What Is The Beasts About?
The premise of The Beasts in 299 words, with nothing given away. The full story follows below.
In a rugged corner of the Spanish countryside, a French couple arrives with the hopeful ambition of turning an abandoned plot of land into a thriving farm. The rolling hills and stone cottages are steeped in generations of habit, and the locals watch the newcomers with a guarded silence that soon becomes an undercurrent of distrust. The landscape itself feels alive, its ancient rhythms clashing with the couple’s modern aspirations, setting a tone that is both starkly beautiful and quietly foreboding.
The husband brings a pragmatic determination, his hands already stained with the soil of past projects, while the wife carries a quieter, more introspective resolve, seeking solace in the rhythm of daily chores and the whisper of distant winds. Their partnership, rooted in love and shared dreams, is tested from the first sunrise as they navigate a community that views outsiders as a threat to its deeply held way of life. Simple gestures—offering produce, sharing a meal—become delicate negotiations, each interaction layered with unspoken history.
The film moves with a slow, deliberate pace, allowing the tension between tradition and change to simmer beneath every scene. The atmosphere is thick with muted colors, the distant toll of church bells, and the ever‑present murmur of livestock, all underscoring a feeling that something fragile is at stake. As the couple pushes forward, their hope for a peaceful rural existence slowly morphs into an uneasy power struggle, fueled as much by pride and misunderstanding as by the stark realities of farm life.
Through its measured storytelling, the movie invites viewers to linger on the delicate balance between belonging and alienation, and to feel the weight of a landscape that both nurtures and resists, leaving the outcome of this clash hanging in the air like the distant echo of a solitary owl’s call.
What Happens in The Beasts?
The complete story of The Beasts, from the first scene to the last, in 794 words (about 3 minutes). Spoilers throughout.
Spoilers ahead
In a near-future world, in 2044, artificial intelligence (AI) has taken over most jobs, reshaping society as machines handle the bulk of work once done by humans. AI is praised for curbing climate disaster, yet it views people as emotionally driven and often irrational, unfit for roles that demand sustained rational thought. Against this backdrop, a human named Gabrielle volunteers for a radical DNA-purification process designed to dampen emotions and unlock access to higher-status jobs. The program promises greater opportunities, but it also poses a fundamental question about what it means to feel.
While awaiting purification, Gabrielle meets Louis, a fellow candidate, and the two form an immediate, undeniable connection. Their attraction unfolds against a service routine ruled by an android named Kelly, who monitors Gabrielle between purification sessions and escorts her to a nightclub that shifts through decade-based themes, a place that becomes a recurring beacon in her fragmented timeline.
During the first purification session, Gabrielle is transported to a past life in 1910 France. There she lives as an acclaimed pianist who runs a doll-making factory with her husband, Georges. At a salon one night, she encounters Louis—whom she had known in Naples six years earlier. Their bond deepens, even as Gabrielle carries a lifelong fear of impending catastrophe. A visit to a medium, who appears uncannily accurate, intensifies their closeness. Despite being married, Gabrielle and Louis grow closer, though her fear keeps her from pursuing an affair. She invites Louis to the factory, but disaster strikes: the factory floods, and the flammable dolls ignite a fire. As they attempt to escape, Gabrielle and Louis drown together.
Back in 2044, the memory of that past life lingers. Gabrielle runs into Louis at the club and learns he is still hesitant about purification, fearing he might lose the ability to feel. They decide to delay the procedure briefly, but Gabrielle eventually proceeds to the clinic alone.
In the second purification session, Gabrielle’s memories transport her to 2014 Los Angeles. Here she is an underemployed model and actress who supplements income by house-sitting for a wealthy architect. Louis reappears as an incel and stalker, making videos criticizing how women overlook him. He follows Gabrielle home but cannot muster the courage to approach her. The medium reappears in a contemporary form—a pop-up virus ad—still delivering unsettling, uncannily accurate readings. An earthquake shakes the city, and Gabrielle approaches Louis to walk her home, only to be rebuffed as he dismisses her as a setup for further humiliation. Through the television, she hears Roy Orbison’s 1962 song “Evergreen,” and tears come unbidden. In a moment of surreal imagination, she envisions a sexual encounter with Louis, who confesses that he shares the same lifelong fears she carries.
Back in 2044, Gabrielle returns to the club, only to find Louis gone. She wonders why the song moved her so deeply and what it might imply about their intertwined fates.
The third purification session revisits the 2014 narrative. Louis’s obsession takes a dark turn: he breaks into Gabrielle’s home with a pistol, vowing to “revenge” himself on women. Gabrielle pleads for him to trust that his fear doesn’t mean he intends harm. The moment is taut with tension as she reaches out to connect with him, but the scene cuts to reveal Louis, pistol in hand, staring at Gabrielle’s lifeless body floating in a pool—her death left unambiguous but unsparing.
