| Polytechnique |
Theatrical release poster |
| Directed by |
Denis Villeneuve |
| Produced by |
Don Carmody and Maxime Rémillard |
| Written by |
Screenplay:
Jacques Davidts
Denis Villeneuve |
| Starring |
Maxim Gaudette
Sebastien Huberdeau
Karine Vanasse
Évelyne Brochu
Johanne-Marie Tremblay
Pierre Yves Cardinal |
| Music by |
Benoit Charest |
| Cinematography |
Pierre Gill |
| Editing by |
Richard Comeau |
| Distributed by |
Alliance Films
Remstar
Wild Bunch[1] |
| Release date(s) |
Quebec:
February 6, 2009
Toronto, Vancouver & Calgary:
March 20, 2009 |
| Running time |
77 minutes |
| Country |
Canada |
| Budget |
$6 million |
| Gross revenue |
$1,663,867 |
Polytechnique is a 2009 Canadian film from Quebec written by Jacques Davidts and Denis Villeneuve and directed by Denis Villeneuve. Set in Montreal, Quebec and based on the École Polytechnique Massacre (also known as the Montreal Massacre), the film documents the events of December 6, 1989 through the eyes of two students who witness a gunman murder fourteen young women. The film was released on February 6, 2009 in Quebec and on March 20, 2009 in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary.[2][3] Its release has sparked controversy in Quebec.[4]
The film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival on May 17th.[6][7]
Plot
During a class a young man enters a classroom with a rifle. He orders the men to leave and the women to stay. They comply after he shoots into the ceiling to show that he is serious. He tells the women that he hates feminists. Although the women deny being feminists; he shoots at them killing some and wounding others. He then moves through corridors, the cafeteria, and another classroom, specifically targeting women.
The film jumps back and forth in time several times. It shows male student Jean-François who was ordered to leave the classroom. He does not just flee but he returns to try to stop the killer and/or help the victims. Two surviving women, including Valérie, play dead thinking the killer returned. Some time after the massacre Jean-François, feeling guilty for complying with the order to leave the classroom and abandoning the women, commits suicide.
Trailer
The trailer was released at the end of November 2008, in both French and English versions. An edited version of Moby's song "Everloving" (from his Play album) is featured extensively in the trailer.
DVD release
Polytechnique was released on August 25, 2009 in two versions; a special two-disc edition with special features and a single disc edition with just the feature film. Both feature the English and French versions of the film. A Blu-Ray format was also released.[8]
Reception
The film has received mostly positive reviews from film critics. Peter Howell of the Toronto Star gave the film three and a half stars out of four, stating "Polytechnique makes no judgments, offers no panaceas. It shows the violence, faithfully recreating the historical record, but it doesn't wallow in it. It stands as a work of art, summoning unspoken thoughts the way Picasso's war abstraction Guernica does in a scene of contemplation with Jean-François."[9]
Denis Sequin of ScreenDaily.com gave the film a favourable review, writing "Like Gus Van Sant’s Elephant, Polytechnique is a formalist interpretation of an atrocity, with a cool perspective on the events and much for audiences to read between the frames as the film moves back and forth through time." [10]
Katherine Monk of Canwest News Services gave the film four stars out of five; "The paradox may sound grotesque, but it must be stated loud and clear: Denis Villeneuve and the cast of Polytechnique have transformed the tragedy of the Montreal Massacre into a work of profound beauty." [11]
The film currently holds a 7.6/10 rating on the Internet Movie Database.[12]
Production
The film was shot at Cégep de Maisonneuve and Collège Ahuntsic as well as Griffintown and Westmount.[13] There were two versions of the film produced, one in English and one in French. The director hopes the film will enter into the English-Canadian market, as well as the American one.[13] Director Denis Villeneuve shot the film in black and white, so as to avoid the presence of blood on screen.[13] The name of the perpetrator is never mentioned in the film. The end credits list Maxim Gaudette's character as "The killer".
Box office
The film grossed $214,419 in Quebec cinemas during its opening weekend, ranking 13th at the Canadian box office, even with limited release.[14] As of May 28, 2009, the film has grossed $1.66 million,[15] making it one of the highest-grossing Canadian films of the year.
See also
References
External links
