"Mariages", set in 19th-century rural Quebec, is a story of the sensual awakening of a young woman who was raised by her stern older sister in an austere environment. Yvonne has been groomed for life in a convent. Despite the spiritual and emotional boundaries imposed by these expectations, Yvonne finds herself compulsively drawn to the natural world around her, in a process of self-discovery that is imbued with mystical and possibly inevitable forces from the past. The cast, led by Marie-Ève Bertrand as Yvonne, is uniformly outstanding. Jean-Claude Labrecque's cinematography is reminiscent of Sven Nykvist's work with Ingmar Bergman. Interiors are dark and repressive, often lit only by candlelight. In this environment, people are trussed up in restrictive clothing, their essential selves hidden from view. In contrast, the exterior world that Yvonne explores is vibrant and bursting with life: we see glorious images of the classic elements of water, wind, and earth. In water, Yvonne seems to be reborn, in a kind of reverse Garden of Eden allegory. This is an astonishingly beautiful and nuanced film, full of elegant symbolism. Yvonne's journey is utterly captivating, with moments of breathtaking honesty and insight. Highly recommended. Available on DVD.
