Feature1986·119m·7.1

Mauvais Sang

Love that burns fast but lasts forever.

DramaRomanceCrime

Two aging crooks are given two weeks to repay a debt to a woman named The American. They recruit their recently deceased partner's son to help them break into a laboratory and steal the vaccine against STBO, a sexually transmitted disease that is sweeping the country. It's spread by having sex without emotional involvement, and most of its victims are teenagers who make love out of curiosity rather than commitment.

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Cast

Juliette Binoche

Anna

Denis Lavant

Alex

Michel Piccoli

Marc

Hans Meyer

Hans

Julie Delpy

Lise

Carroll Brooks

The American

Hugo Pratt

Boris

Mireille Perrier

Young Mother

Serge Reggiani

Charlie

Jérôme Zucca

Thomas

Paul Handford

Charles Schmitt

François Négret

Philippe Fretun

Thomas Peckre

Ralph Brown

Eric Vasberg

Leos Carax

Neighborhood Voyeur (uncredited)

Details

Status
Released
Original language
French
Languages
French
Budget
Revenue
Age rating
Quality
4K UHD · HDR10 · Dolby Vision
Production
SoprofilmsLes Films Plain ChantFR3 Films Production

Crew

Director

Leos Carax

Writers

Leos Carax

Jean-Yves Escoffier

Director of Photography

Nelly Quettier

Editor

Jacques Dubus

Production Design

Thomas Peckre

Production Design

Michel Vandestien

Production Design

Dominique Gregogna

Costume Design

Gallery

Reviews

Walruse

1/7/2018

8.0

Mauvais Sang is at core a crime movie, but the crime serves only as a skeleton. The flesh is the passion of unrequited love and the cerebral processing of the same. Lise loves Alex who loves Anna that loves Mark. Mark, on the other hand, is afraid of The American Woman who was once lovers with Alex father and who will kill him unless he pays the debts of himself and his companions within two weeks. In the nerve system is the libido at hold as a strange virus affects untruthful lovers, which is also the device that cuts through the entire body of the movie. Finally on the skin is an abnormal heat wave caused by the vicinity of Haley's Comet. It is a full bodied movie, and as French as it is, the performance uses full body language as well. While there are a few exaggerated moments that may not appeal to all audiences, there are others that make well up for them.

griggs79

3/26/2025

7.0

_Mauvais Sang_ made me feel cooler just for watching it—like I’d chain-smoked a Gauloises in a neon-lit alley while reciting poetry to nobody in particular. It’s moody, stylish, and occasionally baffling, but there’s real heart pulsing beneath all that noir-drenched angst. I loved Juliette Binoche smouldering on screen, and Julie Delpy has that effortlessly aloof charm that just works. And Dennis Lavant—my god, the man dances. That scene? Electric. I honestly think it should be a law: Lavant must dance in every film. Not just the ones he’s in—every film. The plot wobbles here and there, but the vibes? Impeccable.