Everlasting Moments DVD Review

Everlasting Moments - An E1 Films Release

On DVD: September 8th, 2009

Rated PG for mature themes and violence

Running time: 131 minutes

Jan Troell (dir.)

Niklas Rådström (screenplay)

Jan Troell (story)

Agneta Ulfsäter-Troell (story)

Matti Bye (music)

Maria Heiskanen as Maria Larsson

Mikael Persbrandt as Sigfrid Larsson

Jesper Christensen as Sebastian Pedersen

Callin Öhrvall as Maja Larsson (age 15-22)

Nellie Almgren as Maja Larsson (age 8-10)

Birte Heribertsson as Maja Larsson (narration) / Aunt Tora

Our reviews below:

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Everlasting Moments DVD Review By John C.

*** (out of 4)

Everlasting Moments is the story of a woman in Sweden who discovers a love of photography behind the back of her abusive husband. She takes pictures, and is entranced at how she can capture a moment. It takes place in the 1900’s. Anyone with an interest in classic photography or foreign cinema is sure to find it very interesting.

Everlasting Moments is a well made film. The acting is good, the cinematography is fine, and the music is nice. It’s also a very personal story for the director, Jan Troell. But at times it’s moments are far too everlasting. The film goes on for 131 minutes, even though the story could have easily been told in under 2 hours. It’s a very slow moving drama, and I found it’s scenes of abuse to be very tiring to watch.

The only extra on the DVD is the film's trailer.

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Everlasting Moments DVD Review By Erin V.

***1/4 (out of 4)

Based on a true story, Everlasting Moments is a Swedish film about a woman who lives with her alcoholic husband and her ever growing group of children. In order to keep her sanity, she takes pictures on an old camera that she finds at the back of their closet.

The story is told by her eldest daughter Maja's point of view. While the film is well made, it is very slow moving and often dark. Obviously, it is based on a true story, so presumably it is being told as it was.

Personally, I enjoyed watching it, in part due to the fact that I like hearing Swedish as a language. It is also an interesting film though. You can watch the trailer here. It's certainly not a bad film if you're interested in the story.

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Everlasting Moments DVD Review By Nicole

*** (out of 4)

Review Coming Soon!

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Everlasting Moments DVD Review By Maureen

**1/2 (out of 4)

Review N/A

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Everlasting Moments DVD Review By Tony

**** (out of 4)

Everlasting Moments (Maria Larssons Eviga Ögonblick), based on the memoirs of Maja Larsson (Nellie Almgren/Callin Öhrvall), follows the story of her mother Maria (Maria Heiskanen), who held her large family together during the first two decades of the 20th century. While her husband Sigfrid (Mikael Persbrandt) worked as a longshoreman (when not on strike during this period of socialist unrest), did his military service during the 1st World War and later worked as a hauler, Maria helped make ends meet first as a house cleaner, then a seamstress, and finally as a photographer. Maria always stood by but also stood up to Sigfrid, through periods of abusive drunkenness and dalliances with a barmaid. When Maria found a camera won in a raffle and took it to the shop of photographer Sebastian Pedersen (Jesper Christensen) to pawn it, he encouraged her to try it out first, providing all the plates and chemicals she would need to take and develop her own pictures. Impressed by her photographer’s eye, Mr. Pedersen continued to mentor her and she soon took on clients of her own.

Now in his late 70s, Jan Troell has cowritten and directed this touching story with a sure hand, a fine cast including great kids and beautiful camera work by Mischa Gavrjusjov and Troell himself. Though over two hours long, it moves quickly, free of the brooding sometimes associated with Scandinavian films. The period of a century ago is flawlessly reproduced, reminding me of some of the best films from Canada such as Mon Oncle Antoine and J. A. Martin, Photographe.

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Consensus: ***1/4 (Out of 4)

Séraphine

Séraphine

Release Date: July 17th, 2009

Rated PG not recommended for children

Running time: 121 minutes

http://www.seraphine-lefilm.com/

Marten Provost (dir.)

Marc Abdelnour (writer)

Martin Provost (writer)

Michael Galasso (music)

Yolande Moreau as Séraphine Louis, dite Séraphine de Senlis

Ulrich Tukur as Wilhelm Uhde

Anne Bennent as Anne-Marie Uhde

Geneviève Mnich as Mme Duphot

Nico Rogner as Helmut Kolle

Adélaïde Leroux as Minouche

Serge Larivière as Duval

Françoise Lebrun as La mère supérieure

Séraphine (Yolande Moreau) and Wilhem Uhde (Ulrich Tukur) - Photo Courtesy of E1 Entertainment

Our reviews below:

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Séraphine Review By John C.

*** (out of 4)

Séraphine Louis was a painter who lived in the Senlis, France. Séraphine follows her in the last 28 years of her life. By day, she works for a rich family, scrubbing their floors and washing their clothes, by night she is a painter. Using whatever materials she can, mixed with white paint that she buys with her small earnings, she paints onto small pieces of wood, mainly using her fingers. She creates, mainly, still-life's of fruit. When an art collector becomes the new tenent in the house, he discovers Séraphine’s natural artistic abilities.

At just over two hours, the film does go on a bit longer then it needs to. What keeps the film worth seeing is Yolande Moreau’s excellent perfomance as Séraphine, and Laurent Brunet’s beautiful cinematography of France.

While the film is too slow for those who like more action, if you're patient with it’s pace you should definitely see Séraphine. Fully deserving of it’s 9 nominations at the César awards, (the French equivilant of the Oscars), and it’s 7 wins, including best picture. As well as awards for best actress and best cinematography.

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Séraphine Review By Erin V.

*** (out of 4)

Séraphine tells the true story of the painter Séraphine Louis, known now in the art world as Séraphine de Senlis. The film takes place from 1914 to around 1940, during and after the first world war. This was the time when Séraphine’s art became known to German art dealer, Wilhelm Uhde.

