Misplaced Pages

#937062

45-545: His film The Barbarian Invasions won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film in 2004. His films have also been nominated three further times, including two nominations in the same category for The Decline of the American Empire in 1986 and Jesus of Montreal in 1989, becoming the only French-Canadian director in history whose films have received this number of nominations and, subsequently, to have

90-447: A Genie Award for his adapted screenplay, while stars Mia Kirshner , Joanne Vannicola and Matthew Ferguson received acting nominations. In 2011, it was finally released on Region 1 DVD from Sony Pictures Classic's MOD service. It is also available in the UK on a Region 0 ("region-free") PAL DVD issued by Arrow Films . This article related to a Canadian film of the 1990s

135-484: A 2007 interview Days of Darkness had more similarities to his less successful 2000 film Stardom . Johanne-Marie Tremblay reprised her role as Constance from Jesus of Montreal and The Barbarian Invasions . In 2018, Arcand's The Fall of the American Empire followed similar themes. Love and Human Remains Love and Human Remains is a 1993 Canadian film directed by Denys Arcand and based on Brad Fraser 's stage play Unidentified Human Remains and

180-566: A conversation on their old sex drive and the gradual decline of their vitality. Diane is concerned for Nathalie, while Rémy, a history professor, lectures the hospital chaplain Constance on the relative peace of the 20th century compared to past centuries. At the same time, another scholar describes the September 11 attacks as historically small except as a possible beginning of modern barbarian invasions . After Rémy and his friends retreat to

225-490: A fascination with death and an idea of having a character who is expecting to die. Part of his interest in the subject matter related to both of his parents dying of cancer. He had tried to write screenplays about non- Decline characters going to die for 20 years prior to The Barbarian Invasions , originally pitching the idea to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation but having difficulty with

270-468: A film not just to see, but to welcome home". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times gave the movie four stars and called it "a movie with brains, indignation, irony and idealism". A.O Scott of The New York Times wrote "what makes The Barbarian Invasions much more than a facile exercise in generational conflict is that Denys Arcand, who wrote and directed it, has a sense of history that

315-518: A film that condemns the Quebec hospital system and features a death by cancer as its central theme". The film drew general attention for its criticism of Quebec's health care system. Peter Howell wrote in The Toronto Star that "It's the depth of emotions Arcand summons for his characters, and the way this superb ensemble cast bring them so vividly to life, that make The Barbarian Invasions

360-734: A film win the award. For The Barbarian Invasions , he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay , losing to Sofia Coppola for Lost in Translation . Arcand has also won several awards from the Cannes Film Festival , including the Best Screenplay Award , the Jury Prize , and many other prestigious awards worldwide. He won three César Awards in 2004 for The Barbarian Invasions : Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Film,

405-470: A former hospital and property near Lake Memphremagog . The film received a positive response from critics and became one of Arcand's biggest financial successes. It was the first Canadian film to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film , at the 76th Academy Awards in 2004. It won awards at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival , six Genie Awards , including Best Motion Picture , and three César Awards , including Best Film . The Barbarian Invasions

450-556: A number of feature films that received critical acclaim. Arcand returned to directing documentaries and did no work for television. In 1982, his documentary, Comfort and Indifference (Le confort et l'indifférence) won the Prix Luc-Perreault from the Quebec Film Critics' Association. In 1986 he wrote and directed what was until then the highest-grossing film in Quebec (and Canadian) history, The Decline of

495-583: A professional tennis player, while studying for a master's degree in history at the Université de Montréal he became involved in film making, which gave him a new sense of direction. In 1963, he joined the National Film Board of Canada where he produced several award-winning documentaries in his native French language . A social activist, he made a feature-length documentary in 1970 titled Cotton Mill, Treadmill (On est au coton) that showed

SECTION 10

#1732779747938

540-873: A skeptical and negative response from critics. The film was screened at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival in May, where it received a 22-minute standing ovation, with distribution to 30 countries assured by the time Arcand received his Best Screenplay award. It was afterwards selected to open the gala at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival in September, and also opened the Vancouver International Film Festival that month. The film began playing in Quebec theatres in May and ran for months, with its Canadian distributor being Alliance Films . It opened across Canada on 21 November. After Cannes, rights were sold to Miramax for distribution of

