The Sound of Trees
Drama
Québec, 2015, 78 min.
Director: François Péloquin
Actors: Roy Dupuis, Antoine L’Écuyer, Rémi Goulet
Distribution: K-Films Amérique
This Quebec film is presently in competition at the Karlovy Vary film festival in the Czech Republic. Its contemporary North American setting only intensifies the ages-long universal themes of a father-son relationship, and of a young man coming of age, as well as portraying the general existential dilemma. The conflicts presented are specific to this family and their way of life, but the turmoil the young man feels and the intensity of his feelings and reactions are clearly recognizable as an adolescent's angst, as is his solution out of it - to leave his parents home and to go into the "big" world. And although one might conclude that at the end the young man rejects his father's way of life, not wishing to continue in his footsteps, this might be a precipitated opinion. The son does not burn his bridges with is father just before leaving the town, but rather, with a grand gesture, rebuilds their relationship by placing it on a solid ground. Since he is only 17 years old, his life and experiences might still one day bring him right back to his native town, when the perspective of owning and running a family business and being one's own boss might be much better appreciated. At his present young and rebellious age, he simply is not able to work for his father.
The name of the film Le bruit des arbres, which literally translates as "The Noise of the Trees", does not refer to the sounds the trees make when swayed by the winds, but rather to the noise produced when they are cut down and processed in the family lamber business. The father hears this noise, the son does not. His ears are plugged with earphones as he listens to a very loud music instead. The word "noise" most likely also refers to all the external and internal "noise" one creates in one's life and in others who surround him.
The acting is superb. Both Roy Depuis as well as Antoine L’Écuyer who plays his son portray their characters exceptionally well. The scenery of the Gulf of St. Laurence river, where the town is located, is the perfect setting for this film.
The film is presently shown at the Montreal's Cinema Excentris. To find more about the scheduling, visit the cinema's website.
Film's trailer
Top photo courtesy of Cinema Excentris.
Film Review © 2015 Nadia Slejskova
Film Review © 2015 Nadia Slejskova
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