While the film is interesting, it is quite slow moving, and this being said, is not the kind of movie that the majority of people are going to go out and see in theatres. At over two hours, on DVD, this could easily be watched in two parts. The scenery is beautiful in the landscaping shots, and the acting is very good, but the editing could have been tighter at parts, as the middle was kind of slow. Oddly, after this, the end felt kind of rushed.

Overall, if the story interests or intrigues you, this would be worth watching once you can find it to rent or buy. The subtitles are easy to follow, (the film is mostly in French), as this film has little dialouge. There is just nothing, other than the scenery that, for me, would make this a must see in theatres. A good movie, but not one that I can see getting a wider theatre release. It opens in Canada, in limited release, in Toronto and [Montréal?] today.

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Séraphine Review By Nicole

*** (out of 4)

Séraphine is a quiet, low key film. Based on a true story, this movie tells the story of one eccentric artist in the French town of Senlis. The artist, Séraphine, starts out as a maid for the snobby landlord, Madame Duphot. During her spare time however, Séraphine, when not climbing and touching trees or playing with water, looks for various things to turn into paints. She then will paint small pictures of flowers, leaves, and fruits on pieces of wood. Her employer mocks her paintings, saying they look like they were done by a six year-old. However, when a German art collector, Wilhelm Uhde, who helped discover Picasso and Rousseau, discovers Séraphine's talent, he loves her work, and asks to buy some of her paintings. When World War 1 breaks out, Wilhelm and his sister have to return to Germany. He encourages Séraphine to keep on painting. Séraphine does, and when Wilhelm and his sister come back, Séraphine gets her artwork into galleries. Sadly, at the height of her career, Séraphine becomes mentally ill, and ends up in an asylum. Wilhelm fights to make sure that Séraphine is well treated, and can get access to the trees that she loves so much.

I liked Séraphine. The story was very interesting, and the acting is quite believable. The scenery and music is beautiful. There is very little dialogue, and the movie does drag slightly, so the movie isn't for those with short attention spans. However, Séraphine is a well made movie, with a fascinating story line. See it if you have the chance.

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Séraphine Review By Maureen

*** (out of 4)

Séraphine is a gentle, quiet and beautifully shot work of art. Based on a true story, “Seraphine” follows the adult life of an eccentric painter in France around the time of the first world war.

Séraphine was a plain and akward woman working as a cleaning lady in a french villa. She keeps busy with physical labor all day, then goes home to spend all night painting with materials she has gotten from various places. When a German art collector moves into the villa, he discovers Séraphine’s talent and tries to help her establish an art career. Sadly, Séraphine’s mental state is unstable and her delusions that angels are guiding her work lead her to be locked away in an asylum. The fine line between genius and madness is obvious in this touching story.

The strength of this film is the superb acting by Yolande Moreau, who plays Séraphine. She makes Séraphine completely believable without resorting to over dramatization. The scenery is beautiful and the music fits the quiet, gentle pace of the story. There is not much dialogue in the movie, so the visuals and the music are what move the story forward.

I really liked Séraphine, my only complaint is that at over two hours it feels too long. Because of the slow, quiet pace, my mind wandered at times and I missed reading some of the English subtitles. With so little dialogue, you don’t want to miss any of it.

Overall, this is worth seeing if you are in the mood for a quiet film about an artist. Séraphine is a work of art in itself.

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Séraphine Review By Tony

***1/2 (out of 4)

Seraphine est un film sur la vie de Séraphine Louis, dite Séraphine de Senlis, qui habitait ce village-là au nord de Paris. Au début on regarde cette femme de 48 ans en 1912 travaillant comme femme de ménage des maisons bourgeoises. Elle passe son temps libre en cherchant des herbes en campagne, du cire volé des cierges de l’église, du sang dans le pot de foie chez le boucher, pour mélanger avec du peinture blanc acheté avec les sous qu’elle gagne. En nuit dans sa petite chambre, en chantant ses prières sous la lumière des bougies, elle peint, plutôt avec ses doigts, des toiles plein des fleurs, fruits et feuilles. Wilhelm Uhde, un des locataires dans la maison où elle travaille, est un collectionneur d’art d’origine allemande qui avait déjà découvert les artistes Rousseau et Picasso. Ayant trouvé par hasard un des toiles de Séraphine, il lui dit qu’elle est bien douée, et doit travailler beaucoup malgré les moqueries des autres pour se faire une grande artiste. Il commence à la subventionner, mais au commencement de la première guerre mondiale il faut s’échapper en allemagne et ne retourne qu’à 1927. Croyant d’abord que Séraphine était morte, il la retrouve, maintenant une des meilleurs artistes dits naïfs, qu’il préférait nommer “primitifs modernes”. Il promesse encore de la soutenir, et elle commence à peindre des tableaux à deux mètres d’hauteur et se trouve avec plus d’argent qu’elle peut ménager. Mais sa richesse prend fin à cause de la dépression de 1930 et elle a une crise de délire qui la fait transporter dans un asile psychiatrique et abandonner son métier pour le reste de sa vie. Elle meurt en 1942 avec des milliers d’autres habitants des hôpitaux pendant l’occupation.

Seraphine déroule des fois un peut trop lentement pour nous, mais il vaut la peine de découvrir la vie d’une telle personne. Sous la direction de Martin Provost, Yolande Moreau est devenue Séraphine totalement, et les autres acteurs, surtout Ulrich Tukur comme M. Uhde, sont tous excellents. Enfin, le film est beau à voir, entre les scènes de campagne et les scènes dans la chambre, où la lumiere des bougies nous fait rappeler les tableaux chiaroscuro des hollandais.

