My 2008 TIFF Experience (5th in a series)

Last night I screened Léa Pool's "Maman est chez le coiffeur" ("Mommy is at the hairdresser") at the Scotiabank 4 cinema as part of the TIFF 08 Canadiana series. The film is set in suburban Montreal in 1966 and focuses primarily on dysfunction within a 5 person family: Maman is a part-time broadcast journalist for Radio Canada, father is an (often absent) physician, their daughter is Elise is a 15 year-old with a fondness for fishing, middle child Coco (Élie Dupuis) who prefers building go karts to showing off the musical talent he inherited from his parents (Dupuis has an amazing voice) and youngest son Benoit (Hugo St-Onge-Paquin), a troubled boy with developmental challenges.

Added to the character mix are many neighbours, including Carl (Antoine Desrochers) a perpetually lederhosen clad skinny boy who is convinced that he is the sire of an Austrian prince (the youngest lad in the Van Trappe family brood) and not of his overweight whore patronizing father, as well as a freckled faced boy contending with a mother who has become migraine afflicted and painkiller addicted coping with a criticallly ill husband. The plot thickens after Maman deserts the family to takes a posting to London tired of being being spurned by her closeted gay husband (Laurent Lucas) when she discovers (courtesy Elise) than he is on more intimate terms with his golf buddies than she had suspected. (The title to the film refers to the explanation for maman's absence the kids use to satisfy meddling neighbours.)

Although the children are forced to shoulder worries beyond the capacity of their tender years, the film maintains a good balance between pathos and (unexpected) humour. The youths' dialog, in particular, rings very true. The relationship between Elise and a deaf mute man (Mr. Fly) who acts as a father surrogate, teaching Elise fishing, is especially well drawn. Actress Marianne Fortier (as Elise) is a stand-out among a very strong youth cast. The arts credits for set decoration and costume design together with the soundtrack music (Cher's pop hit "Bang Bang" (or at least a version en francais) is used to particularly good effect) evoke the period very well.

I believe this film should rank as a very strong contender to claim the best Canadian feature prize.

Highly recommended.