Luc Picard Movies

Every child who has lost a parent early in life (whether due to death or the separations of divorce or for any other reason) longs to see that parent again. Many have kept up a running dialogue in their heads of things they would say to them if they ever see them again, and many of these things are bitter indeed. In this story, Camille (Marianne-Coquelicot Mercier is such a child. Her father (Denis Mercier) left years before, and now she is thirteen. Stargazing appeals to her as a hobby because "stars have no sex." Surprisingly, her father does reappear, but now he is a "she." This casts a pall over their reunion, and Camille is forced to come to terms with her new father, and cannot renew a relationship with the man who (in his view at least) never was. Her mother (Sylvie Drapeau), however, is not about to be easily reconciled to this transformation. This story is based on a novel by Monique Proulx, a relative to the better known Annie Proulx. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This Canadian psychological thriller, based upon a true story wherein a Quebec cabinet minister was kidnapped in October 1970 by French-Canadian terrorists, has a pro French-Canadian sentiment that is guaranteed to spark controversy among northern viewers. The film is especially as the tensions between French-Canadians and the Canadian government remain high. The story is presented from the viewpoint of four members of the Front de Liberation du Quebec. In the first scene, members of the FLQ are rapidly escaping after dumping the corpse of Pierre Laporte, Labor Minister, into their car trunk. Using flashback, the film chronicles the week prior to the murder including the actual kidnapping. Much of the action occurs in the bungalow to which to terrorists took LaPorte. There they must wrestle with the potential consequences of their actions. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Montreal director Charles Biname (Eldorado) and novelist Monique Proulx used actor improvs as a basis for this screenplay look at life in Montreal. Unhappy Louise (Pascale Montpetit) can't connect with her career-minded sister Paulette (Anne-Marie Cadieux). To make matters worse, her lover Julien (Guy Nadon) is a married father with little time to spend seeing Louise -- so she takes to the streets, informing people at random that her services are available for exactly 60 minutes. Some talk away their hour, while others desire sex. One couple want Louise to play doctor-nurse with them, and a middle-aged woman has her dispose of a dead pet. Quebec celebrities seen in cameos include Montreal Festival of New Cinema director Claude Chamberlan. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

Canadian filmmaker Pierre Falardeau, an outspoken advocate of independence for Quebec, directed this historical drama based on events stemming from the Rebellion of 1837, an early and ill-fated attempt by French Canadians to win their sovereignty. In 1837, Quebecois rebels, chafing under what they believed was exploitation and abuse at the hands of the British-backed Montreal government, attempted to stage a revolution, but the rebels were met with deadly force by British troops. Marie-Thomas De Lorimier (Luc Picard) and Charles Hindelang (Frederic Gilles), two leaders of the Rebellion of 1837, were captured and sentenced to death, and the bulk of 15 Fevrier 1839 follows the events of their final day on Earth as they await execution in a prison in Montreal. 15 Fevrier 1839 met with a great deal of controversy in Canada; the federally funded production company Telefilm Canada pulled its support from the project on three separate occasions before filming was completed, and the final results earned unfavorable comments from pro-Ottawa politicians, who were especially upset that a film funded by the Canadian government would so strongly support the Québecois separatist movement. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An elderly alcoholic looks back on her many unhappy memories as she pulls together the fractured pieces of her life in this French-language drama from Canada. Paulette (Elise Guilbault) was an attractive young woman working in a factory when she fell in love with Belley (Michel Forget), a good-looking man with money, social status, and a wife. Paulette and Belley became lovers, but she was unhappy with her status as the other woman, and in time left Belley for a relationship with Frank (Luc Picard), an insurance agent. Paulette loved Frank and they soon wed, but Frank was chronically unfaithful, and their relationship became a source of constant sorrow. Shortly before the birth of their first child, Paulette began drowning her sorrows in alcohol, and while she tried to shut out the pain and humiliation of Frank's infidelity by caring for her child, it's wasn't long before she found that alcohol was the surest way to dull her pain, and her addiction to alcohol soon took precedence over everything in her life -- including her marriage and the care of her child. Meanwhile, Frank became all the more brazen in his affairs with other women, driving Paulette deeper and deeper into the abyss of drink. La Femme Qui Bot was screened as part of the Critics' Week program at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Quebecois actor and filmmaker Luc Picard takes the helm for this Genie Award-winning drama about an actor in search of the perfect role, and the pregnant girlfriend forced to make a life-changing decision. Forty-year old Louis (Picard) is a loud-mouthed repo-man who has nurtured a lifelong dream of becoming a successful actor. Fortunately for Louis his cousin is a casting agent, and he soon learns that local producers are seeking to fell the role of a father videotaping a final message for his two year-old son. Lately the strain of his job has been wearing not only on Louis, but his frustrated girlfriend Suzie (Suzanne Clement) as well. When Suzie discovers that she is pregnant, she immediately begins pondering the prospect of leaving Louis to raise the pair's child in a more stable environment. Though she hesitates to break the news to Louis for fear of how he will react, the news soon gets out when Louis spots Suzie showing off baby clothes to her circle of friends. When Suzie discovers that Louis has been practicing for the audition in secret and has since won the role, she determines to stick out the relationship just the low-level criminal's sordid past threatens to catch up with him in the most devastating manner imaginable. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

As scripted by Quebecois raconteur Fred Pellerin and directed by Luc Picard, this offbeat fantasy comedy details the adventures of Babine (Vincent Guillaume Otis), the son of a witch and a village pariah, as he ventures forth into the world and narrowly evades death. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi