The Treasure of Bitch Islands

Director: F. J. Ossang

1990 / 108min / 4K DCP

A phantasmagoric, definition-defying film from perhaps France’s premier underground filmmaker, The Treasure of Bitch Islands begins with the mysterious disappearance of an engineer who has discovered a new energy source, and follows a post-nuclear Ulysses’s voyage to locate the substances used in the engineer’s formula, only to be found and harvested on an island of mad scientists and headhunters. An anarchic allegory with a punky sensibility, part Guy Maddin pastiche, part surrealist mix-and-match, and pure cult classic. “The shoot was madness, and some of us risked our lives a few times, especially while doing a scene on the edge of this huge volcano. Ossang was really more like a rock star than a film director… I shot the film completely inspired by him and his energy, even if I was sometimes terrified.” —Darius Khondji

Part of Radical Chiaroscuro: The Work of Darius Khondji