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Consensus: Coming Soon! *** (Out of 4)

Summer Hours Review

Summer Hours - An E1 FIlms Release

http://www.summerhours-movie.mk2.com/

Release Date: June 19th, 2009

Rated 14A for some language, some drug content and some sexual content

Running time: 98 minutes

Olivier Assayas (dir.)

Olivier Assayas (writer)

Juliette Binoche as Adrienne

Charles Berling as Frédéric

Jérémie Renier as Jérémie

Edith Scob as Hélène

Dominique Reymond as Lisa

Valérie Bonneton as Angela

Isabelle Sadoyan as Éloïse

Kyle Eastwood as James

Our reviews below:

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Summer Hours Review By John C.

**1/2 (out of 4)

After an opening scene of a bunch of kids playing, we find out that it’s their grandmothers 75th birthday party. The first 10 minutes of the film feel alive. Then she dies. I’m not actually sure why, because she didn’t appear weak or sick. Maybe time is supposed to have past since her birthday, but they certainly don’t clearly convey it. The next 70 minutes of the film are centered around her three middle-aged children trying to decide what to do with her estate. There is a lot of legal talk and we get educated quite a bit about antique furniture. Oh yes, there is also an extremely needless sub-plot that is only brought up in a few scenes, about their deceased mother and a very possible affair she had with her blood-uncle.

15 minutes from the end, it switches gears to be about the teenage grandchildren, and then it abruptly ends. I found the ending to be quite annoying, I kept waiting for it to go somewhere, but it never does. I think the writers were trying not to create characters, but just ordinary people. And they succeeded. But it’s almost so natural, that it stopped being all that interesting for me.

After seeing the wonderful trailer for the film, I was disappointed by the actual product. It’s interesting how this film is getting such a wide audience, but a French film that I think is better and more entertaining, The First Day of the Rest of Your Life, wasn’t really seen by anybody.

I liked Summer Hours almost enough to mildly recommend it, I just wish it had been shorter and more like the trailer. It’s mildly worth checking out, but you can definitely wait for the DVD. It’s in French with English subtitles.

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Summer Hours (L’Heure d’Êté) Review By Erin V.

**1/2 (out of 4)

Summer Hours, or L'Heure d'Êté, as it is called in French, is an interesting, although kind of boring, (if that even makes sense), film.

While only 98 minutes in length, it felt way longer. The movie opens with a Summer party of relatives gathered in the yard of their mother/grandmother’s old house. It is the grandmother’s 75th birthday. The house is on a beautiful property, which the busy children only visit about twice a year for special occasions. After the party, the only child still living in France is called aside by his mother, who wants to make sure that he knows what to do with all of the valuable art pieces she has collected once she dies.

Inevitably, she does die, as you can see even from the trailer. Pretty soon after this opening scene in fact, and for the majority of the remainder of the movie, we get to watch long discussions between the children, art dealers, and real estate agents.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that this film will have no audience. A lot of people will probably find this film quite interesting. The thing for me was that there was a lot of fast conversational dialogue, with no background music for quite a while. The only time that it was the opposite was at the beginning and end, where it seemed like a different movie. For me, watching French subtitles for almost all dialogue scenes took me out of the movie. If you are fluent in French, maybe you might be able to follow along better without the distraction of the subtitles?

All in all though, I think that while the trailer does not quite give an accurate depiction of the actual pacing of the movie, it is in no means a bad film. If you are interested, by all means go see it, (or wait for DVD). This just won’t be the kind of movie for everyone.

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Summer Hours Review By Nicole

**1/2 (out of 4)

Summer Hours is a low key French movie about how one family deals with the loss of their mother/grandmother. The movie begins with the entire family celebrating he 75th birthday, at her expensive estate. We see a lovely scene of the grandchildren run through the fields and marsh in the grandmother’s vast yard, all the while on a pretend treasure hunt. Since she is getting older, she tells her son, Frederik that she would like all her antique furniture, and her uncle’s paintings donated to a museum, after she dies and the house is sold. Shortly after her birthday, she dies of old age. Now the family has to deal with her estate, trying to sell the house, as well as selling all her treasures. Much of the movie involves the family selling the house and treasures. In the end, however, we see how this loss affects one of the grandchildren, a teenage girl who is not handling things too well.

This movie, while a good premise, seemed to drag too long in the middle. It almost seems like this movie is trying to be two different films. The beginning and ending were more lively, had a score, and some character development. The middle, on the other hand focused more on estate planning, had no score, and not too much character development. I would have liked to see more character development, and less dialogue. I would have also liked to see more of the emotional side to the story. This movie probably could have been done in 80 minutes or less, as opposed to 98 minutes. Also, a subplot about the grandmother’s secret love affair, was just strange, and didn’t fit.

Despite the flaws though, Summer Hours is a fairly decent film. However, this one would be just as good on DVD.

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Summer Hours Review By Maureen

**1/2 (out of 4)

French film “Summer Hours’ started out with what seemed to be a promising story about family, love and letting go. The opening scenes show family members of all ages enjoying their beloved mother and grandmother’s 75th birthday at her beautiful French estate. We get to meet her adult children, their partners and children. We also get a tour of all the beautiful antiques and artwork the senior woman has cherished over the years. In an obvious foreshadowing, she tells her eldest son Frederik how she would like her special treasures distributed once she passes on.

The mother/grandmother does die of natural cause and the bulk of the movie deals with her family deciding to sell the house and distribute her treasures to various museums, art galleries and loved ones. Unfortunately this is where the movie fell apart for me. The dull, dry dialogue between family members and antique and art dealers went on far too long for my liking. I never really felt there was much character development of the bereave family members. It was hard to feel emotionally connected to the characters when they didn’t seem all that emotionally connected to one another.