585-506: A stand-up comedian than an actor, was cast as Sébastien, after Dominique Michel urged Arcand to allow Rousseau to audition. Arcand explained he felt Rousseau had the "authority" the other actors who auditioned did not, though Rousseau was surprised to get the part as he felt his character was colder and more of an intellectual than he was. Rousseau's mother had died of cancer when he was a child, and he had fought with his father, later incorporating that experience into his performance. The film

630-511: Is a sequel to Arcand's 1986 film The Decline of the American Empire , continuing the story of the character Rémy, a womanizing history professor now terminally ill with cancer. The sequel was a result of Arcand's longtime desire to make a film about a character close to death, also incorporating a response to the September 11 attacks of 2001. It was produced by companies from both Canada and France, and shot mainly in Montreal , also employing

675-611: Is all too often annoyingly rhetorical and, finally, altogether too facile". In 2004, the Toronto International Film Festival ranked the film tenth in the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time . David Lawrence Pike criticized the use of the World Trade Center footage as exploitative, but said despite "the crudeness and vulgarity", the film had a "particular brilliance". The Barbarian Invasions

720-631: Is as acute as it is playful", adding "The rapprochement between Remy and Sebastien is beautiful to watch" and Marie-Josée Croze 's "spooky, melancholy intensity darkens the mood of buoyant sentimentality". Entertainment Weekly ' s Owen Gleiberman gave the film a B−, noting Rémy's hedonism. David Denby of The New Yorker gave credit to Stéphane Rousseau for "a fascinatingly minimal performance". Jonathan Romney of The Independent wrote "The film has its pros and cons, but you can't fault it for ambition: it not only muses on life and death, but also undertakes fairly comprehensive philosophical soundings of

765-462: Is considered historically significant as the first Canadian film to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film . Canadian historian George Melnyk interpreted it as a sign that " Canadian cinema has come of global age", also pointing to Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (2001) winning the Camera d'Or at Cannes. Marie-Josée Croze's honour for Best Actress at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival

810-496: Is not enthused about seeing Rémy, whom he blames for breaking up the family with his many adulteries . Rémy and his friends of the older generation are still largely social-democrats and proponents of Quebec nationalism , positions seeming somewhat anachronistic long after the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s. Rémy does not like Sébastien's career, lack of reading or fondness for video games. The father and son travel to

855-603: The American Empire ." Arcand believed the attack represented the first of what would be many foreign attacks on the U.S. Arcand also referred to himself as "post -isms ", and incorporated this discussion into the film. Another statement he tried to make with his film was that heroin could be legalized for terminally ill patients in Canada, claiming it already is in England. Author Susan C. Boyd wrote that, despite what

900-459: The Hells Angels , which resulted in the arrest of Maurice Boucher . The film was produced by both Canadian and French companies, including Telefilm Canada , Société Radio-Canada and Canal+ . The budget was $ 6 million. The cast members from the previous film, including Dorothee Berryman , Louise Portal , Dominique Michel , Pierre Curzi and Yves Jacques , were easy to secure for

945-550: The Legion of Honour . He finally earned from his home province one of its highest distinctions, the title of Knight of the National Order of Quebec , in 1990. In 1995, Arcand received a Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. In February 2004, the government of France named Denys Arcand a Commander of L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres , that nation's highest cultural honour. In 2004, Arcand

SECTION 20

#1732779747938

990-503: The U.S. state of Vermont to briefly receive medical care before returning to the overcrowded and disorganized Quebec hospital. Sébastien attempts to bribe hospital administration for better care, and calls Rémy's old friends about a possible visit. Upon hearing heroin is "800%" more effective than morphine, he tracks some down for Rémy from a drug addict, Nathalie. Meanwhile, Rémy is reunited with his friends, including Pierre, Dominique, Claude and Diane, Nathalie's mother, and they share

1035-583: The American Empire (Le Déclin de l'empire américain) . At the Canadian Genie Awards , it captured best film, best director, and best writer of an original screenplay. It also won the "International Critics Prize" at the Cannes Film Festival and became the first Canadian feature film nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film . Three years later Arcand repeated this award-garnering performance with his widely acclaimed 1989 film Jesus of Montreal (Jésus de Montréal) winning

