As I'm currently watching some Canadian films I've been checking out what I know about its film history, and it's really not much. Though (according to letterboxd/Imdb) I've seen some 200 films from the country, most of these were (US) co-productions, as it seems there must be some financial benefits shooting there. So I need some recommendations, ideally a mixture between classics and great obscure stuff.
I'd like to get my hands on this box-set for example, which I've discovered yesterday:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIr-sVUbMOg
As I was thinking about Canadian cinema, and what might constitute a Canadian film, I also compiled a list of my favorite 20 Canadian films:
YUL 871 (Jacques Godbout, 1966)
Tout rien "All Nothing" (Frédéric Back, 1978)
Murder by Decree (Bob Clark, 1979)
The Brood (David Cronenberg, 1979)
Atlantic City (Louis Malle, 1980)
So Is This (Michael Snow, 1982)
Rock & Rule (Clive A. Smith, 1983)
Archangel (Guy Maddin, 1990)
Entre deux soeurs "Two Sisters" (Caroline Leaf, 1991)
Naked Lunch (David Cronenberg, 1991)
Sea Song (Richard Reeves, 1999)
La Veuve de Saint-Pierre "The Widow of Saint-Pierre" (Patrice Leconte, 2000)
Maelström (Denis Villeneuve, 2000)
The Claim (Michael Winterbottom, 2000)
The Heart of the World (Guy Maddin, 2000)
Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (Zacharias Kunuk, 2001)
Brand Upon the Brain! (Guy Maddin, 2006)
Toi "You" (François Delisle, 2007)
Rampage (Uwe Boll, 2009)
The Kid Detective (Evan Morgan, 2020)
Canada
Canada
"I too am a child burned by future experiences, fallen back on myself and already suspecting the certainty that in the end only those will prove benevolent who believe in nothing." – Marran Gosov
Some of my favourites off the top of my head, though admittedly I've not seen many for a Canadian. From your list I've only seen the Cronenbergs and Atanarjuat. Kunuk also has a few more recent Inuit films, and I recall there are several fascinating Inuit short animations (and other Canadian films) on NFB.ca Bob Clark also directed Black Christmas (1974), a fun slasher.
Paddle to the Sea (Mason, 1966)
The Company of Strangers (Scott, 1990)
Geographies of Solitude (Mills, 2022)
J.A. Martin photographe (Beaudin, 1977)
Pour la suite du monde (Perrault/Brault, 1963)
Until Branches Bend (Jarvis, 2022)
Paddle to the Sea (Mason, 1966)
The Company of Strangers (Scott, 1990)
Geographies of Solitude (Mills, 2022)
J.A. Martin photographe (Beaudin, 1977)
Pour la suite du monde (Perrault/Brault, 1963)
Until Branches Bend (Jarvis, 2022)
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Pretentious Hipster
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Have you heard of Vinegar Syndrome? They usually do stuff like genre films to the point of some being pornography, but they have a line of Canadian releases. It looks like they have some interesting looking films.
https://vinegarsyndrome.com/collections ... l-pictures
There is also canuxploitation. Some are zero budget trash, but many of them are actually ambitious art horror. Some examples are the following:
The Carpenter
Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II
Pin (one of the greatest horrors I've ever seen)
https://vinegarsyndrome.com/collections ... l-pictures
There is also canuxploitation. Some are zero budget trash, but many of them are actually ambitious art horror. Some examples are the following:
The Carpenter
Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II
Pin (one of the greatest horrors I've ever seen)
if you're looking for new wave-influenced french canadian film, you might also check out jean-pierre lefebvre's work
canada has an interesting tradition of avant garde film, from the abstract animations of norman mclaren through to michael snow and guy maddin. arthur lipsett's films are great too, imo, as was the one daichi saito film that i've seen. i haven't seen jack chambers' the hart of london, which many people seem to love.
there are quite a few canadian films or filmmakers which seem singular to me, they don't really align cleanly with any broader film movement -- the early (exotica and before) flims of atom egoyan, for example, or the films of robert lepage, and of bruce macdonald, along with the adventure of faustus bidgood (jones brothers), after the axe (sturla gunnarson), you take care now (ann marie fleming), eldorado (charles biname), and i suppose you could slot david cronenberg and early bob clark (well, maybe not him but some of his films are good) into this category.
there are quite a few other good canadian films, and if you haven't looked back at our canada poll, that might be worth checking out, i don't know allan king's work, but two of his films made our top ten:
https://letterboxd.com/fliptrotsky/list ... scfz-poll/
if i think of anything else, i'll post a followup.
canada has an interesting tradition of avant garde film, from the abstract animations of norman mclaren through to michael snow and guy maddin. arthur lipsett's films are great too, imo, as was the one daichi saito film that i've seen. i haven't seen jack chambers' the hart of london, which many people seem to love.
there are quite a few canadian films or filmmakers which seem singular to me, they don't really align cleanly with any broader film movement -- the early (exotica and before) flims of atom egoyan, for example, or the films of robert lepage, and of bruce macdonald, along with the adventure of faustus bidgood (jones brothers), after the axe (sturla gunnarson), you take care now (ann marie fleming), eldorado (charles biname), and i suppose you could slot david cronenberg and early bob clark (well, maybe not him but some of his films are good) into this category.
there are quite a few other good canadian films, and if you haven't looked back at our canada poll, that might be worth checking out, i don't know allan king's work, but two of his films made our top ten:
https://letterboxd.com/fliptrotsky/list ... scfz-poll/
if i think of anything else, i'll post a followup.
From the new Canadian cinema, I would recommend Drunken Birds (Ivan Grbovic, 2021)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11051898/
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11051898/
Wow, thanks for all the comments and ideas!
I thought this thread from last year was dead, but: never say never at SCFZ.
I thought this thread from last year was dead, but: never say never at SCFZ.
"I too am a child burned by future experiences, fallen back on myself and already suspecting the certainty that in the end only those will prove benevolent who believe in nothing." – Marran Gosov