Boundaries, divisions, dualisms as well as themes of exile, identity, and empire’s orphaned territories—all pervade Disco Boy’s lean 90 minutes as it nimbly navigates the aftermath of far-reaching colonial enterprises. The narratives follow Belarusian Aleksei (Franz Rogowski) and Nigerian siblings Jomo (Morr Ndiaye) and Udoka (Laetitia Ky), all of whom are experiencing an acute crisis of nationhood and self.
Featuring an intensely haunting Franz Rogowski as a Belarusian man who joins the French Foreign Legion in order to obtain French – and thus European – citizenship, this atmospheric drama explores postcolonial aggression, petrochemical greed, and the hidden depths that can lurk within mercenaries.