1080-603: The TV remote control before she can say "-N", the final call letter of Edmonton's CTV affiliate station . Sal's remark, "It's chicken night at Flash", is an allusion to Flashbacks, a long-gone Edmonton gay bar . There's also repeated use of a Sun newspaper (the Edmonton Sun is one of the city's major daily newspapers, although the city's name is not included in the masthead of the prop paper) and CBC -TV Canadian Football League footage of an Edmonton Eskimos game. Fraser won

1125-547: The True Nature of Love . Fraser also wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation. The film version follows the story line of the original play fairly closely: a gay man and his heterosexual , female roommate (who sexually experiments by having sex with a lesbian) try to find love and sexual gratification in Edmonton , as a serial killer is loose in the city. While the film was shot on location in Montreal , Quebec ,

1170-401: The countryside, they speak of their devotion to constantly evolving -isms . Rémy dies in the company of his friends and Sébastien, after a heroin injection from Nathalie, whom Rémy calls his guardian angel. Denys Arcand , who wrote and directed the successful French Canadian film The Decline of the American Empire (1986), developed the idea of returning to the characters years later due to

1215-414: The exploitation of textile workers. The film caused an uproar that resulted in it not being distributed publicly for several years. Arcand received such publicity that it gave his fledgling career a great boost. He also worked on some television series, notably Duplessis , a historical work he wrote (but did not direct) about Premier Maurice Duplessis . During the early part of the 1970s, Arcand produced

1260-510: The film finished its run on 3 June 2004 after grossing $ 8,544,975 in North America and $ 18,379,681 in other territories, for a worldwide total of $ 26,924,656. It was one of Arcand's biggest box office successes. The Barbarian Invasions has received positive reviews from numerous critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports an 81% approval rating based on 134 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10. Metacritic reports that

1305-491: The film has an average score of 70 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". In Canada, Maclean's critic Brian D. Johnson called it not only satirical but "a moving elegy to a generation that defined modern Quebec and has seen its passions rendered obsolete". Liam Lacey wrote in The Globe and Mail that the film is "upbeat and wryly positive, or at least as much as you could expect from

1350-583: The film in the United States. It opened in New York and Los Angeles on 21 November. In France, the film was available on 450 screens at one time, the most for a Quebec film ever. The film's box office performance at Quebec theatres between its opening in May 2003 and the fall was considered good. By December, its initial release across Canada made $ 5.9 million. In France, it grossed the equivalent of US$ 8 million. According to Box Office Mojo ,

1395-593: The film portrays, heroin has been legal in Canadian palliative care since 1984. To research how his character would find heroin, Arcand contacted the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and met with them in an interrogation room, resembling the one in the final film. He claimed the RCMP gave him the cellphone number of a Montreal detective, and when he called it, he heard shouting from a police raid on

Denys Arcand - Misplaced Pages Continue

1440-651: The only Canadian director to have done so. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts , and a Commander of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres . Arcand was born in Deschambault , Quebec , Canada. He grew up in a devoutly Roman Catholic home in a village about 40 km southwest of Quebec City . He attended Jesuit school for nine years. Entering his teen years, the family moved to Montreal and although he dreamed about being

1485-530: The original stage play and the screenplay are both set in Edmonton , Alberta . There are attempts made in the dialogue, props and background film footage to identify the city as Edmonton, as in David's remark, "Let's order a Rosebowl pizza and discuss your sexual crises" (Rose Bowl Pizza was a well-known restaurant and bar in Edmonton). In another scene, the TV news reporter signs off from "CFR-" and gets cut off by

1530-435: The same three Genie awards, plus the Jury Prize at Cannes. The movie earned him a second Academy Award nomination, becoming the first Canadian director to accomplish this achievement. Arcand produced and directed his first English language film in 1993, titled Love and Human Remains , and did so again in 2000, with the film Stardom , which opened the Toronto International Film Festival . He then spent two years writing

