culture

April 7, 2026

The Stranger review

François Ozon’s adaptation of the 1942 novella L’Etranger passionately honours the original text while bringing a contemporary perspective to its themes of empire and race

The Stranger review

TL;DR

  • The film is a monochrome adaptation of Albert Camus's novella 'L’Etranger', set in 1940s French Algeria and filmed in Morocco.
  • It stars Benjamin Voisin as Meursault, a man seemingly indifferent to his own life and the death of his mother.
  • Meursault is put on trial for murder, with his actions, particularly shooting an Algerian man on the beach, examined through a lens of existentialism and potential racism.
  • The adaptation brings a contemporary perspective to the themes of empire and race, offering a critique of the original text.
  • Ozon's film highlights Meursault's refusal to explain his motives, famously stating, 'It was because of the sun.'
  • The adaptation provides names for characters like the victim (Moussa) and his sister (Djemila), unlike the novella.
  • The film suggests Meursault might be a martyr whose martyrdom is ultimately absurd, representing a violent endpoint of imperialism.

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