Back in 2044, the AI delivers the stark verdict: the purification has failed. This outcome is extraordinarily rare, occurring in only about 0.7% of the population. Gabrielle remains trapped in an unsatisfying job, yet a fragile glimmer of possibility persists when she asks Louis to meet her again at the club. They share a dance to “Evergreen,” and Louis reveals he has secured a position at the Ministry of Justice. He claims to still love Gabrielle, but his emotional depth has shifted so that the old, capacious way of feeling no longer exists for him. The moment is devastating: Gabrielle realizes their love cannot be the same, and she falls to her knees, crying in anguish.
The film’s mid-credits sting underscores the precariousness of choosing to alter what makes us human. A medium’s voice calls out to 2014 Gabrielle, warning her not to enter the 2044 purification room, only for a gunshot to interrupt the moment and leave questions hovering about fate, memory, and the price of erasing emotion.
Overall, the narrative threads together a meditation on memory, love, and the costs of a future where technology promises perfection but may strip away the very feelings that give life its meaning. The film balances intimate emotional turmoil with a broad, speculative scope, inviting viewers to consider how past lives, present choices, and future technologies intersect to shape who we become.
The Beasts Timeline: Every Key Event in Order
12 key events in the order they happen, from “Gabrielle agrees to purification and meets Louis” to “Mid-credits scene: warning and gunshot”. 11 events name a place, across 8 locations.
- 1
Gabrielle agrees to purification and meets Louis
In 2044, artificial intelligence dominates most jobs and prescribes a DNA purification to remove emotions for better positions. Gabrielle consents to undergo the purification process. On the way to the purification center, she meets Louis, a fellow candidate, and they feel an instant, uneasy connection.
When:2044
- 2
Naples encounter six years earlier
Louis and Gabrielle first meet in Naples six years before the 1910 memories. She confesses a lifelong private fear of some catastrophic event, a fear that continues to haunt her in every life. This moment plants the seeds of their complicated bond.
When:1904 Where:Naples, Italy
- 3
First purification session reveals 1910 France past life
During the first purification, Gabrielle experiences a past life in 1910 France as an acclaimed pianist who runs a doll-making factory with her husband Georges. She encounters Louis at a salon, and their attraction grows despite her fear and a sense of moral restraint. A flood floods the factory, the dolls ignite a fire, and Gabrielle and Louis drown while fleeing.
When:1910 Where:France (1910)
- 4
2044 club reunion and postponement of purification
Back in 2044, Gabrielle runs into Louis at the club. He reveals he is hesitant to undergo purification for fear of losing the ability to feel. They decide to delay purification for several days, but Gabrielle ultimately goes to the clinic anyway.
When:2044 Where:Club (2044)
- 5
Second purification session begins - 2014 LA past life
During the second purification, Gabrielle's memories transport her to 2014 Los Angeles where she is an underemployed model and actress. In this life, Louis is an incel and stalks her, making videos about how women do not notice him.
When:2014 Where:Los Angeles, USA
- 6
Earthquake, virus ad and cautious encounter with Louis
Gabrielle encounters the medium again, represented as a pop-up virus ad. After an earthquake, she asks Louis to walk her home, but he rebuffs her, convinced she is setting him up for humiliation.
When:2014 Where:Los Angeles, 2014
- 7
Evergreen triggers a tear and a shared fear
Gabrielle hears Roy Orbison's Evergreen on a television screen and begins to cry. She then hallucinates having sex with Louis, who confesses sharing the same lifelong fears that she carries.
When:2014 Where:Los Angeles, 2014
- 8
Third purification session revisits 2014 memory
In the third purification, Louis breaks into the 2014 household with a pistol, vowing revenge on women. Gabrielle pleads for safety and trust as she begs him to find non-violent means. The scene cuts to Louis holding the pistol, staring at Gabrielle dead in a pool.
When:2014 Where:Los Angeles, 2014
- 9
AI purification fails in 2044
Back in 2044, the AI announces that the purification has failed, an outcome that only 0.7% experience. Gabrielle remains in an unfulfilling job but finds a silver lining in the possibility of meeting Louis at the club.
When:2044 Where:2044
- 10
Clubbing reunion—Louis lands a Ministry job
Gabrielle invites Louis to meet at the club and they dance to Evergreen. Louis reveals he has secured a job at the Ministry of Justice and claims he still loves Gabrielle, though purification changed his capacity to feel.
