Le bruit des arbres - The Sound of Trees

Le Bruit des Arbres
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

MWFF 2013: Another House

Another House 

L'Autre Maison

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director : Mathieu Roy

Screenwriter : Mathieu Roy, Michael Ramsey

Cinematographer : Steve Asselin

Editor : Louis-Martin Paradis

Cast : Marcel Sabourin, Roy Dupuis, Émile Proulx-Cloutier, Florence Blain Mbaye, Julie Gayet

Film production and Sales : Roger Frappier, Féliz Frappier, Max Films, 1751, rue Richardson, bureau 5.101, Montréal, QC H3K 1G6 (Canada), tél.: 514 282-8444, info@maxfilms.ca Distributeur canadien/Canadian Distributor: TVA Films, 1600 boul. de Maisonneuve est, 9e étage, Montréal, QC H2L 4P2 (Canada), info@tvafilms.com

OFFICIAL FILM SYNOPSIS

"At 86, Henri Bernard has begun to suffer from dementia and keeps wandering away from his country house to find another more "comfortable" one. His two sons, Gabriel, a star reporter who travels around the world covering wars and political hotspots, and Eric, a pilot-in-training who can't get enough flying time because of filial duties, disagree about what to do with their increasingly erratic and forgetful father. Gabriel considers placing the old man in a nursing home but is turned off by what he sees when he and his father visit one. Eric scolds his brother for not "being there". He fends off his girlfriend's complaints and is resentful that his efforts seem unappreciated. But through the pain of their predicament, the two brothers realize that they must overcome their differences so that they are together when they accompany their father to the enigmatic place that he keeps seeking, the place he calls "the other home". "What really inspired me was the spirit that my father has preserved in his decline... It touched all of us in the family, and I wanted to pay homage to that. So there are autobiographical elements, but the film does not tell the life of my father, nor mine, nor that of my brother. These are characters who have found their own personalities and their own stories." -- Mathieu Roy "

A Quebec production Another House was the Montreal World Film Festival 2013 opening film. Especially those who had to care for an ageing parent or some other family member will immediately relate to this film, regardless if the illness of their loved ones being different from that of the main character in the film. Marcel Sabourin's performance is superb. His portrayal of Henri Bernard makes it easy to comprehend the limitations that his illness imposes as well as the stress experienced by those family member who care for him. His two sons are equally superbly portrayed by Emile Proulx-Cloutier and Roy Depuis.

Below are some photos taken just before the red carpet walk to the festival's opening night and the film's premier. To the left is the official poster of the film, and to the right picture of Roy Depuis with the film's director Mathiue Roy in the centre talking to a festival's participant.

Below are two images of the film's actors being interviewed by press. To the left is of the principal actor Marcel Sabourin, and to the right Roy Depuis.

Click on images to enlarge them.

Image at the top courtesy of MWFF and the director of the film.

All photos in this article by Nadia Slejskova.

© 2013 Nadia Slejskova