Next time you hear someone calling Quebecers xenophobes, say one word to them: Ru.
• Also read: The film “Ru” is nearing $2 million at the box office
Like the title of the film by Charles-Olivier Michaud based on the novel by Kim Thuy, which grossed $1.75 million at the Quebec box office.
This story of solidarity between “locals” and “immigrants” should shut the mouths of many annoying people who want us to believe that we are fundamentally intolerant.
AN OPEN QUEBEC
The fact that Ru will soon collect two million at the box office should make us happy. Quebecers have embraced this film, just as they embraced the book, as they embraced Kim Thuy, as they adopted with open arms the Vietnamese boat people in the '70s and '80s.
Ru shows us a positive light. It's a change from films (or shows or editorials) that take a disdainful look at the average Quebecer and their so-called “withdrawal into themselves.”
I liked the scene where neighbors come to bring spaghetti sauce and shepherd's pie to Kim Thuy's family, who have just arrived. These dishes sit in the fridge alongside dozens of other shepherd's pie and spaghetti sauce dishes.
Another scene made me smile. When the family from Quebec, which supports the members of the Vietnamese family, puts them up in their new apartment, the father tells them: “The first three months' rent has already been paid.” Yes, in the 80s we had no problems with that Housing shortage!
Le Devoir told us in December that “around fifty primary school students, a third of whom were new to French class, had the opportunity to see the film Ru in the cinema in the company of Kim Thúy and Charles-Olivier Michaud.”
“Your film allowed these children from elsewhere to see themselves on screen and discover Quebec. As if we were telling them, “This is your home,” one of the teachers said to the two creators.
SUCCESSFUL INTEGRATION
Radio-Canada recently premiered the documentary “In a Cinema Near You,” hosted by Karine Vanasse, which was intended to “replace” the defunct Gala Québec Cinéma.
In this documentary, which you can watch for free on ici.tou.tv, Kim Thuy's real family (his father, mother and two brothers) sees Ru for the first time.
After watching the film that tells his life story, Kim Thuy's father tearfully says, “Thank you for opening your arms to us.”
All the goodwill and openness of Quebecers towards “the other” is expressed in this scene of the documentary, where we see Karine Vanasse and Kim Thuy shedding a tear together while reflecting on the journey they have taken .
It was Karine Vanasse who years ago gave Kim Thuy (then a restaurant owner) a notebook so she could write a book. She took notes there, which became the Ru book. Years later, Karine Vanasse not only stars in Ru (she plays the Quebec mother who supported Kim's family), but also hosts a show at the Quebec cinema introducing the film. We can say we have come full circle!