VIFF, Day Three: Curling and The Drunkard

Day three saw the best of the festival with the worst of the festival so far. Advancing my knowledge of Canadian cinema any way I can, the Quebecois feature Curling proved so far beyond my expectations it may just be the surprise zenith of the festival. Similarly surprising was the lack of interest generated by The Drunkard, with subject matter I supposed would be easily effective.

Curling - 2010 - 92 minutes - Denis Cote
First off, Denis Cote is an awesome orator despite the language barrier. His opening remarks were modest and charming, "Mark here makes it seem like I invented the wheel" and his cutting wit was so precise and effective he actually had me cracking up during the final Q&A. This is surprising considering the film's relatively dark and oppressive atmosphere, a delicate portrait of a father and daughter who live in isolation far from any semblance of civilization, or at least off the beaten track. The father, Jean-Francois (Emmanuel Bilodeau), works at a bowling alley as a general maintenance employee as well as at a small hotel as a maid of sorts, keeping his daughter, Julyvonne (Philomène Bilodeau) from interacting from anyone outside of his supervision. He remarks early on in the film that he doesn't allow her to go to school in order to prevent her from hanging out with "all sorts of types getting up to all sorts of no good." The rigidity of Jean-Francois' rule is called into question as Julyvonne's stunted mental growth is made obvious through her reactions to the several strange, almost fantastical situations which arise.

Curling is probably going to be the best film of the festival, it's an indication of just how powerful Canadian cinema can be, and it goes against the trend of quick-paced, flashy photography and action-packed scripts. The film trusts in its slow, deliberate movements and its pacing is damn near impeccable. Though quoted as Cote's most accessible work, Curling is an evasive film, leaving ambiguous a great many questions some would define as pressing. One quick note: the second scene of the film, when Jean-Francois and Julyvonne are walking along a windswept side road on the way back from the eye doctor's, is fucking phenomenal. It's so thrilling to witness such a confident, painterly composition, especially on the big screen and on 35mm. So, if you get the chance: see Curling in theaters.

The Drunkard - 2010 - 106 minutes - Directed by Freddie Wong
Pretty lackluster film that I don't really want to dwell on, to be honest. I mean seriously, how hard is it to make a film set in 1960s Hong Kong that is about an alcoholic writer that appeals to me? This was kind of a gimme, I felt like I was picking it because it would be easy and fun, but it wasn't. It was not good. Bad, even.