With TIFF almost upon us, this will be my last preview post, and I’m happy to be featuring another Canadian film from Québec. Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée (C.R.A.Z.Y., The Young Victoria), Café de Flore has been getting great buzz among local critics who have seen it before it screens at the festival.
The synopsis describes the film as “a love story about people separated by time and place but connected in profound and mysterious ways.”
Atmospheric, fantastical, tragic and hopeful, the film chronicles the parallel fates of Jacqueline, a young mother with a disabled son in 1960s Paris, and Antoine, a recently-divorced, successful DJ in present day Montréal. What binds the two stories together is love – euphoric, obsessive, tragic, youthful, timeless love.
Jacqueline is being played by French actress Vanessa Paradis, better known over here as Mrs. Johnny Depp. A beautiful woman by any measure, she dares to look very unglamourous in the film, which raises my expectation that she’ll show some serious acting chops. The role of Antoine is being played by Québecois musician Kevin Parent, and it’s interesting to note that Paradis was also better known as a singer and model before turning to acting. Music promises to be an important part of the film, with a soundtrack featuring Sigur Rós, Pink Floyd, and The Cure, among others, but I wonder if the fact that both leads can sing will figure into the plot at all?
According to Canadian distributor Alliance Films, the film will receive a theatrical release in the province of Québec on September 23rd, but no release date for English Canada has been announced. All the more reason to catch it during TIFF!
SCREENINGS:
- Monday September 12, 10:00pm – Princess of Wales
- Wednesday September 14, 11:45am – TIFF Bell Lightbox 2