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Montreal movies Entertainment Columnists
“If you want to see films from everywhere in the world and from all genres, the FNC is probably your ticket,” says the programming director of the 52nd Festival du Nouveau Cinéma, kicking off Wednesday.
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Zoé Protat has several demands in deciding which films to program for the Festival du nouveau cinéma, but one really stands out: “I don’t want to be bored.”
Few would take issue with that.
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“That’s what drives me and what drives my whole team,” says Protat, the FNC’s programming director for the last five years. “We also love to be surprised and to see something new.
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“The films don’t have to be perfect, especially for our competitions, which are devoted to first- and second-time directors and new voices. But we want to see something fresh and we want to be challenged. And we want to be diverse.”
Protat is convinced she has all these bases covered for the 52nd edition of the FNC, kicking off Wednesday and running until Oct. 15 at various cinemas around town.
The opening-night attraction at the Imperial Cinema is the Canadian première of the epicurean historical romance La passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Pot-au-Feu) from Trân Anh Hùng, winner of best-director honours at the 2023 Cannes film fest. The film unites stars Juliette Binoche as a steadfast cook and Benoît Magimel as smitten chef Dodin.
This year’s FNC showcases 105 features — all of which Protat has seen — from 57 countries. There are offerings from directors Sofia Coppola (Priscilla, a biopic of Priscilla Presley), Wim Wenders (Perfect Days), Atom Egoyan (Seven Veils), Ken Loach (The Old Oak) and Todd Haynes (May December).
There are the usual international and national competitions and a series of shorts. There are master classes led by directors Bertrand Bonello and Catherine Breillat, both of whom will also be presented with a Louve d’honneur in tribute to their accomplishments. Bonello’s 11th feature, La bête (The Beast), and a retrospective of his other works will be screened. Breillat’s 14th feature, L’été dernier (Last Summer), will also be presented.
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Plus, this year there’s the FNC’s kick-ass Bruceploitation program, including homages to Bruce Lee with Robert Clouse’s Enter the Dragon (marking its 50th anniversary) and David Gregory’s revealing new doc Enter the Clones of Bruce.
And can’t forget Mad Max Night on Oct. 7, as the FNC goes deep into the post-apocalyptic ravings of director George Miller. Four Mad Max flicks, including the latest, Mad Max: Fury Road, will be unleashed in one night and a slice of day. And what would such a soirée be without a briefing on troglodyte makeup, plus breakfast the next morning?
With movie theatres struggling for survival in the wake of the pandemic, emphasis has been placed on stocking cinemas with commercial fare to get bums back into seats. Not to take away from the merits of Paw Patrol or the latest Indiana Jones escapade, but cinephiles would be left in the lurch without the FNC, not to mention the city’s myriad other film fests.
“I’m often asked what is the importance today of film festivals in this era of streaming platforms, and I say that they could provide the only opportunity for cinephiles to see these films, because they may not show up again,” Protat says.
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“We’re very fortunate in Montreal to have a lot of film festivals, because that’s not the case everywhere else in the world. We have Fantasia and the RIDM documentary festival and all these niche festivals, not to mention some quality art houses, but if you want to see films from everywhere in the world and from all genres, the FNC is probably your ticket.”
Protat is obviously a booster, but she does have a valid point.
The FNC in particular brings us gems from the Cannes, Berlin, Sundance, Rotterdam and London fests, along with other acclaimed films. But unless they show up at art houses like the Cinémas Moderne, Musée and Parc, we might otherwise only hear about these offerings and never get to see them. Let’s just say the vast majority of streaming services aren’t exactly over-laden with this kind of fare.
It speaks volumes that the FNC has managed not just to survive in light of everything from COVID-19 to management changes, but also to sustain itself and satisfy its patrons for 52 years. It is the oldest film fest in the city and, according to Protat, the oldest “generalist” film fest in the country.
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Unlike other star-driven film festivals, like Toronto’s TIFF, the FNC is more director-driven and thus has been relatively immune to the ongoing U.S. actors’ strike.
“Our festival is a bit sheltered from that storm, because we’re looking for movies from all over the world,” Protat says. “We’re not so Hollywood-tied. We’re not a red-carpet festival. We’re an auteur festival. We invite more filmmakers than actors. So we’re in this privileged position.”
Zoé Protat’s top seven FNC picks
Vlad Petri’s Between Revolutions (Romania/Croatia/Qatar/Iran; Friday, Oct. 6 at 6:45 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 8 at 1 p.m.; Quartier Latin): The Romanian and Iranian revolutions as seen through the lens of two medical students.
Leila Kilani’s Indivision (France/Morocco; Saturday, Oct. 7 at 5:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 8 at 5:45 p.m.; Quartier Latin): An explosive family feud with a mute teenager at the epicentre.
Thien An Pham’s Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell (Vietnam/Singapore/France/Spain; Monday, Oct. 9 at noon and Tuesday, Oct. 10 at 7:45 p.m.; Quartier Latin): A spiritual journey through rural Vietnam, rife with otherworldly views of nature.
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Chloé Robichaud’s Les jours heureux (Quebec/Canada; Friday, Oct. 6 at 8:30 p.m. at Cinéma du Musée; Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 6 p.m. at Cinéma Moderne): Sophie Desmarais turns in a pitch-perfect performance as a young orchestra conductor trying to function in a high-stress, male-dominated world.
Radu Jude’s Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World (Romania/Luxembourg/France/Croatia; Saturday, Oct. 7 at 6:15 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 14 at 6 p.m. at Cinéma du Parc; Monday, Oct. 9 at 7:45 p.m. at Quartier Latin): Not just a great title, but a punchy satire about a malcontent trying to deal with capitalism in this digital age.
Ariane Louis-Seize’s Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant (Quebec/Canada; Tuesday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. at Imperial Cinema; Thursday, Oct. 12 at 6:30 p.m. at Quartier Latin): Sensitive vampire Sasha seeks to relieve chronically depressed Paul from the rigours of life in this biting coming-of-age tale.
Alice Rohrwacher’s La Chimera (Italy/Switzerland/France; Saturday, Oct. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at Quartier Latin; Sunday, Oct. 15 at 6:15 p.m. at Imperial Cinema): A mystical odyssey about an archeologist’s unending search for love. Not to be confused with Indiana Jones.
AT A GLANCE
The 52nd Festival du nouveau cinéma runs from Wednesday, Oct. 4 to Sunday, Oct. 15. For ticket, schedule and venue information, visit nouveaucinema.ca.
bbrownstein@postmedia.com
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