Serge Theriault Movies

Director Louis Belanger follows up his debut feature Post Mortem with this introspective, low key, working-class comedy drama concerning relationships, responsibility, and father-son bonding. Affectionately referred to as "The Boss" by his friends, Mr. Brochu (Serge Theriault) has been running the full-service Champlain gas station with the help of his family for the past 15 years. Though his wife is long gone and he is beginning to suffer the effects of Parkinson's disease, he maintains the store well until his sons begin to express aspirations outside of the family business. An aspiring photographer, Rejean (Sebastien Delorme) makes way for Germany when he hears that the Berlin Wall is about to fall, and Guy (Danny Gilmore) seems to be more interested in developing his blues band than maintaining the pumps. At least young Alain (Maxime Dumontier) shows some interest in carrying on tradition, though, at age 14, he's hardly ready to take on all of the adult responsibilities that the job entails. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Canada's favorite cinematic hockey team returns in this slick, fast-paced comedy that features some of Quebec's most popular film and television stars. The film's 1997 predecessor grossed more money than any other French-Canadian film. The sequel begins as Les Boys, a championship amateur Montreal hockey team, flies to France to participate in an international competition in the alpine village of Chamonix. This time, rather than focusing on the team's on-ice hijinks, director Louis Saia spends the first part of the story on the characters as they attempt to cope with the cultural differences between themselves and the native French while also taking time to explore the romances between team lothario Bob and a local girl, and Coach Stan who involves himself with Violette, the owner of a local bistro. The on-ice action picks up when the tournament begins, and Les Boys promptly lose to a rag-tag West African team. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This Canadian hockey comedy broke box-office records in Canada. Stan (Remy Girard) runs the blue-collar tavern Chez Stan and also coaches Les Boys, an ineffectual amateur hockey team of bar-room buddies. Gambling debts lead to a risky game in which Stan will lose Chez Stan to mob boss Meo (Pierre Lebeau) if Les Boys are defeated by Meo's team of heavyweight thugs. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Ding and Dong (Serge Theriault and Claude Meunier) are two standup comedians whose slangy Quebecois humor has made them popular among those who speak that dialect of French. This slapstick comedy capitalizes on their wordplay to the maximum extent; consequently the film is recommended primarily to those with close ties to Quebec. In the story, Ding and Dong are a standup act who go to perform at a tiny club in a remote town. Their act receives a much less enthusiastic welcome than the fistfight which closes the bar down. Subsequent adventures are similarly disastrous, until they inherit a tidy sum and buy "Theatre de la Nouvelle Tragedie" where they begin producing (and starring in) classical plays which they warp in their own characteristic fashion. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Before his death in 1993, director Francis Mankiewicz was Canadian television's premiere filmmaker. One of his rare theatrical films, Les Bons Debarras, was also among his best (despite its overlength); certainly the judges of Canada's Genie Awards thought so when honoring the film with their "Best Picture" award for 1981. Set amongst a middle-class Quebec family, the film concerns itself with a love triangle, consisting of Charlotte Laurier, Germaine Houde and Marie Tifo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide