The story centers on a grieving heterosexual couple—credited simply as “He” (Willem Dafoe) and “She” (Charlotte Gainsbourg)—who retreat to their cabin after their infant son Nic dies in an accident. The narrative explores raw grief, sexual violence, sadomasochism, and allegorical ideas linking femininity, nature, and chaos through explicit scenes including genital mutilation and witchcraft motifs, framed around Edenic and biblical imagery. Casting is entirely traditional with no race- or gender-swapping of established characters, no added diversity mandates, and no foregrounding of identity traits.

The film’s gender themes explicitly engage ideas of women’s “evil nature” and gynocide research by the female lead, which drew widespread accusations of misogyny and an anti-award at Cannes rather than any celebration as progressive. No creator statements frame the work as activism, DEI, or critiques of traditional norms in a modern social-justice sense; instead, it delivers nihilistic, allegorical horror that challenges audiences through extremity, not messaging. Audience and critical reception focused on graphic content and perceived anti-feminism, with no “woke” controversies or identity-politics framing. The premise and execution remain rooted in classic psychological horror and personal despair without any contemporary activist overlay.