Guibord s'en va-t-en guerre

Funny, witty, full of stereotypes, great watch for a lazy day. I am from Quebec so the scenery and distance as well as the small town vibes and relationships between first nations and locals were well depicted in satire. None of the movie should be taken seriously or offensively, it's just a demonstration of the absurdity of politics in Canada. I would be glad to watch a sequel, I am not aware if there is one. I will be recommending this movie to my local friends. It is called My Internship in Canada on Prime TV so if you're looking for it type that into the search engine. Don't expect a masterpiece and you won't be dissapointed but pleasantly surprised!

A good hearted but insignificant member of parliament finds himself becoming a key political pawn in Canada's politics, along with his long time wife and sweetheart, his rebellious daughter and an Haitian born unexperienced staffer, he'll have to navigate strange odds of big city politics while dealing with his small town constituency.... and it is a delight from beginning to end.

Leave it to Philippe Falardeau (Monsieur Lazhar, Congorama, the good lie...) to write and direct a movie, able to tackle.sensitive subjects, without caricaturing anyone beyond a well targeted satire, and that gets you to laugh at, while empathizing with, its characters.

This is funny, this is sweet, and still this is courageous. A must see. Short of 10 stars only because it leaves you hungry for more with an open ending.

One day a young Haitian writes letters to all the Canadian Members of Parliament hoping to find someone who will take him on as an intern. His only response comes from Monsieur Guibord, sitting as an Independent, and representing a large remote area of the province of Quebec. The situation turns to chaos and hilarity quickly, when the Prime Minister calls for a vote on an important issue, and Monsieur Guibord's vote is going to make or break the decision. Guibord decides to look to the citizens in his riding to gauge their opinions - and everybody has one !! This being an election year in Canada, this film couldn't have been released at a better time. It takes a serious look at the business of politics, and yet never becomes heavy-handed. If you get the opportunity to see this film, please do so. It is excellent value for the ticket price.

I saw "Guibord s'en va-t-en guerre" on August 10th at the Locarno Film Festival. Part of the cast, including director Philippe Falardeau, introduced the world premiere of the movie and joked with the audience (almost 5'000 people fitting the stunning setting of Piazza Grande: the outdoor cinema of the festival). I must say that the acting was very good, with solid performances by Patrick Huard, Suzanne Clément and Irdens Exantus. Guibord s'en va-t-en guerre played like a political comedy, sometimes quite funny, but overall boring. I fell asleep a couple of times during the screening (not an easy task, when you are sitting in front of a giant screen of 85x45 feet, filled with loud surround sound.

An unfortunate fact about this film is that its nuance would be lost in English translation, and most won't watch it with subtitles.

The acting was fabulous, although the Haitian was a stereotype.

Content: Not spoon-fed but clear enough. This was insightful both on a political and philosophical level.

Humor: It's difficult to determine whether this would be funny to someone not well-versed in Quebec culture. But to someone who is, the humor was present throughout, even the most 'serious' parts. Nicely done. There is an abundance of accessible, blue collar humor.

Editing: No obvious issues.

Pace: Fast and fluent.

Story: One turn of events could have been better explained (as pertains to the main character's wife).

Female characters: One gets the feeling that the daughter's role was written by a woman and the wife's by a man. The former was much more defined.

Overall, everyone involved in this film should be proud. The Harper parody was hilarious!