Equinox (1986 film)

1986 Canadian film directed by Arthur Lamothe

Equinox

French| Équinoxe
Directed by| Arthur Lamothe
Written by| Arthur Lamothe
Gilles Carle
Pierre-Yves Pépin
Produced by| Nicole Lamothe
Starring| Jacques Godin
Cinematography| Guy Dufaux
Edited by| François Gill
Music by| Jean Sauvageau

Production
company

Les Ateliers audiovisuels du Québec

Release date

* August 25, 1986 (1986-08-25) (MWFF)

Running time

| 83 minutes
Country| Canada
Language| French

Equinox (French: Équinoxe) is a Canadian drama film, directed by Arthur Lamothe and released in 1986.[1] Lamothe's first narrative feature film in 18 years after having concentrated exclusively on documentary films since 1968's Dust from Underground (Poussière sur la ville), the film stars Jacques Godin as Guillaume, a man returning to his hometown for the first time since being wrongfully convicted of a crime he did not commit, in order to confront the former friend whose false testimony resulted in Guillaume being sent to prison.[2]

The film was shot in the rural Îles de Sorel near Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, in 1985,[3] and premiered at the 1986 Montreal World Film Festival.[4]

## Cast

[edit]

* Jacques Godin as Guillaume
* Marthe Mercure as Rita
* Ariane Frédérique as Nathalie
* André Melançon as Bert (as André Mélançon)
* Luc Proulx as Arthur
* Jerry Snell as Jos

## Critical response

[edit]

In his 2003 book A Century of Canadian Cinema, Gerald Pratley called the film a triumph of cinematography over script.[5] For the Montreal Gazette, Bruce Bailey dismissed the film as "something of a cross between a Beachcombers episode and something from Walt Disney's Adventureland", concluding that it "has more depth than something made for TV. But only barely."[1]

José Arroyo of Cinema Canada reviewed the film more positively, writing that "the film works best as a psychological drama with Guillaume's journey of self-discovery as a focus...Lamothe's experience as a documentary filmmaker here serves him very well." He concluded that "Equinoxe could have used a tighter structure. But it is very well acted and beautifully shot. I find the image of a leonine Godin, paddling a canoe through marshes to come to a rendez-vous with his past, unforgettable. A film that has this much going for it deserves to be seen by more people."[2]

## Awards

[edit]

The film received two Genie Award nominations at the 8th Genie Awards in 1987, for Best Cinematography (Guy Dufaux) and Best Original Song (Gilles Vigneault for "Les îles de l'enfance").[6]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Bruce Bailey, "Equinoxe crosses line into the unbelievable". Montreal Gazette, August 26, 1986.
2. ^ a b José Arroyo, "Arthur Lamothe's Equinoxe". Cinema Canada, December 1986. p. 25.
3. ^ Léo Bonneville, "Arthur Lamothe tourne Équinoxe aux îles de Sorel". Séquences, No. 122 (October 1985).
4. ^ "Montreal film festival lineup set". Toronto Star, July 30, 1986.
5. ^ Gerald Pratley, A Century of Canadian Cinema. Lynx Images, 2003. ISBN 1-894073-21-5. p. 70.
6. ^ Greg Quill, "Decline rises to top Genie nominations". Toronto Star, February 5, 1987.

## External links

[edit]

* Equinox at IMDb

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