1575-401: The same time, and decided on more lighting for later scenes when the film's mood brightens, while using fluorescent fixtures and reflecting the former hospital's green painting to shoot the early scenes. As with the first film, scenes were filmed near Lake Memphremagog . Most of the film was shot using a Steadicam . News that Arcand was working on a sequel to his 1986 film was received with

1620-710: The script for what many claim is his finest piece of cinematic writing to date, The Barbarian Invasions ( Les invasions barbares ). Released in 2003, the film won Arcand the Best Screenplay Award at the Cannes Film Festival, was nominated for a Golden Globe Award as Best Foreign Language Film and won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film . In addition, Denys Arcand was nominated for an Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay . The Barbarian Invasions won France's 2004 César Award for Best Picture , Best Director , and Best Original Screenplay. Arcand's film Days of Darkness (L'Âge des ténèbres)

1665-400: The sequel. New to the cast was Marie-Josée Croze , who was selected by Arcand after starring in the Canadian films Maelstrom (2000) and Ararat (2002). She found Arcand allowed her freedom in how she interpreted her role. In The Decline of the American Empire , Croze's character Nathalie is played by child actress Ariane Frédérique. Stéphane Rousseau , better known in Quebec as

1710-425: The subject matter being overly sentimental. He finally decided to try the story with characters from The Decline of the American Empire because of his fondness for its cast members. There are also characters from Arcand's 1989 film Jesus of Montreal in the film. The September 11 attacks of 2001 occurred when Arcand was nearly finished his screenplay, and gave new impetus to Arcand's ideas of "the decline of

1755-519: The way the world is today". Romney added Croze "has simply the most nuanced presence here: thoughtful, introspective, with a reassuring warmth and lack of cartoonishness". Peter Bradshaw , writing for The Guardian , disdained the movie, calling it "grotesquely overpraised", "shot through with middlebrow sophistication, boorish cynicism, unfunny satire, a dash of fatuous anti-Americanism and unthinkingly reactionary sexual politics". English Professor Peter Brunette wrote "its analysis of this state of affairs

1800-478: Was a professor of anthropology , and his youngest brother Gabriel Arcand (b. 1949) is a noted Canadian actor. His great-uncle, Adrien Arcand (1899-1967), was a notorious far-right politician. The Barbarian Invasions The Barbarian Invasions ( French : Les Invasions barbares ) is a 2003 Canadian-French sex comedy - drama film written and directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard , Stéphane Rousseau and Marie-Josée Croze . The film

1845-531: Was also inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts . In 2023, he was named the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Directors Guild of Canada . Arcand is a lapsed Catholic . Married a second time, neither Arcand nor Denise Robert , his producer/wife, has had children. He was 55 years old when they adopted an orphaned baby boy from China named Carter. His brother Bernard Arcand (1945–2009)

Denys Arcand - Misplaced Pages Continue

1890-510: Was chosen to close the 2007 Cannes Film Festival . The press opening was subdued and the subsequent reviews were mixed. Following this, he took a seven-year hiatus from feature film directing; he returned in 2014 with the film Le règne de la beauté . In 1988, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada and was promoted to Companion in 2005. In 1990 the Government of France awarded him

1935-458: Was considered unlikely. She was not present to accept the award. The film's victory at France's national César Awards was also considered a surprise, since it is mainly a Quebec film. It received the most nominations at the 24th Genie Awards . In 2007, Arcand's film Days of Darkness was released. While considered part of a loose trilogy following The Decline of the American Empire and The Barbarian Invasions , Arcand acknowledged in

1980-461: Was followed by the thematically related Days of Darkness in 2007 and The Fall of the American Empire in 2018. Seventeen years after the events of The Decline of the American Empire , Sébastien is enjoying a successful career in quantitative finance in London when he receives a call from his mother, Louise, that his father and Louise's ex-husband Rémy is terminally ill with cancer. Sébastien

2025-786: Was shot over 50 days, beginning in September 2002 and finishing in November. The bulk of the film was shot in Montreal, with some scenes filmed in London. Footage from the World Trade Center attack shot by a Quebec architect and acquired by Radio-Canada was also used. For the hospital scenes, the cast and crew employed Lachine General Hospital, an unused former hospital in Lachine, Quebec . Cinematographer Guy Dufaux found these scenes difficult to make interesting and realistic at

#937062