In addition to the successes at the box office, the Quebec cinema offered us several varied and high quality films in 2023. Here are our five favorites of the year.
The piston
Photo provided by Immina Films
Adapting a novel as successful as The Diver to the big screen was inevitably a dangerous task. But filmmaker Francis Leclerc achieved his goal by putting together a dynamic and highly effective adaptation of Stéphane Larue's book, buoyed by a sensitive and nuanced performance from the young Henri Picard. (MD)
Solo
Photo provided by Axia Films
After signing two very successful first feature films (Chien de garde and Souterrain), Sophie Dupuis once again shows the extent of her talent with this extravagant and electrifying film about the world of drag queens. The director's favorite actor, Théodore Pellerin, delivers a stunning performance as a drag queen trying to escape a toxic and destructive love affair. (MD)
Just like Sylvain
IMMINA MOVIES
Actress and director Monia Chokri gave us one of the most beautiful films of the year from Quebec with this funny and brilliant romantic comedy, in which she explores the complexities of the feeling of love by portraying the unlikely love at first sight between a philosophy professor 40 years old ( Magalie Lépine-Blondeau) and a building contractor from the Laurentians (Pierre-Yves Cardinal). (MD)
will
Photo provided by Takashi Seida
The least we can say is that this new (and last?) film by Denys Arcand has left no one indifferent. True to himself, the filmmaker of “The Decline of the American Empire” and “Barbarian Invasions” paints a scathing picture of our society, particularly poking fun at political correctness, cancel culture and a lack of respect for elders. It's not always subtle, but it's still very effective and sometimes brilliant. (MD)
The red rooms
Photo provided by Némésis Films
We don't emerge unscathed from Pascal Plante's Red Rooms, a breathtaking and highly stylized work in which two young women develop an unhealthy obsession with a serial killer. It's disturbing, impressive and, most of all, quite frankly, unforgettable. (BL)