C.R.A.Z.Y.

C.R.A.Z.Y. is simply one of the best movies of all time. It encapsulates a time and a place – Quebec in the sixties, seventies and eighties and evokes the era with an amazing sound track and jaw-dropping acting. You're there, in the moment with Gervais, played by Michel Côté who is the macho factory-working Dad.

He's the proud father of five sons but gradually realizes that one of them is a 'sissy' and takes this on personally in the jock world he inhabits. The father is a fully rounded character, not cast in the black and white mold so prevalent in other movies of this genre as his puzzled love for his fourth son Zac, played by Marc-André Grondin, is palpable.

The movie takes off in completely unexpected directions. Zac is totally uncomfortable with his sexuality and prays all the time for a 'cure'. He just wants to be like his brothers and earn the love and acceptance of his father. It is telling that for Gervais, he can accept his druggie son but not the one he suspects of being a 'fairy'.

There is a huge amount of humour in the movie, one scene in the cathedral with the boys' choir singing "Sympathy for the Devil" brought a joyful laughter to the audience I was in. It is that kind of movie. Gervais sings Charles Aznevour's hits with predicable regularity and has a thing for Patsy Cline and her music.

It is the era when everything was changing and insular Quebec, like the rest of the world, was being exposed to the outside world of David Bowie and Jefferson Airplane. Zac embraces all of these changes and struggles with his orientation.

Nothing is ever graphically portrayed, the plot is character driven all the way with incredible little sidelines and sidebars thrown in to add to the concoction. (One scene of a drunken brawl played to a beautiful opera piece comes to mind.)

Danielle Proulx, who portrays the mother, does not have much dialogue (typical of the era) but when she does speak it packs a wallop. She has a wonderful scene with Gervais where they discuss anal sex and a couple of others where her psychic ties to her son Zac are evident but never discussed.

The film just gets under your skin, you are there, in that microcosm of time when the world was changing so drastically and we just didn't know it. 9 out of 10. Take a bow Jean-Marc Vallée; you have an absolutely amazing talent! Bravo to the entire cast and crew. Movies are a pleasure when they're this special, and yes, I would see it again.

To say it bluntly, it is to my advice the best Quebec movie ever made, and from a more global perspective a very good movie no matter what you choose to compare it to.

It is a story about a young homosexual (although it isn't clearly stated in the film, and it probably would be closer to the truth to say he's bisexual), born in the 60's. We see him evolving through the next three decades, with all the difficulties one might see in having troubles with sexual orientation in theses years (among which the perception of other people of his age, questions about himself because of the taboo nature of the topic, problems having it accepted by parents and so on).

There's many things that make me to say it's the best Quebec-made movie ever. First of all, it's actually quite different from anything else to come from Quebec, as far as I can think of it. This is quite surprising, since almost all the action takes place in this province. It's far more dramatic and emotional than anything else before (maybe saved Sur le Seuil which was more tragic). Besides, Quebec has always produced a lot of humor-oriented movies (les Boys, Quebec-Montreal, etc), which do have some charm but also feel like they have all been made out of the same recipe, Quebec humor being one of a kind. It's also successful in not falling into traditional clichés of Quebec society in a given period of time (a thing that Séraphin, for example, failed to do), but at the same time depicting quite accurately what life was like at the time. It's also successful in incorporating a very diversified soundtrack, using both songs from Quebec and American cultures. That lacked in many films, although in reality you actually get both pretty much equally. To be able to recognize this and deal with it is worth being recognized. The casting is also pretty strong, in part because of the performances of the actors but also because there are some new faces in it. Another annoying tendency in movies made in Quebec is that often see the same faces over and over again.

If you put it in a larger frame, it is still a must see that I believe will get it's fair share of attention and prices outside the province. That's a thing that the Invasions Barbares did, but other than that it's hard to think of much more. The song track, besides being very good, is also brilliantly used. For example, the music Zac listens to is very representative of theses decades (you get Pink Floyd, David Bowie) and evolves with the character, and is also used to create some insides between the characters (like Hier encore j'avais 20 ans, that is sung every Christmas). The three main antagonists in the movie (Zac, his brother Raymond and his father) have developed relationships with each other that are by no mean static, and in fact no even always antagonistic. Even though the story is told from Zac's perspective, he's far from flawless, as all the other characters, except maybe for the mother, who's more than often the neutral, moderated one in the many conflicts that arise. Some dialogs are actually quite funny (like the one about sodomy between Zac's father and his wife, in which Michel Côté shows he's a damn good actor).

Finally, I would say that the movie is also successful in not using easy clichés when it comes to homosexuality. Many movies got fucked up when it came to that topic, but this one doesn't. As I said before, Zac is supposedly homosexual, although it's never clearly stated and he might also just be bisexual. You don't get any real dirty stuff. The conservatives point of view on the matter are mentioned (by his fathers, among others), but aren't overwhelmingly present either. The movie is well-balanced.

This film shines. It exudes something tangibly different in its at times sensual photography, its sinuous, undulating changes of speed and motion. The story is refreshing, in that, although familiar, it is seen from a new, reluctant perspective - for me at any rate. I loved the embattled religiosity, that there was a loose acceptance in that Zac respected the beliefs of his parents, but never hammers home their differences in that respect. In others, though, inevitably there will be conflict, and perhaps particularly at the time of setting. An excellent character study in so many ways - even secondary characters are satisfactorily fleshed out, or have enough about them to warrant sympathy. Well written, well scored, brilliantly acted, and photographed.

Must go buy, now!

As it has been said by others, this by all standards, not just as far French Canadian movies go, is a good movie. As somebody who grew up in Québec City I really appreciated how this movie really shows an intimate portrait of Quebec culture with all of its contradictions and beauty.

It showed how being an island of French in a sea of English does have an effect but that there is a definite Québecois culture which definitely bleeds into and mixes in with pop culture. For example the main character a young boy who is deeply conflicted with his sexuality is told he has the ability to heal people just by thinking of them if they are hurt...something which is uniquely Quebecois "old wives tale" The movie spans 2 decades or so, and the recreation of those decades from the house decor, to the music is really well done. The sound track shows in equal weights great Quebec classics along side such rock legends of the time of Pink Floyd and David Bowie.

The movie is great not because of a complicated twisty plot but rather really well acted and created characters. A very touching portrait of family life that can be appreciated not by just someone from that culture but supersedes cultural boundaries.

This is an outstanding film. Quebec cinema is a hidden gem in North America and C.R.A.Z.Y. shines like a diamond among the lumps of coal put out by the big name studios in the U.S. Jean-Marc Vallée (director) proves that you do not need mega-bucks to make a quality film (C.R.A.Z.Y. cost 7 million dollars to produce). The acting is outstanding and it must have been a pleasure for the cast to work with such a great script and story. To call this a coming of age story or a coming out story would be selling it short. This is a film about family dynamics and it works on so many levels it is unfair and impossible to pigeon hole this film. Being an ex-patriot ( I am from the U.S. but now live in Montreal) I hope this films gets some play in the U.S. as it is too good to be missed. If it does not wait for it on IFC, Sundance or on DVD and see it then. Bravo to Jean-Marc Vallée and the cast and crew of this film...Outstanding work!