Mon oncle Antoine (My Uncle Antoine)
A small asbestos-mining town in Quebec of the 1940s is the setting for this legendary, bittersweet slice-of-life comedy.
Orphaned 14-year-old Benoît (Gagnon) arrives to live with a foster family and becomes a part of the exploits of village life, both comic and tragic. In the film’s set piece, Benoît goes with his uncle Antoine (Duceppe), the town undertaker, to collect the remains of a young lad, who must be buried despite an unrelenting snowstorm. Gagnon gives a hauntingly realistic portrayal of a young boy discovering life’s funny and tragic turns.
Often chosen as the finest Canadian film of all time, Mon Oncle Antoine won eight Canadian Film Awards, including Best Film, Director and Actor.
“In the loneliness and grandeur of the midnight journey of Benoît and Antoine, there is a haunting beauty.” — Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Orphaned 14-year-old Benoît (Gagnon) arrives to live with a foster family and becomes a part of the exploits of village life, both comic and tragic. In the film’s set piece, Benoît goes with his uncle Antoine (Duceppe), the town undertaker, to collect the remains of a young lad, who must be buried despite an unrelenting snowstorm. Gagnon gives a hauntingly realistic portrayal of a young boy discovering life’s funny and tragic turns.
Often chosen as the finest Canadian film of all time, Mon Oncle Antoine won eight Canadian Film Awards, including Best Film, Director and Actor.
“In the loneliness and grandeur of the midnight journey of Benoît and Antoine, there is a haunting beauty.” — Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Director
Claude Jutra
A prolific filmmaker, Jutra directed more than 30 productions, including Kamouraska, Surfacing (based on Margaret Atwood’s novel by the same name) and By Design. Mon oncle Antoine currently ranks second on the Toronto International Film Festival’s list of the top ten Canadian films of all time.
Writers
Claude Jutra, Clément Perron
Cast
Jacques Gagnon, Jean Duceppe, Claude Jutra, Lyne Champagne, Olivette Thibault
Producer
Marc Beaudet
Genre
Drama
Interests
Classics, Family Relationships
Original Language
French