The movie tries in the last 15 minutes or so to recapture the original mood at the beginning of the movie by focusing on one of the granddaughters and her emotional response to the selling of the house. By then, I was tired of watching. It’s not that I disliked Summer Hours. I actually enjoyed parts of it. The acting was decent, the scenery nice and I liked the basic premise of the story. Anyone who has gone through or is going through the experience of sorting through an elderly family member’s home and belongings will connect with the story. I just wish Summer Hours had tried harder to connect with the viewer. See this one if you like French film or the storyline appeals to you. This one would work just as well as a rental or DVD.

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Summer Hours Review By Tony

*** (out of 4)

Au début de L'Heure d'Êté, Hélène (Edith Scob) fête son 75e anniversaire avec ses trois enfants et leur familles à sa maison d’été en campagne au nord de Paris. Son fils ainé Frédéric (Charles Berling) est professeur d’économie à Paris, marié avec deux enfants adolescents–une fille et un fils. Sa soeur Adrienne (Juliette Binoche) est spécialisée comme sa mère en arts décoratifs, basée à New York. Le troisième enfant Jérémie (Jérémie Renier) est gérant de la succursale chinoise d’une corporation globale. La maison est pleine d’objets d’art et des meubles uniques et précieux, collectionés par l’oncle d’Hélène, l’artiste célèbre Paul Berthier qui vivait avec Hélène et sa famille jusqu’à sa mort vingt ans auparavant.

Malgré les instructions détaillées d’Hélène à Frédéric sur la disposition de ses affaires après sa mort, de vendre ou donner toutes les pièces et de vendre la maison, Frédéric a envie de tout garder pour le plaisir de la génération prochaine. Cependent, quand Adrienne et Jérémie préfèrent la liquidation de tout parce qu’ils ne resteront plus en France, Frédéric doit être d’accord avec leur décision. Pour éviter l’impot d’état, la plupart des pièces sont données au Musée d’Orsay, et on assiste à l’ouverture d’une exposition de la collection. Enfin, pour la dernière fois, les enfants de Frédéric et leurs amis visitent la maison pour une fête.

Écrit et réalisé par Olivier Assayas, L'Heure d'Êté s’agit plutôt d’une famille dont la mère vient de mourir, et comment on la rappelle et s’occupe de ses affaires. Pour les gens comme moi d’un certain age qui se trouvent dans de telles situations, L'Heure d'Êté est un film bien écrit, sensible et touchant, avec une excellente distribution. Cependent, si on ne s’intéresse pas tellement des arts décoratifs, on pourrait s’ennuyer des longues discussions de ça.

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Consensus: Summer Hours has too much endless dialogue with not enough action to sustain itself for 98 minutes. Also, some parts of the movie don’t quite fit with the rest. If you are interested in the subject matter though, it would be worth watching once it comes out on DVD. **1/2 (Out of 4)

Ce Qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) DVD Review

Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) - An E1 Films Release

http://www.cequilfautpourvivre-lefilm.com/

On DVD: June 16th, 2009

Rated PG for language and crude content.

Running time: 102 minutes

Benoît Pilon (dir.)

Bernard Émond (screenplay)

Robert M. Lepage (music)

Denis Bernard as Père Millaire

Paul-André Brasseur as Kaki

Éveline Gélinas as Carole

Elisapie Isaac as Femme inuite

Vincent-Guillaume Otis as Joseph

Natar Ungalaaq as Tiivii

Natar Ungalaaq and Paul-Andre Brasseur in The Necessities of Life - an E1 Films release

Our reviews below:

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Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) Review By John C.

***1/2 (out of 4)

Ce Qu’il Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) is a moving and beautiful Canadian film about love, friendship and the necessities that we all need to live. When Inuit man, Tiivii (Natar Ungalaaq), is found to have tuberculosis, he is uprooted from his family and brought to a sanatorium in Quebec City. When the nurses realize that Tiivii is getting depressed being away from his family, and the only one who can speak his language, they bring in a young Inuit boy, Kaki (Paul-Andre Brasseur). Kaki is the first person he has met in some time that can actually understand him. But Kaki also speaks French, so he is able to be a translator.

The film is a heartbreaking and real portrayal of a friendship. I highly recommend you see it. It was inevitable that Passchendaele was going to win the Genie for Best Picture, but this film is just as good if not better.

The DVD includes audio commentaries, a photo gallery and the films trailer. Most of the special features are in French only.

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Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) Review By Erin V.

***1/2 (out of 4)

Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre, (The Necessities of Life), is a beautiful Canadian drama set in the early 1950’s.

The movie opens up North, where we are introduced to the main character of the story, Tiivii. Tiivii and his wife, and their two young daughters, live a traditional Inuit life. When a ship comes into the harbour, all the people in Tivii’s village are to go on board to be tested for Tuberculosis. Those who turn up positive are to go South for treatment. When Tiivii is told that he has ‘TB’, he has to stay on the boat, while his family leaves with hardly the time to say goodbye. When he finally arrives in Québec City, he is disoriented and confused. He has now been thrust into a world of large trees, white people, and everyone speaking French. Becoming increasingly depressed, it is not until he meets Kaki, (through a nurse named Carole who tries to help him understand her world as best she can), a young Inuk boy who speaks both languages. Kaki becomes a friend and translator to Tiivii, while Tiivii in return teaches Kaki, orphaned at a young age, the Inuit stories and way of life.

This is an emotional, and very well made Canadian film. Winning many awards at the Genie Awards, over giant Passchendaele shows just how good this film, particularly the acting from lead Natar Ungalaaq really is. From the score, to the landscapes, to the acting, and story, Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre is a film that is worth checking out, no matter what language you speak. Although the film is mainly in French and Inuktitut, it is subtitled well in English, and easy enough to follow along. I would definitely recommend watching this Canadian gem.

