Antigone, winner of the Best Canadian Feature Film award at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival, is Canada's entry to the 92nd Academy Awards for the Best International Feature Film category. The category has been renamed to replace the Best Foreign Language Film category.
The film from writer-director Sophie Deraspe adapts Sophocles' classical Greek tragedy to the current treatment of immigrants in modern Montréal.
Antigone is the name of the young woman (Nahema Ricci), a Canadian refugee and immigrant who has a brother wrongfully gunned down during a drug arrest and another brother taken into custody. The film also stars Nour Belkhiria, Rawad El-Zein, Rachida Oussaada, Antoine Desrochers, Paul Doucet, and Nathalie Tanous.
2019 TIFF Canadian film wrapup
2019 TIFF preview
2019 TIFF Canadian film preview
Antigone is female written and directed with a look at refugees and immigrants. The film will be part of the conversation over the Oscars choices. Canada hasn't made the top 5 since Kim Nguyen’s Rebelle in 2013 and the top 9 since Juste la fin du monde from Xavier Dolan in 2016.
The argument isn't so much that Canada make the shortlist or the top 5 cut. Canada should have a film in contention that is part of the conversation. Canada has struggled with that lately, especially with the last 2 nominees.
Denys Arcand’s Les Invasions barbares is still the only Canadian film to win the Oscar in the category.
Sophie Deraspe's last film with the documentary The Amina Profile in 2015. I do recall seeing that film but didn't make a huge impression mostly because of the story.
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Seeing this film now extends my own personal streak to the last 16 Canadian entries for the Best Foreign Language Film to 2003 and The Barbarian Invasions. There are only 3 films missing since Cosmos (1997): August 32nd on Earth (1998); Emporte-Moi | Set Me Free (1999); and Un crabe dans la tête (2002). I have had the first 2 films on my list for some time.
I have seen 6 nominated films that were released before 1997: Mon oncle Antoine (1971); Les Ordres (1975); J.A. Martin photographe (1977); Le Déclin de l'empire américain (1986); Jésus de Montréal (1989); Léolo (1992); and Le Sexe des étoiles (The Sex of the Stars) (1993).
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Antigone will be released in Quebec on November 6. WaZabi Films is handling international sales.
The list of films will be cut to 9 films for the shortlist in mid-December. The final list of 5 nominations is out on January 13. The 92nd Academy Awards will be handed out on February 9.
video credit: YouTube/TIFF Trailers
photo credit: Antigone film
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