me, which was very flattering, but not the script. I felt I can’t let this die, let’s see if we can turn it into a movie… It could be a series, but it doesn’t have to be.”
The Shroudsholds deep personal meaningfor Cronenberg, a director whose filmography includes iconic works likeScanners, Videodrome, The Fly, andCrimes of the Future. The Shroudsreflects a tragic event in Cronenberg’s own life: the loss of his wife Carolyn to cancer in 2017, which mirrors the loss suffered by the film’s protagonist. Vincent Cassel portrays Karsh, an innovative businessman grappling with grief after his wife’s death, who builds a device to connect with the dead inside a burial shroud.
Along with Cassel,The Shroudsstars Diane Kruger as Karsh’s late wife, Becca and her sister, Terry. Guy Pearce, Sandrine Holt, and Elizabeth Saunders round out the cast.
David Cronenberg’s The Shrouds Opens to Mixed Reviews
The Shrouds
Described as Cronenberg’s “most personal film”, Cassel plays Karsh, a grieving widower, who builds an innovative device to help people connect with the dead.
Despite receiving three-and-a-half-minute applause at its Cannes premiere on May 20th, critical reception forThe Shroudsremains divided. Currently sitting at a 55% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 11 reviews, the film has garnered opinions at both ends of the spectrum.IndieWirepraises it as “enormously rewarding” (awarding it an A-), whileThe Daily Telegraphlabels it “the steepest disappointment of Cronenberg’s late career.” Some critics fall somewhere in between, acknowledging the film’s stylish and darkly humorous exploration of grief but finding its narrative direction occasionally falls flat.
The Shrouds Teaser Trailer Brings David Cronenberg’s Latest Dark Horror to Life
The king of venereal horror, David Cronenberg, is bringing another dark and twisted tale to cinemas with The Shrouds.
Cronenberg is aware thatThe Shroudsis dividing critics, and he finds the notion that some have overlooked the film’s conspiracy element “ignorant” and “stupid.”
“If you’re an atheist like I am and you don’t believe in an afterlife then the death of someone is meaningless… It’s very difficult for people to live with no meaning,” he said.
“One way that you can create meaning when perhaps there isn’t any, is to come up with a theory, a conspiracy, that explains why a person died… Whatever the conspiracy is, it gives you a sense of knowledge and power that you know something that other people don’t know. It empowers you. These very stupid journalists who did not see this, there was a purpose to it. You might think it doesn’t work is one thing, but to not notice it to me is a problem as a filmmaker.”
Cronenberg is not the only acclaimed filmmaker to have recently revealed a Netflix rejection. Last month, David Lynch shared that thestreamer had turned down his animated featureSnootworld. TheTwin Peaksco-creator shared he is still looking for financial backers forSnootworld, which he co-wrote alongside Caroline Thompson (The Nightmare Before Christmas).
