The Woman from the End of the World begins as a Jules Verne-ish adventure tale, with two sailors exploring the Southern Ocean in search of mineral riches. They find radium on an island inhabited by the title character, her mad husband and their child. Misfortune ensues when every man from the expedition falls in love with her. This film, Epstein’s last feature (although he would continue making shorts and documentaries), is closer to his Breton films than his other “mainstream” work of the mid- to late 1930s.  The setting allows Epstein the opportunity to make poetic use of the convergence of wind, sea and a wild landscape.

A more conventional documentary than Epstein’s other films set in the region, Brittany nevertheless brims with the director’s enthusiasm for France’s rugged northwest: its landscapes and workaday life, ship launches and open-air markets, church processions and folk dances.