Festival du Nouveau Cinéma invites Montreal cinephiles to come out to play

After a rocky two years disrupted by COVID and outdoor screenings marred by strong winds, the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma is back with a vengeance for its 51st edition, running from Oct. 5 to 16. The FNC returns to its mandate of celebrating new cinema. The year’s lineup embraces boundary-pushing visions and emerging filmmakers. Back entirely in person with accompanying events, including a co-production market, this year’s FNC promises an exciting fall for cinephiles. 

A total of 291 films from 49 countries will play at the Cinéma Impérial, Cineplex Odéon Quartier Latin, Cinéma du Parc, Cinéma du Musée, Cinémathèque québécoise, Cinéma Moderne and PHI Centre. Parties and special events will take place once again at the Agora in UQAM’s Cœur des Sciences. 

Among this year’s honours is a special tribute to screenwriter and director Walter Hill, who will be given the Louve d’Or. His latest film, Dead for a Dollar, which recently premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, will screen, alongside some of his best-loved films, including The Warriors, Extreme Prejudice and The Driver. 

The exciting program includes new films by the Dardennes, Sarah Polley, Noah Baumbach, Jafar Panahi, Jõao Pedro Rodrigues, Bertrand Bonello, Hong Sang-Soo and Michael McDonagh among others. With big winners from Cannes, Berlin and Locarno, the FNC promises an incredible taste of world cinema. 

Other exciting initiatives include the return of FNC Explore, which is devoted to virtual reality, les P’tits Loups series for kids, which includes short films and fun activities, the second edition of the Netflix first pitch session for emerging Canadian filmmakers and much more.

Not sure where to start in the programming? Here are five recommendations across the entire program you might want to check out: 

2012/Dans le coeur

Rodrigue Jean is one of the best documentarians working in Quebec, and with 2012/Dans le coeur, he tackles the 2012 student protests. Central to their thesis is how little has changed in 10 years and how state-sanctioned violence has long been ingrained in Quebec society. Particularly in light of a disappointing election result, the urgency of examining the state of Quebec’s political identity has never been more important.

The Banshees of Inishirin

One of the year’s greatest pleasures, Martin McDonagh returns to Ireland to tell the story of two best friends and the rift that grows between them. Both brutal in violence and comedy, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson bring career-best performances in this film about what it means to live a good life. Read our review of the film from our TIFF coverage.

No Bears

In 2010, Jafar Panahi was arrested by the Iranian government and subsequently banned from making films (he was arrested again in 2022, along with two other prominent Iranian filmmakers, and sentenced to six years in prison). He’s nonetheless persisted in his craft by any means necessary. No Bears is his latest, pushing the boundaries of the conditions of his initial 2010 arrest as he shoots his film remotely in Turkey (he’s also banned from leaving Iran) through cooperation with his assistant director. The film features two parallel stories of love and the mechanics of power. 

Cette Maison

Miryam Charles makes her feature debut with this creative non-fiction documentary that reopens old wounds as Charles examines the unexplained death of her young cousin in 2008. Beautifully shot on film, Cette Maison captures through dreamlike imagery the pervasiveness of grief and alienation with incredible sensitivity and warmth. It’s a documentary about memory and life after death that offers a singular, powerful vision by one of Quebec’s most promising working filmmakers. 

White Noise

Adapting the Don DeLillo novel of the same name, Noah Baumbach casts Adam Driver in White Noise as Jack Gladney, professor of Hitler studies at The-College-on-the-Hill, husband to Babette, and father to four children/stepchildren. Gladney’s life is torn apart by a chemical spill from a rail car that releases an “Airborne Toxic Event,” forcing Jack to confront his biggest fear: his mortality.

For more information and tickets, please visit the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma website.

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