The Oscars encourage us to see the future films of Oscar-nominated and Oscar-winning actors and directors. "Starring Oscar-winning......." or "directed by Oscar-nominated ......." Having the word Oscar, whether that is a nomination or win (ask La La Land), adds prestige to creative film people.
We should also go back in a person's career to see if we can spot trends that led to the Oscar nomination or win.
Denis Villeneuve is coming off an Oscar nomination for Arrival. Villeneuve did not win but his next film, Blade Runner 2049, will come with advertising that features an Oscar-nominated director and 2-time Oscar-nominated star, fellow Canadian Ryan Gosling.
Ryan Gosling, Denis Villeneuve come up short at Oscars
Looking at how Canadians have done at the Oscars
Ryan Gosling, Denis Villeneuve get Oscar nominations
Villeneuve has directed 8 feature films to date. The four "American" films were not written by Villeneuve: Arrival; Sicario; Enemy; and Prisoners. Villeneuve wrote and directed the 4 Quebec films listed below.
Let's explore Villeneuve's Quebec past to get a glimpse of the director who America have been discovering for the last few films.
Incendies
Incendies put Villeneuve on maps outside of Quebec. The 2010 film is about fraternal twins who find out after their mother had died that they have a brother and their father is still alive. They travel from Canada to an unidentified Middle East country.
The film won 8 Genie Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Incendies made the final cut for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars but lost out on the top prize.
Polytechnique
We've written about Polytechnique, a film based on the Ecole Polytechnique mass shooting in 1989.
Canadian film review: Polytechnique
The film was shot in black and white, English and French. You get a sense of what happening without being too overdramatic. You also get a sense of the world for women, especially engineering students, leading up to the mass shooting at the school.
The film and the incident are not well-known in the United States. Both are more known in Canada, especially in Quebec.
The film won 9 Genie Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. The Toronto Film Critics Association named Polytechnique the Best Canadian Film of 2009.
Maelström
Maelström is a dark film about a young woman, played by Marie-Josée Croze, using drugs and alcohol to deal with the pressures of success as a clothing boutique owner. One night, she runs over a middle-aged fishmonger.
She eventually falls in love with the fishmonger's son before telling him what really happened that night.
One could find it odd that the story is told by a fish, but given that a fishmonger is involved, somehow it fits in well.
This film came out 9 years before Polytechnique.
Maelström won 5 Genie Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay.
August 32nd on Earth
Pascale Bussières, one of my favorite French-Canadian actresses, plays Simone Prévost, a woman who drives off the road late at night. The car crash changes her life. She quits her modeling/acting job and doesn't go on a planned Italy trip.
She wants her best male friend to give her a baby. He already has a girlfriend, but says yes on the condition that they do it in the desert.
Canadian film review: When Night Is Falling
Bussières, who you might remember in When Night is Falling, proves captivating with her unusual request.
Un 32 août sur terre was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. The film was Canada's entry for the Best Foreign Language Film but didn't make the Oscars cut.
CanadianCrossing.com film reviews
CanadianCrossing.com film coverage
Jean-Marc Vallée has not been nominated for Best Director. But he did direct the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor winners in Dallas Buyers Club and Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominees in Wild.
C.R.A.Z.Y. and Cafe de Flore are amazing Quebec films written and directed by Vallee. They should be easy to find.
Canadian film review: Cafe de Flore
TIFF placed C.R.A.Z.Y. in the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time in 2015. The film won 9 Genie Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay (co-written with François Boulay).
Vallée wrote and directed Cafe de Flore, with 13 Genie nominations and 2 Genies awards.
photo credit: Radio-Canada/Valérie-Micaela Bain
video credit: YouTube/kviff
photo credit: August 32nd on Earth
Comments