Almost 300 films from around fifty countries are on the program for the 51st editione 1st edition of the Festival du nouveau cinema (FNC) that opens in Montreal this Wednesday. Faithful to the formula that has made it successful over the years, the FNC offers a selection of short and long films that have stood out in recent months at the world’s biggest festivals (Cannes, Venice, Toronto…). . Here are seven not to be missed.
Falkensee
After being presented and well received at the Cannes and Toronto festivals, Quebec actress-director Charlotte Le Bon’s debut feature film will open the ball at the 51st FNC on Wednesday night at the Imperial Cinema. Adapted from the graphic novel “A Sister” by Bastien Vivès, Falcon Lake tells the first feelings of two teenagers camping by Sara Montpetit (Maria Chapdelaine) and Joseph Engel (The Faithful Man).
White noise
The opening film of the last Venice Film Festival, this new black comedy from American filmmaker Noah Baumbach (A Marriage Story, Frances Ha) brings together on screen Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig in the persona of a professor of Hitler studies and his wife, who try to understand the origin of a mysterious poisonous cloud that is threatening their small Midwestern town.
The Five Devils
Five years after winning the FNC’s Louve d’or with Ava, her first feature film, French director Léa Mysius returns to Montreal to present her latest work, The Five Devils, at the end of the festival. Presented at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, this fantastically accented drama stars an 8-year-old girl with an overdeveloped sense of smell (Sally Dramé) that allows her to smell and reproduce any scent of her choosing.
women talk
In her new film, Canadian filmmaker Sarah Polley (Away From Her) brings to the screen Manitoba author Miriam Toews’ novel Women Talking, which is inspired by real facts of sexual abuse that took place in the Mennonite community in Bolivia in the 2000s The film, which reunites an impressive cast (Claire Foy, Rooney Mara, Jessie Buckley, Frances McDormand), recently won second place in the prestigious Audience Award at the Toronto Film Festival behind Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans.
Dead for a dollar
After Jane Campion last year, American filmmaker Walter Hill receives a Louve d’honneur for his entire career this year. The 80-year-old director will be stopping in the metropolis for a few days to present some of the highlights of his career – including The Driver and The Warriors – but also his latest feature film, Western Dead for a Dollar, which opened at the presented at the Venice Film Festival.
The coyote
Screened at the last Toronto Film Festival, director Katherine Jerkovic’s second feature film (Les routes in February) focuses on the journey of a chef of Mexican descent who finds work in a restaurant in La Malbaie. But a surprise visit from his daughter and grandson upsets his plans. It is the actor Jorge Martinez Colorado, recently discovered in the series Le temps des raspberries, who defends the leading role of the film.
It happened near you
What a great idea for the 30th anniversary of It Happened Near You, the 1992 cult film that launched the career of Belgian actor Benoit Poelvoorde. Produced on a measly budget, the dark comedy comes in the form of a mockumentary about a professional killer who specifically targets the elderly and middle class. It Happened Near You will be shown in the presence of André Bonzel, one of the film’s three directors.
The 51ste FNC will be presented in multiple theaters in Montreal from October 5th to 16th. More details about the program: newcinema.ca