Harrowing Melodrama in “A Different Man”

Tristan and Connie’s dilemma is nothing compared with the issues plaguing the couple at the heart of Bertrand Bonello’s new film, “The Beast” (in limited release starting April 5), a tripartite romance spanning Belle Époque France, twenty-tens California, and a placeless, dystopian future. The story opens in the year 2044, where Gabrielle (Léa Seydoux, in a knockout performance) has elected to undergo an operation that will excise pesky human emotions, helping her to keep pace with A.I. counterparts in the workforce. A nonsensical premise—the procedure involves “purifying” her DNA by dredging up memories from past lives—yields an utterly unique, unexpectedly affecting drama. In every time line, Gabrielle meets a version of Louis (George MacKay), turning the treatment into a double-edged sword: the more she sees of their seemingly cosmic bond, the less certain she is that she wants to cut herself off from it.