1971 film by Claude Jutra
| Mon oncle Antoine |
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 Theatrical release poster |
| Directed by | Claude Jutra |
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| Written by | Clément Perron |
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| Produced by | Marc Beaudet [fr] |
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| Starring | Jacques Gagnon
Jean Duceppe
Olivette Thibault
Lionel Villeneuve
Claude Jutra |
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| Cinematography | Michel Brault |
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| Edited by | Claire Boyer
Claude Jutra |
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| Music by | Jean Cousineau |
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Production
company | |
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| Distributed by | National Film Board of Canada |
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Release dates |
- July 1971 (1971-07) (Moscow)
- 12 November 1971 (1971-11-12) (Canada)
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Running time | 104 minutes |
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| Country | Canada |
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| Language | French |
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| Budget | CDN$750,000 |
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Mon oncle Antoine (My Uncle Antoine) is a 1971 French-language Canadian drama film directed by Claude Jutra for the National Film Board of Canada.
The film depicts life in the Maurice Duplessis-era Asbestos Region of rural Québec before the Asbestos Strike of 1949. Set at Christmas time, the story is told from the point of view of 15-year-old boy Benoît (Jacques Gagnon) who is coming of age in a mining town. The Asbestos Strike is regarded by Québec historians as a seminal event in the years before the Quiet Revolution (c. 1959–1970).
The film is an examination of the social conditions in Québec's old, agrarian, conservative and cleric-dominated society on the eve of the social and political changes that transformed the province a decade later.[1]
Plot
Benoît is a young teenage boy living in rural Quebec. He works at the town general store belonging to his aunt Cécile and his uncle Antoine, who is also the town undertaker. On 24 December, he begins work, setting up the store display much to the delight of the town and flirting with Carmen, the young girl whom his uncle and aunt employ, and treat as an adopted child.
Madame Jos Poulin's eldest son, Marcel, dies that day, and she places a call to the store asking if Antoine can come to take care of the body. For the first time, Benoît is allowed to go with him. After they load the body into a coffin, they prepare to take it home. However, on the way home, Benoît encourages the horse to run as quickly as possible causing the coffin to fall off the sleigh. He tries to get Antoine to help put the coffin back on the sleigh; however, Antoine who has been steadily drinking throughout the day is unable to lift the coffin. He confesses to Benoît that he hates dealing with the dead bodies and that he is miserable in his life, wishing that he had achieved his dream of owning a hotel in the United States as he had wanted. He confesses that, although he treats Benoît and Carmen like his own, he regrets that his wife was unable to give him children.
Angry with Antoine, Benoît manages to get him back in the sleigh and returns home. He runs up the stairs to get help from his aunt and discovers her embracing Fernand, the help, in her nightgown. Realizing what has happened, Fernand takes Benoît out in the sleigh to look for the body. Traumatized by seeing his aunt and Fernand together, Benoît is no help in remembering where the coffin fell off the sleigh. Eventually they make it back to the Poulin household where they find the entire Poulin family, including Jos, the father, who had been away working, around the coffin mourning the loss of Marcel. Jos looks at Benoît and the film ends.
Production
Sydney Newman viewed the unfinished film in 1970, and told Jutra that he should delay its release so he could do additional filming. The new shooting was done in February 1971, and added $40,000 onto the film's budget, $237,214 (equivalent to $1,607,153 in 2021) of which was paid for by the NFB, which remains the producer of record.
Release
The film debuted in July 1971 at the 7th Moscow International Film Festival, where Claude Jutra was nominated for the Golden Prize.
It has been designated and preserved as a masterwork by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada, a charitable non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting the preservation of Canada's audio-visual heritage.[3]
It was featured in the TV series Canadian Cinema, which aired on CBC Television in 1974.[4]
Reception
Box office
It was then released in theatres, grossing $700,000 (equivalent to $3,783,206 in 2021) by 1974. The viewership of the film rose to 2.5 million due to broadcasts by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in October 1973 and August 1974, the second-highest in the CBC's history.
Critical response
Mon oncle Antoine has twice been voted the greatest Canadian film in the Sight & Sound poll, conducted once each decade. The Toronto International Film Festival placed it first in the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time three times.
On 23 December 2008, Roger Ebert included Mon oncle Antoine on his "Great Movies" list.[5]
Awards and nominations
The film was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 44th Academy Awards, but was not chosen as a nominee.[6] It was entered into the 7th Moscow International Film Festival.[7]
- Gold Hugo for Best Feature Film
- Silver Hugo for Best Screenplay, to Clément Perron
- Best Picture, to Marc Beaudet and Claude Jutra
- Best Performance by a Lead Actor, to Jean Duceppe
- Best Supporting Actress, to Olivette Thibault
- Best Achievement in Cinematography, to Michel Brault
- Best Achievement in Direction, to Claude Jutra
- Best Music Score, to Jean Cousineau
- Best Original Screenplay, to Clément Perron
- Best Overall Sound, to Roger Lamoureux
- National Society of Film Critics Awards, New York 1972
- Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Foundation Award
- San Gregorio Prize, to Claude Jutra
- Best Direction, to Claude Jutra
- Best Actress, to Lyne Champagne
- Best Performance by a Teen-Ager, to Jacques Gagnon
- Best Canadian Film[9]
