Why do we love Canadian movies?

When choosing a movie to watch, we are almost always guided by the desire to enjoy the upcoming two hours, and this pleasure can be very different: after the work week, on Friday, when we are tired, we are likely to choose a comedy, a melodrama in the evening with a loved one, an action movie or an adventure film with friends.

And yet there are films that can evoke complex feelings, because the motion pictures themselves are not simple. The genuine authors of such films enrich our everyday experience, ask us questions that are hard to answer unequivocally, force us to go through all the challenges along with the character.

Just like in literature, music or painting we can always tell who the author is – Van Gogh, Beethoven or Gogol – so is cinema: talented, exceptional people are always seen. And Canada has a lot of professionals to be really proud of. There are those who constitute a worthy cohort of professionals and true artists.

It is important to say that Canada has actors, directors, and screenwriters who have established themselves professionally in the United States, the biggest and most powerful industry in the world. Although the Canadian film industry is much more modest or less lucrative, it gives a start to those who then become bigger than the industry, who make cinema unique, who express their feelings and a recognizable voice. It is about them, the worthy voices of Canadian cinema, that we want to talk about in this article.

Their films are definitely a worthwhile choice for a movie night whether with friends or alone.

With this text we continue our series on Canadian culture: films, literature, music. The first piece was about the great Gordon Lightfoot.

Canadian Filmmakers Today, Denis Villeneuve

Before the thunderous blockbusters filmed in Hollywood, Denis Villeneuve was climbing the cinematic ladder in his homeland Canada. Born in Quebec in a family of a housewife and a notary, the young Denis enrolled in the film department of University of Quebec in Montreal. He graduated and began making films. His work celebrated national awards in the 1990s and early 2000s.

During this time he perfected the craft until he produced a textured black-and-white chronicle in 2009 inspired by real events. In 1989, Marc Lépine committed a crime that took the lives of 14 women. In this work titled "Polytechnique", the main techniques and themes of all the author's significant works are already noticeable.

The powerful breakthrough was followed by a triumph as 2010's "Incendies" was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Foreign Language Film category and garnered nearly every major statuette at the Genie Awards, Canada's most influential film award.

Since then, the previously unknown Canadian filmmaker could qualify for big budgets and offers from big American studios. And it happened: in 2013, his works "The Enemy" with the most popular romantic comedies actor Jake Gyllenhaal and the crime thriller and detective "Prisoners" were released.

"Prisoners" turned out to be a hit at the worldwide box office. The star cast includes future Oscar winner Viola Davis, sometimes called the African-American Meryl Streep, the successful Australian musical artist Hugh Jackman and Gyllenhaal. The critics put the talent of Denis Villeneuve almost on a par with that of Alfred Hitchcock, the legendary magician of suspense and thriller: the story of the missing children, instantly changing the lives of two ordinary families, turns into a puzzle with an open ending. Comedy performers try on complex dramatic roles, each of them, by making ambiguous decisions, will force the audience to rethink their views during a disturbing two-and-a-half hours. The line between good and bad is blurred.

After this work, Denis Villeneuve can begin creating the project he has long thought about and for which he has sought funding. It is a sci-fi drama about an attempt to communicate with aliens, starring a physicist and a linguist. Rethinking the genre earns the film an Oscar nomination and a personal nomination for Best Director. The industry perceives Denis Villeneuve as a master who can work with big budgets and complex technical nature of film.

But Villeneuve doesn't stop there. Two other sci-fi films are coming out in 2017 and 2021: "Blade Runner 2049", a sequel to Sir Ridley Scott's legendary with Harrison Ford, and a new "Dune". Both films were nominated for an Oscar in the Best Picture category, not to mention a scattering of technical awards and nominations.

The second part of "Dune" is due out soon. The sex symbol of the 2010s, Timothée Chalamet plays the title role and goes on a new space journey after the death of his father.

By today the famous director has already made films in different genres, a step not every filmmaker tries to make. He has successfully conquered thriller, sci-fi film, detective, war drama.

Today Denis Villeneuve is the biggest voice of Canadian cinema.

Xavier Dolan

After the premiere of his first film, Xavier Dolan was immediately considered to be a wunderkind. Almost all of his works were shown in competition at Cannes, the world's most important film festival.

By the age of 34 Dolan managed to shoot nine full-length films – an amazing statistics for such an early age in cinema history. Directors mostly discover their film language by the age of 40 or 50 and shoot their major films as a result of a long artistic search for meaning and form.

Xavier Dolan's story is different and is truly inspiring to all young filmmakers. His approach to cinema is reminiscent of the great Charlie Chaplin. The unsurpassed early films comedian was a director, screenwriter, actor, producer and editor. Such people are called total authors, one person is responsible for almost all the processes. So does Xavier Dolan: he himself plays leading and supporting roles, he himself directs the films, and the scripts are often semi-autobiographical.

Born in Montreal, the young Xavier was growing up and became popular literally in front of Canadians: he starred in commercials and in low-budget films, and by the age of 17 he finished the script, which he himself would shoot.

In his works, Xavier Dolan explores themes of sexuality. As a homosexual, he talks about love and breakups, often weaving his own stories into the stories he creates. This feature of his work delights some and repulses others.

"Imaginary Lovers", "Laurence Anyways" and "Tom at the Farm" brought the wunderkind everything a filmmaker could dream of: critical acclaim and the opportunity to realize more projects. And so in 2015 he began working on the film "It's Only the End of the World." In 2016 the film was shown in competition at the Cannes festival.

The critics' and public's reaction and was different, especially because of the decision of the Cannes jury. Chaired by George Miller, the Australian who directed the "Mad Max" films in the 1990s, the jury gave Xavier Dolan, 27 years old, the Grand Prix, second prize, which instantly put the boy's status to extraordinary heights.

In this film he tells the story of a young theater director who returns back his home after 12 years to tell his loved ones of his soon death. The film stars huge French actors: Marion Cotillard, Vincent Cassel and Léa Seydoux.

After that Dolan made three more films.

Xavier Dolan's career is yet another proof that any idea can be realized. You don't have to be born in a country with a huge industry or have powerful friends. Just follow your inner voice with enthusiasm and you will leave your trace in history.

Today, Denis Villeneuve and Xavier Dolan are regularly nominated for the most important awards and are participants of the biggest world festivals. They both perform unique techniques and develop a style that is increasingly recognizable. They work with big budgets and famous actors. And yet their emergence was preceded by major figures, both Canadian and international.

In the next article, we'll talk about giants of modern Canadian cinema upon whose shoulders Villeneuve and Dolan atsy and we'll choose a new movie for the evening.