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Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) Review By Nicole

***1/2 (out of 4)

The Necessities of Life is a thought provoking Canadian movie about Inuit culture. Set in the 1950’s, the movie follows Tiivii, an Inuk family man who contracts tuberculosis, and as a result, has to leave his family to receive treatment in a Quebec City sanatorium. This new world is confusing to Tiivii. Nobody speaks his language, the food is different, and even the landscape is foreign, with warmer weather and lots of big trees. Tiivii is also concerned that there is no one to hunt food for his family. So Tiivii keeps attempting to run away back to his Arctic home, much to the annoyance of hospital staff. There is one nurse, however, named Carole who recognizes why Tiivii is so confused and frustrated. So she brings in another Inuk tuberculosis patient, from another hospital. The patient, Kaki, is a young orphan, who speaks Tivii’s language as well as French. Kaki acts as a translator between Tiivii and the francophones, and Tiivii becomes like the father that Kaki lost. Tiivii reintroduces Kaki to the Inuit culture that he had forgotten after being hospitalized so long. The two develop a close bond, and Tiivii hopes to adopt Kaki when they both get out.

The Necessities of Life is an emotional and believable film. Parts of the film are quite sad, due to the subject matter, but are realistic to the story. There are also some funny lines, as well as many heartwarming moments. The acting in this movie is excellent, and the shots of the Arctic tundra are beautiful. This is one well made Canadian film that is definitely worth watching.

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Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) Review By Maureen

***1/2 (out of 4)

The Necessities of Life is a gentle and powerful film about the early 1950’s tuberculosis (TB) epidemic in Canada’s Far North. The story follows an Inuit man, Tiivii (Natar Ungalaaq) who is diagnosed with TB and transported to a sanatorium far away in Quebec City.

Tivii’s complete isolation is obvious when everyone in the sanatorium speaks only French. Tivii’s inability to communicate affects his will to recover. One of the nurses, Carole (Eveline Gélines) recognizes Tivii’s frustration and arranges for another patient, and Inuit boy named Kaki (Paul-Andre Brassuer), who speaks both French and his native language to spend time with Tiivii. Tiivii and Kaki develop a friendship with Tiivii sharing Inuit legends and customs with the orphaned Kaki. Once Tiivii begins to recover, he expresses his wish to adopt Kaki and bring him North so the boy can learn to live his heritage. As Tiivii puts it to the local priest, he is more than prepared to give Kaki ‘the necessities of life’.

This is a really nicely done, low-key, believable Canadian drama. The acting is superb. Natar Ungalaaq deserved his Genie award for his portrayal of Tiivii.

The visuals of Northern Canada are nice to see, and the music score fit the mood perfectly. The English subtitles are easy to follow.

The 2009 Genies rightfully recognized “Ce Qu’il Faut Pour Vivre” (The Necessities of Life) Director Benoit Pilon, with the award for Best Director. The film also took the awards for Best Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Actor.

I would love to see this movie shown in Canadian history classes across Canada. It is easily accessible in both French and in English with subtitles. It’s two bad the DVD extras are in French only.

Whether you buy the DVD or rent it, ‘Ce Qu’il Faut Pour Vivre’ (The Necessities of Life) is worth checking out. Vraiment, un film Canadien excellent.

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Ce qu’il Faut Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life) Review By Tony

***1/2 (out of 4)

Ce qu'il Faut Pour Vivre est l’histoire de Tiivii (Natar Ungalaaq), un chasseur Inuk1 de L’Isle Baffin forcé en 1952 de quitter sa femme et deux filles à cause de la tuberculose. Après un long voyage, il se trouve au Sanitorium à Québec dans un monde de grands arbres totalement étranger. Il faut se faire comprendre par des gestes, parce que personne ne parle sa langue. Tiivii s’occupe des dessins d’animaux dans son cahier, mais après quelque mois, de plus en plus déprimé, il refuse de plus manger. Une gentille infirmière Carole (Éveline Gélinas) arrange d’un autre hôpital le déménagement d’un garçon Kaki (Paul-André Brasseur), qui sait parler et français et inuktitut. Kaki ayant perdu toute sa famille, Tiivii le regarde comme un fils et propose de l’adopter. Il lui racconte des histoires traditionnelles et lui enseigne à faire des petits sculptures de bois. Kaki peut proposer qu’on commence à servir de la vraie nourriture: du saumon cru. Tiivii est introduit enfin à un prêtre (Denis Bernard) fluent en inuktitut, ayant été missionaire au nord. Je vous laisse à découvrir ce qui arrive après.

Même que le film nous fait toujours sentir l’isolation de Tiivii, il n’est pas sans humour. Par exemple, quand Tiivii et Kaki se rencontrent, Tiivii lui dit qu’il a un drole d’accent. Kaki répond: “Toi aussi.” Quand Carole refuse de “rire” avec Tiivii selon la tradition inuit d’hospitalité, Kaki lui explique qu’on ne pourra jamais comprendre les blancs. L’évêque approuve l’adoption grace aux petits mensonges du prêtre que Tiivii était marié et a fait baptiser ses enfants dans une église Catholique.

Ce qu'il Faut Pour Vivre est un film tendre et sensible. Même qu’il se déroule lentement, il vaut bien le temps.

1Inuk: singulier des Inuit, nommés Esquimaux à l’époch du film (et toujours aux E. U.), dont la langue est inuktitut.

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Consensus: A beautiful Canadian film, whether or rent it or buy it Ce Qu'il Pour Vivre (The Necessities of Life), is definitely worth seeing. ***1/2 (Out of 4)

Departures Review

Departures - A KINOSMITH Release

http://www.departures-themovie.com/

Release Date: June 12th, 2009

Rated 14A for disturbing content

Running time: 131 minutes

Yôjirô Takita (dir.)