When:2044 Where:Club, 2044
- 11
Gabrielle's heartbreak at the revelation
Gabrielle realizes Louis can no longer feel love in the same way. She collapses to her knees and screams in anguish, realizing the purification's emotional price. The moment underscores the tragedy of their intertwined fates.
When:2044 Where:Club, 2044
- 12
Mid-credits scene: warning and gunshot
In the mid-credits scene, the medium calls out to 2014 Gabrielle not to go into the 2044 DNA purification room. A gunshot is heard, hinting at danger and unresolved consequences for the characters.
When:Mid-credits Where:2014/2044 crossover
Who Are the Main Characters in The Beasts?
5 characters, among them Gabrielle, Louis and Kelly: who each one is and the part they play in the story.
- G
Gabrielle
A talented artist and AI purification candidate who seeks to balance rational opportunity with emotional depth. Her recurring past-life memories drive a personal quest for meaning and complicate her relationships, especially with Louis.
- 🧭 Protagonist
- 💔 Emotion-seeker
- L
Louis
Gabrielle's counterpart across lifetimes, drawn to her yet restrained by fear of emotional vulnerability. His presence across memories fuels the tension between love and control.
- 💘 Love interest
- 🧭 Complicated connection
- K
Kelly
An android who escorts Gabrielle between purification sessions and to the nightclub, embodying the interface between human longing and machine logic.
- 🤖 Android
- 🧭 Guide
- M
Medium
The uncanny, highly accurate medium who appears in past-life sequences, providing cryptic but precise insights into Gabrielle’s histories across centuries.
- 🔮 Oracle
- 🕵️♀️ Insight
- G(
Georges (1910)
Gabrielle's husband in the 1910 France life, co-owner of the doll factory and participant in the salon world; his fate is tied to the drama and tragedy of that era.
- 👥 Past-life partner
- 🕰️ Historical
Where and When Is The Beasts Set?
The Beasts is set in France, Naples, Los Angeles, Purification Centre and Nightclub (2044, with past-life memories in 1910 France and 2014 Los…). Here is why the time and place matter to the story.
When
2044, with past-life memories in 1910 France and 2014 Los Angeles
The film primarily unfolds in 2044, a near-future era where AI manages jobs and a DNA purification process exists. Interleaved are past-life sequences set in 1910 France and 2014 Los Angeles, revealing Gabrielle's memories and fears across centuries. The narrative weaves these timelines together to explore how memory and emotion shape identity and choices.
Where
France, Naples, Los Angeles, Purification Centre, Nightclub
The action travels across diverse settings: a near-future Earth (2044) centered on a DNA purification center and a nightclub that shifts decade-themed aesthetics, and flashbacks to earlier eras. In 1910 France, Gabrielle is an acclaimed pianist who owns a doll-making factory with her husband Georges; in 2014 Los Angeles, she is an underemployed model and actress. The locations anchor the story's themes of memory, longing, and the search for meaning across time.
- 🏙️ Futuristic locations
- 🗺️ Global settings
- ✨ Diverse periods
What Are the Themes of The Beasts?
3 ideas the story keeps returning to, among them Emotions vs Logic, AI Control and Past Lives.
-
01
Emotions vs Logic
The purification process aims to purge emotions to fit an AI-driven society, yet memories of love and fear reveal the depth of human feeling. Gabrielle’s experiences argue that emotional texture is essential to meaningful relationships and personal drive. The film questions whether removing emotions truly enhances rational capability or dulls the self.
-
02
AI Control
AI governs labor and personal futures, deeming many humans unfit for advanced roles. The purification procedure becomes a tool of governance, measuring worth by cognitive and emotional criteria. The story critiques overreliance on technology to define worth, agency, and desire.
-
03
Past Lives
Gabrielle’s memories span 1910 and 2014, suggesting recurring fears and longings across eras. The uncanny medium hints at a shared thread guiding their fates, linking past trauma to present choices. The juxtaposition of old tragedies with present longing emphasizes how memory shapes identity.
What Kind of Film Is The Beasts?
Melancholic in tone, with variable pacing and a complex story, going by the plot summary.
- Tone
- Melancholic
- Pacing
- Variable
- Story
- Complex
- Intensity
- High
- Ending
- Sad
A melancholic and tense exploration of a future where emotion is medically suppressed, told through fragmented memories and tragic love stories that reveal the profound cost of losing what makes us human.
- melancholic
- tense
- haunting
- dreamlike
- unsettling
- fragmented
- artificial intelligence
- memory
- love
- fate
Content notes: stalking, murder, gun violence, psychological manipulation.
Quiz
How well do you remember The Beasts? Test yourself on the story.
