Falcon Lake

I saw this film at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. Of the twelve films I saw, it was, hands down, the best, and one that will stay with me for a long time.

I don't like reading reviews on here that speak too much to a film's plot, so I won't go into details there. Suffice it to say, this is a uniquely crafted coming-of-age story, depicted with almost painful accuracy, with more than a few twists and fresh takes on the genre. It's funny, moving, at times quiet and contemplative, other times intense and energetic. The acting is superb, and the score is perfect.

I believe it was Howard Hawks who said, what makes a great film is: three great scenes, and no bad scenes. If that is the measuring stick, Charlotte LeBon has presented us with a humble Canadian cinematic masterpiece. Not a single shot of this film is unnecessary or superfluous. Foreshadowing beats its quiet wings throughout the entire film, building to one of the best closing shots I have ever witnessed on screen. Watching those final moments, even my goosebumps had goosebumps. If you've seen the film, you'll know what I mean.

Falcon Lake is an interesting directorial debut that explores a boy's experience of first love on a summer holiday. The story is very atmospheric, taking place around a mysterious lake. The young boy, only 13, arrives with his family and meets a 16-year-old girl, with whom he falls in love. This is a rites of passage story with all the usual events, such as drinking alcohol, taking drugs, and falling in love for the first time. The young actors give strong performances, open and honest in their emotional vulterability. The director makes wise choices, such as staying with the children and leaving adult actions in the background or slightly off screen. This is an engrossing, charming, slightly disturbing film. The only minus point is the ending, which opts for ambiguity when a more plausible and realistic ending would have had more emotional punch. Well worth seeing.

At a remote cabin in Quebec an awkward and innocent 14-year-old boy, Bastien, is taken under the wing of Chloe, an older, mischievous, and much more worldly girl. While swimming beneath the stars and with tales of ghosts, invitations to parties, impossible dares, challenges to face fears, humor, sexual tension, and acts of courage and defiance, Bastien is beguiled by Chloe. She takes him into underworlds around him as well as inside himself, that he never knew existed. He feels on top of the world and also like he is going under.

"You have to be intelligent to find others intelligent," said director Charlotte Le Bon who appeared at this Toronto International Film Festival screening of her debut feature film with one of its stars (Sara Montpetit, who plays Chloe). This enthralling teenage romance and boreal forest cabin inspired tale really resonate with me because I had similar experiences. Chloe is the type of girl I repeatedly fell for in my life, and I treasure a similarly situated cabin in Canada. In Falcon Lake the parents have a peripheral role. The story revolves around Bastien's point of view, and I find that interesting and refreshingly different from mainstream films that focus more on parents. Music is used sparsely and with powerful effect. The acting, sound, photography, dialogue, and everything else all come together so well. Falcon Lake feels authentic and assured. We will see more from Charlotte and Sara in the future. Falcon Lake first appeared at Cannes and is based on a graphic novel by Bastien Vives.

It's not so much the story here that resonates, it's more the craftsmanship that has gone into the production. It's a gorgeous film to look at, to sit back and let wash over you - all amidst some beautiful Québecois scenery. It's at their remote family cabin that the quiet young "Bastien" (Joseph Engel) spends his summers each year and where he meets "Chloë" (Sara Montpetit). Their age difference is only two years, but from the perspective of the young lad, it might as well be twenty as there is a distinctive difference in their respective maturity and approach to their new found relationship. There might be one way he can bridge that gap, though, as we discover that there is a rumour their lake is home to the spectre of someone who drowned there years ago. Perhaps he can solve this mystery and maybe that will earn him his much sought after place in her heart - though she has her cap set elsewhere, which doesn't exactly help! What now ensues rather underplays the spiritual angle which is a shame, and it rather focuses a little too much on the traditional rites of passage elements of this hormonally charged young man who is coming to terms with his first real crush as well as experiencing booze and the general buzz of being in love. There is oodles of chemistry between the pair, though, and coupled with their very gently paced character evolution, we are left with an agreeable degree of tension but not a great deal of horror. Indeed, much of that is limited to the stunning visuals and menacing audio rather than anything more substantial. In the end - which in itself is a bit of an hastily arrived at let down - this really boils down to two confident and engaging performances set against a backdrop of which nature can be proud and though perhaps you might nor recall it for very long, it's oddly soothing to watch, despite the raging hormones on display. Give it a go.

Charlotte Le Bon has created something great here. Of the many good coming-of-age films set in French Canada, this is my favourite. One of the main reasons for this is the two young lead actors. Sara Montpetit has already been praised many times, and rightly so. But Joseph Engel is simply brilliant in his role. He is a being who is exactly halfway between childhood and the adult world, and he portrays this completely naturally and convincingly. The two are ideally cast for the roles of Bas and Chloé. Add to that the multitude of small, lovingly observed scenes, the appropriately slow pace, the enchanting landscape shots and, in particular, the unforgettable, almost hypnotic music. The film will stay with you for a long time. The ending has been criticized a lot. It is indeed not easy. But you may be able to make peace with it if you watch the film a second or even a third time: it had to happen the way it did.