Kundo Koyama (writer)

Joe Hisaishi (music)

Masahiro Motoki as Daigo Kobayashi

Tsutomu Yamazaki as Ikuei Sasaki

Ryoko Hirosue as Mika Kobayashi

Kazuko Yoshiyuki as Tsuyako Yamashita

Kimiko Yo as Yuriko Kamimura

Takashi Sasano as Shokichi Hirata

Our reviews below:

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Departures Review By John C.

**** (out of 4)

Departures was the winner of Best Foreign Language Film at last year’s Academy Awards. The film provided one of the few surprises at the Oscars, beating out the competition of The Baader Meinhof Complex, The Class, Revanche and Waltz With Bashir.

It tells the story of Daigo Kobayashi (Masahiro Motoki), a man who plays the cello in an orchestra. When the orchestra dissolves, he finds a job listing in the paper under “departures”. What is it? A travel agency maybe? You can understand his shock when he goes for the job interview, is hired on the spot and expected to start preparing bodies for cremation.

I didn’t think the film was perfect, but it’s still excellent despite it’s flaws. I found it to falter in it’s first act. A scene where he goes into an old ladies house, to remove her two-week old body, is disgusting and I didn’t find it to fit tonally with the rest of the film. The opening scene is played for comedy, but then played again as drama later on. I’m not sure that this quite worked for me. On the contrary, the second act is moving and beautiful.

But, where the film really succeeds is in it’s uniquely moving and beautiful last act. As his business starts to take on a more personal level, everyone around him starts to realize it’s nothing to be ashamed of. The last fifty minutes of the film are handled delicately, beautifully and flawlessly, making up for all falters in the first act, and making us understand why it won the Oscar.

The music in Departures is also amazing, the sweeping cello combined with beautiful scenery is part of what makes the film so beautiful and emotional. My only question is: When Daigo plays the cello, who’s playing the piano music that starts to accompany him? But I wonder that about a lot of movies. Even if you wait for the DVD, Departures is definitely worth seeing, I highly recommend it.

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Departures Review By Erin V.

**** (out of 4)

Departures is the story of a young man in Japan, who is a cellist. After a short opening, we flash back to a few months earlier, when the orchestra that Daigo, the main character, is playing in, disbands. Daigo then has no choice but to look for work elsewhere. He sees an ad in a local paper for a job dealing with ‘departures’. He goes for the interview, and gets the job - practically before he even knows what it is for. It is not until much further along in the movie that we get back to the first scene again, although from a different tone and perspective this time...

Despite what may seem like an odd premise, this is actually a very artistically beautiful film. The Japanese ceremony of preparing people for their final departure is one that is done in a ritualistic manner, almost like a dance. We see how much closure the family members of their deceased loved ones get from watching the beautiful preparation ritual.

At first, hearing that this movie was 2 hours and 11 minutes, I was not sure how long it would feel. It feels like just the right length. Despite the fact that it is completely in Japanese and you are reading subtitles, a lot of the dialogue is not that fast, or there is just music accompanying what is happening on screen, (there are even times when this film is completely silent). So, it is not a strain to be reading subtitles for the running time, nor is it distracting to what is happening on screen.

In short, it is no surprise that this movie won at the 81st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Picture. This movie completely draws you in both visually, and emotionally. By the time you reach the ending, you will have tears in your eyes. Set to a backdrop of quiet cello music, Departures truly is a work of art.

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Departures Review By Nicole

**** (out of 4)

Departures is a beautiful Japanese film that is a piece of art in itself. The main character, Daigo Kobayashi, plays the cello in a local orchestra. Daigo has always been a cellist, but when the orchestra he plays at goes under due to poor attendance, Daigo is desperate for work. So he looks in the classifieds, and settles on a job entitled “Departures”. What Daigo thinks is a travel agency turns out to be a job at a funeral home. Desperate for money, Daigo takes the job, but does not tell his wife Mika, afraid she wouldn’t approve. At first, Daigo doesn’t like his new job. He finds it weird, and kind of dark. But over time, Daigo realizes how important his job is, when he sees the solace that the beautiful Japanese ritual brings to families.

I really loved Departures. What could have been a depressing movie, turns out to be a touching, moving, and aesthetically pleasing film. Some of the scenes at the beginning play out more as a comedy, but the rest of the film is more of a drama. I was completely taken aback by both the gracefulness and reverence in how the deceased are handled in Japan. We see how Daigo’s artistic abilities come into play at his work. The music in this film is also beautiful. I really liked how the cello music fit with the Japanese funeral ritual, which is essentially a dance.

Departures is a beautiful, emotional film, that celebrates life’s beauty in all it’s stages. An amazing look at Japanese culture, and a film that will be accessible anywhere in the world.

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Departures Review By Maureen

**** (out of 4)

Departures is a beautiful work of art. The academy got it right choosing Departures for Best Foreign Film.

Given the subject matter, preparing bodies, this could have been a very dark and depressing film. Instead, director Yôjirô Takita created a film that is gentle, warm and lovely to see and hear.

The movie opens with Daigo performing the preparation ceremony on Tomeo, a young suicide victim with a secret. This opening scene provides light humour and introduces us to the main subject, the ritual preparation ceremony for the departed. The movie goes to flashback at this point.

In the flashback, the main character, Daigo loses his job as a cellist when the local orchestra dissolves. He answers an ad for a job that he thinks is in a travel agency. When he realizes the company actually prepares bodies for undertakers he is reluctant. However, the company owner convinces him that fate has brought him there, and offers him generous financial compensation. Without telling his wife Mika, Daigo takes the job and begins the process of learning the ceremonial ritual of preparing the recently departed for their final journey.

The rest of the film deals with Daigo struggling to learn and finally mastering his new job. The story also deals with how Daigo’s decision to work with departures affects his relationship with his sweet and gentle wife Mika.

