Wednesday, December 11, 2013

The Barbarian Invasions -Another typical Canadian French Film

I've had a soft spot for French films-mainly the comedies and some action movies and this because that's the genre I generally enjoy watching. In the process I came across another breed: Canadian French films.
Now this is a whole new beast! It is morose, most often not too well made and, overall, I cannot say I enjoyed any that I've viewed.
The funny thing is that one would expect that Land of Plenty to be more prone to lightness than France itself. On the contrary, the French know how to laugh, how to make a decent film and other things which make life so much the more enjoyable. Sort of reminds me of the case of Singapore, a nation of plenty which produces zilch in terms of excellence.

The Barbarian Invasions is a film about a dying man and how his estranged son goes about making his last days memorable by inviting all his father's arty farty and, supposedly, thus sexually liberated friends.
Every so often one imagines that the film is going somewhere -only it doesn't. It is, to put it very simply, a slow and lingering death!
But I would still say that it was a worthwhile experience. I learned that Canada in 2003 or so was much like India: the conditions in the hospital, scenes of traffic on flyovers...
In the beginning I thought that the barbarians would be the immigrant population shown in the hospital corridors but no! Then I assumed the film would discuss 9/11 but again that was a false lead! And so it went: fluffy nothings dribbled randomly in a morose tale which chases the smoke!
However, I insist that it be viewed for its saving grace is that you get an insight into Canada which all the Mountie bounty and Quebec's Just For Laughs Gags cannot bring home.

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