Black Moon is a surreal and thought-provoking film directed by French filmmaker Louis Malle, released in 1975. The film takes place in a dystopian world where there is a war between men and women. The young protagonist, Lily, played by Cathryn Harrison, is a runaway who seeks refuge in a countryside estate.
The estate is filled with strange and mystical characters, one of which is a unicorn, a symbol of purity and innocence. Interestingly, the unicorn is not depicted as a mythological creature in the film, but rather a living and breathing animal. The unicorn is hunted by both the men and the women for different purposes - the men want to capture and sell it, while the women want to protect it.
Lily is also introduced to a strange family, comprised of a Sister (Thérèse Giehse) and a Brother (Joe Dallesandro), numerous children, and an old woman (Alexandra Stewart) who is bedridden but communicates with the world through her radio. The family offers Lily a safe haven from the war ravaging the world.
As Lily spends more time on the estate, she becomes more entangled in the enigmatic relationships between the family members and the unicorn. The film explores themes of sexuality, gender, identity, and power through its surreal imagery and symbolism.
The film's loose narrative structure and dream-like sequences can be interpreted in many ways, and Black Moon remains a highly-regarded work of experimental cinema to this day.