Denys Arcand

Escher's Infinite Perspective

Jean Bergeron

Denys Arcand, Joost Batenburg

M.C. Escher is among the most intriguing of artists. In 1956 he challenged the laws of perspective with his graphic Print Gallery and his uncompleted master-piece quickly became the most puzzling enigma of modern art. Fifty years later, can mathematician Hendrik Lenstra complete it? Should he?

Le confort et l'indifférence

Denys Arcand

Jean-Pierre Ronfard, Pierre Elliott Trudeau

Made shortly after the referendum on Quebec's independence was held, this documentary illustrates what the politicians' promises were and how the population did not really care nor truly understand what was really at stake, even though just about everyone had an opinion on the subject.

Réjeanne Padovani

Denys Arcand

Jean Lajeunesse, Pierre Thériault

The unexpected return of his ex-wife and the assembly of a group of protesters both threaten to wreck a corrupt contractor's inauguration party for his new superhighway.

On est au coton

Denys Arcand

Director Denys Arcand made an inquiry on textile industry in Quebec, meeting employers and workers of that industry.

Québec : Duplessis et après...

Denys Arcand

This film establishes a parallel between the 1970 electoral campaign in Québec and the 1936 campaign dominated by Maurice Duplessis. It shows the hope but also the uncertainty that existed in 1970. Had the Quiet Revolution really changed things in Québec? Was it possible that a new leader would emerge on the political scene? (NFB.ca)

The Barbarian Invasions

Denys Arcand

Rémy Girard, Stéphane Rousseau

In this belated sequel to 'The Decline of the American Empire', middle-aged Montreal college professor, Remy, learns that he is dying of liver cancer. His ex-wife, Louise, asks their estranged son, Sebastian, a successful businessman living in London, to come home. Sebastian makes the impossible happen, using his contacts and disrupting the Canadian healthcare system in every way possible to help his father fight his terminal illness to the bitter end, while reuniting some of Remy's old friends, including Pierre, Alain, Dominique, Diane, and Claude, who return to see their friend before he passes on.

Jesus of Montreal

Denys Arcand

Lothaire Bluteau, Catherine Wilkening

A group of actors putting on an interpretive Passion Play in Montreal begin to experience a meshing of their characters and their private lives as the production takes form against the growing opposition of the Catholic church.

Léolo

Jean-Claude Lauzon

Gilbert Sicotte, Maxime Collin

The story of an imaginative boy who pretends he is the child of a sperm-laden Sicilian tomato upon which his mother accidentally fell.

Night Zoo

Jean-Claude Lauzon

Gilles Maheu, Roger Le Bel

Marcel, recently released from prison, attempt to rebuild his relationship with his girlfriend Julie (now a prostitute) and especially his father Albert (who thinks he's been away on a long trip abroad), while being pursued by two corrupt cops (one of whom bears a longstanding grudge against him) for drug money he's alleged to possess.

The Decline of the American Empire

Denys Arcand

Dominique Michel, Dorothée Berryman

Four very different Montreal university teachers gather at a rambling country house to prepare a dinner. Remy (married), Claude (a homosexual), Pierre (involved with a girlfriend) and Alain (a bachelor) discuss sex, the female body and their affairs with them. Meanwhile, their four female guests, Louise (Remy's wife of 15 years), Dominique (a spinster), Diane (a divorcée) and Danielle (Pierre's girlfriend) are spending the time at a downtown health gym. They also discuss sex, the female body and, naturally, men. Later in the evening, they finally meet at the country house and have dinner. A ninth guest, named Mario, who used to know Diane, drops in on the group for some talk and has a surprise of his own.

Joyeux Calvaire

Denys Arcand

Lorne Brass, Gaston Lepage

Marcel and Joseph are tireless walkers. Their itinerary is an invitation to discover improbable places and fascinating people. Everlastingly looking for Stanley, Marcel’s only friend, they meet an unlikely crowd of extravagant characters. Each has a story to tell, his hope to share.

Samuel de Champlain: Québec 1603

Denys Arcand

Footage of Québec City locations and the artwork of well-known Quebec animator Frédéric Back are used to tell the tale of Champlain’s life in New France – from his first explorations and settlement to his death in 1635.

The Fall of the American Empire

Denys Arcand

Alexandre Landry, Maripier Morin

A shy and insecure delivery driver (Landry) arrives on the scene of a robbery-gone-wrong and picks up two bags of cash and hides them in his truck . He is interrogated by two tough police detectives and manages to evade suspicion but he is warned that whoever owns the money will be looking for it. Only the help of a prostitute and a former biker recently released from jail might get him out of trouble.

Ville-Marie

Denys Arcand

Gilles Marsolais, Gisèle Trépanier

Today it is the city of Montreal, but 3 centuries ago the tiny band of missionary founders called it Ville-Marie, the holy city of Mary. This film goes back to its beginning and those who felt called to plant an oasis of Christianity in the North American wilderness. In an imaginative, at times almost surrealistic, way the film recalls the highborn company from France, and shows what survives of Ville-Marie in the Montreal of today.

Days of Darkness

Denys Arcand

Marc Labrèche, Sylvie Léonard

Jean-Marc is a man without qualities living in times that are out of joint. His wife and children ignore him; he's a mid-level government functionary in Montreal doing his job without care. He has an active imagination of sexual conquest, but his only real feelings come when he visits his aged mother, whose health is failing. When his wife leaves abruptly to work in Toronto, Jean-Marc sets out to reorder things with his daughters, his social life, and at work. In a world that at best is a farce, does he stand a chance?

Dirty Money

Denys Arcand

Marcel Sabourin, René Caron

This French-Canadian crime/action drama, which satirizes U.S. crime films, was shown at the Cannes Film Festival in 1972 and was well received. In the picture, perfectly ordinary people murder, steal, and torture one another with casual abandon in order to solve their everyday problems.