What I loved about Departures is how the subject of death is treated with such respect and dignity. I found it absolutely touching and beautiful to watch the preparation ceremony. The ritual is preformed with such grace and precision that I felt I was watching a dance. The cello music that Daigo plays and the classical music that runs throughout the film made the artistic experience complete for me.

The acting was believable and wonderfully low-key. I liked Daigo and Mika and cared what happened to them and their relationship.

From start to finish, I was engaged with Departures. Even at just over two hours of reading English subtitles. I never tired of watching beauty unfold.

If you appreciate quiet, artistic movies, then you won’t want to miss this unique Japanese film.

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Departures Review By Tony

**** (out of 4)

Before the opening credits of Departures we see a young man and an older man attending the wake of a young suicide victim to prepare the body for cremation. After the opening credits, we find the younger man Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) playing cello in a symphonic concert and then being told that his orchestra is disbanding. With his wife Mika (Ryoko Hirosue) he moves back to the house in northern Japan left to him by his mother. Expecting a job in the travel business, he answers an ad for a “departures” firm, and is surprised when the boss (Tsutomu Yamazaki) hires him on the spot with a cash advance. Only then does he discover that his job involves the preparation of dead bodies for the afterlife by ritual cleaning, making up and dressing, to be placed in coffins and burned to release their spirits. We watch with increasing admiration as Daigo handles this role in front of all kinds of grieving families with the utmost care and respect, and is usually rewarded with their gratitude. Daigo is reluctant to let his wife know what he does, and when she accidentally finds out she at first rejects him, since many still see his profession as unclean.

A lot more happens in this film. Though a bit over two hours long, it is never boring. Despite the potentially gruesome subject matter and tears of vicarious grief that we will inevitably feel, we are comforted by the quiet dignity of the rituals of death. The acting is uniformly excellent. Despite minor cultural differences we can immediately relate to and like most of the characters. The musical score by Joe Hisaishi is very effective. There is a recurring tune that we first hear Daigo playing on his cello. Some scenes are silent and in the showing I attended you could hear a pin drop.

Departures richly deserved its best foreign language film Oscar. Go see it. You will know why.

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Consensus: Departures is a beautiful film that will show you the work of art that is the final preparation for departure in Japan. Although the subject matter could have been done in a disturbing manner, it is quite the opposite here. Completely deserving of it’s Best foreign language film Oscar, Departures is a film that is a must see. **** (Out of 4)

C'est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) DVD Review

C'est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) - A E1 Films Release

On DVD: May 12th, 2009

http://www.cestpasmoijelejure.com/

Rated G

Running time: 110 minutes.

Philippe Falardeau (dir.)

Philippe Falardeau (writer)

Bruno Hébert (book)

Patrick Watson (music)

Antoine L'Écuyer as Léon Doré

Suzanne Clément as Madeleine Doré

Daniel Brière as Philippe Doré

Catherine Faucher as Léa

Gabriel Maillé as Jérôme Doré

Our reviews below:

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C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) Review By John C.

**1/2 (out of 4) (Pretty Good)

When we first meet 10 year old Leon, he is hanging himself from a tree. His mother gets quite irate and tries to cut down the tree, his older brother Jerome wishes he had a normal brother who didn’t try to kill himself as much. I’m not sure if this makes any sense, but C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!), is better than I thought it would be, but not as good as I hoped it would be. First of all, the film is to long by about 20 minutes. With tighter editing, this could have been done in 90, rather 110 minutes. This film is labeled as a “Comedy, Drama”, but don’t mistake this for light and fun popcorn entertainment, it’s actually a bit disturbing. This is the kind of script that requires the main character’s mother, who is just as messed up as her kid, if not more so, to have just ran away to Greece. Because if she hadn’t we wouldn’t feel a grain of sympathy for her kid as he breaks into the neighbors house and trashes it. A lot of the time the kid is just being a brat, but his mother having left, I suppose, is meant to justify his behavior.

I didn’t hate this film, but I certainly did not love it. I was pretty much indifferent to it. I was glad I saw it, but I don’t feel any need to watch it again. Although I must say, there is so much talk about this film, that it’s worth seeing just so you know what everyone's talking about.

The DVD includes the film in French, with fairly easy to read English subtitles. It also includes three featurettes and the films trailer. All special features are in French only.

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C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) Review By Erin V.

**1/2 (out of 4)

C'est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! - It's Not Me, I Swear!, is an interesting film, but not one that is all that memorable when compared to other independent films out there. The movie opens with the main character, Léon, age 10, trying to hang himself in the front yard. Apart from attempting suicide from time to time throughout the movie, he also vandalizes the neighbour house while they are on vacation. There is no mystery in the film where Léon gets his behaviours from - his mother is just as happy to egg the houses on the street as he is. When his mother leaves for Greece, the separation from his mother devastates him, and his behaviour doesn't get any better. With the girl - who has family problems of her own - across the street, whom he befriends, he makes a plan to run away. Destination? Greece.

The movie has decent acting from it's young cast members, as well as it's older ones. I found many of the plot points kind of annoying to watch, in part due to the fact that the main character is kind of unlikable. Overall, this is an interesting film, that is pretty good if you want to check it out on DVD. It's not one that I would want to watch again and again, but I didn't mind seeing this one once.

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C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) Review By Nicole

**1/2 (out of 4)

N/A

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C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) Review By Maureen

**1/2 (out of 4)

N/A

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C’est Pas Moi, Je Le Jure! (It’s Not Me, I Swear!) Review By Tony

**1/2 (out of 4)

N/A

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Consensus: While it’s far from a bad film, it’s not as memorable, nor as good as it could have been. Worth checking out if you’re interested in film, or just curious to see what everyone’s been talking about. **1/2 (Out of 4)

À L’Ouest de Pluton (West of Pluto) DVD Review

À L’Ouest de Pluton

http://www.alouestdepluton.com/

On DVD: February 24th, 2009

Rated Canada 14A for substance abuse, and coarse language.

