The surreal tale of a young sailor (Brad Davis, star of Midnight Express) searching out his homosexual identity. Querelle's journey of self-discovery begins when he slits the throat of his opium-smuggling partner in the seedy port of Brest. Visiting a brothel run by the licentious Lysiane (Jeanne Moreau), Querelle has his first homosexual encounter and falls in love with fellow murderer, Gil, before suffering the ultimate betrayal. Set in the sultry glow of a permanent sunset, Fassbinder's concluding cinematic statement is suffused with a sweaty, tangible eroticism and is testimony to a daring film career.