Running time: 95 minutes

Henry Bernadet and Myriam Verreault (dir.)

Alexis Drolet as Jérôme

David Bouchard as Pierre-Olivier

Anne-Sophie Tremblay Lamontagne as Kim

Yoann Linteau as Benoît (Paluche)

Sandra Jacques as Émilie Bégin

Micaël Minguy-Bédard as Nicolas

Yann Bernard as Kevin

Marc-Alexandre Paradis as Steve Labbé

Denis Marchand as Gaetan

Caroline Beauséjour as Isa

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À L’Ouest de Pluton (West of Pluto) Review By John C.

*** (out of 4)

West of Pluto follows 24 hours in the lives of twelve teenagers in Quebec. We watch as they talk, get stoned, get drunk and party. A lot of this is very funny and plays out like an artistic, french version of Superbad. We watch as they go through a regular school day. In one of the films most interesting scenes two girls debate whether or not Quebec should separate. I can’t see the film being watched outside of Canada, but if you get a chance, it’s worth seeing. I am not sure what age would watch it, teenagers or adults. I think that both would probably enjoy it. Teenagers will watch it on a more personal level and will easily relate to the characters, adults will probably watch it on a more observative level. The young actors all deliver good and believable performances, not really playing characters, as much as they are playing people. It was slightly confusing because some of the kids looked similar, so it will be interesting to watch the film a second time, now that I am familiar with the characters.

The DVD includes a French language version of the film with optional English subtitles. It also includes a gag reel, a photo gallery, interviews, deleted scenes and more. All special features are in French only.

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À L’Ouest de Pluton (West of Pluto) Review By Erin V.

*** (out of 4)

À L’Ouest de Pluton is an interesting film to watch. It is essentially a day in the life of a dozen 15 and 16 year olds in the suburbs of Québec City. The movie is a mix of humour and drama, and plays out like it is shot as a documentary. All of the characters are believable, and the young actors play them well. Many of the scenes are quite interesting to watch, such as when there is a debate between two girls at school, over whether or not Québec should be separate from the rest of Canada. This debate is interesting, and cool to watch, while there are others in here, that considering that the teenagers having them are stoned, are just plain funny.

I would recommend this film. The subtitles were easy enough to read, and still follow along with the movie. I think that this is a very interesting look at life for many, and it felt like the kind of indie film, that while may not be watched as much outside of Québec, or the rest of Canada for that matter, it is well made, and if you can, check it out.

Also included with the movie, (which is in French with, [optional], English subtitles), out-takes, photo gallery, interviews, deleted scenes, trailers, and much more.

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À L’Ouest de Pluton (West of Pluto) Review By Nicole

*** (out of 4)

N/A

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À L’Ouest de Pluton (West of Pluto) Review By Maureen

*** (out of 4)

N/A

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A L’ouest De Pluton Review By Tony

***1/2 (sur ****)

À l’Ouest de Pluton suit une journée dans la vie d’une dizaine d’adolescents de 15 et 16 ans de la banlieue de Québec (tourné à Charlesbourg). Au début, devant une salle de classe, chaque élève partage sa passion, soit l’astronomie, la musique, la danse, la cuisine, le skateboard, etc. Pendant la journée il ya des conversations entre les personnages sur plusiers sujets, entre des serieux, comme la souveraineté, et des niaiseux, parmi les punk rockers et les “stoners”– et il y a encore plus pendant la nuit. Une fête pour cinq ou six devient un désastre attendu par tout le monde, laissant une maison maganée et un frère ainé en colère incontrollable.

Quelque fois, entre les scènes écolières et domestiques, on voit des préparations et lancement d’un sonde spatiale vers la planète Pluton. Ironiquement, pendant les années de voyage, Pluton a perdu son statut, ne considerée plus qu’une planète “naine”, ni terrestre, comme les premières quatres, ni géante, comme les suivantes. Malgré l’intention des réalisateurs de montrer du symbolisme, peut être du banalité de notre existence dans l’univers, j’ai trouvé ces scènes une distraction.

Cependant, la production et la distribution de ce film étaient excellentes. Comme professeur d’école sécondaire (en retraite), j’ai connu ces gens. J’ai pu me tromper que je regardais un film documentaire plutôt que dramatisé. Il m’a fait rappeler les series DeGrassi, par example, aussi tout à fait canadien, et meilleur que n’importe quoi des é-u ou de la France. Comme déjà écrit, la seule chose que je n’aimais pas tellement était l’obsession avec l’astronomie, ce qui ma fait souvenir de l’orgueil qu’on attenderait dans des films de la France, par example.

Comme anglophone, je m’excuse de mon langage pas toujours idiomatique. Je suis souvent frustré par la difficulté que nous-autres, les produits d’une formation d’immersion française, avons avec la riche langue française canadienne que la plupart de nos professeurs ont refusé de partager. Ça fait que je le trouve presque impossible de tout comprendre sans sous-titres. Malheureusement la plupart des jurons basés sur une religion largement oubliée depuis la révolution tranquille sont mal traduits simplement en anglais avec “le mot f”.

En conclusion, je recommande ce film pour les adolescents, leur parents, professeurs, bien tout le monde. J’espère qu’il prendra place dans les écoles sécondaires à l'affiche du festival Reel Canada de films canadiens, par example.

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Consensus: À L’Ouest de Pluton is an interesting look at what could be the lives of a dozen teenagers in the suburbs of Québec City. It is well made, with good acting, and has an artistic indie feel to it. ***1/2 (Out of 4)