TOM À LA FERME – XAVIER DOLAN

Tom, a young advertising copywriter, travels to the country for a funeral. There, he’s shocked to find out no one knows who he is, nor who he was to the deceased, whose brother soon sets the rules of a twisted game. In order to protect the family’s name and grieving mother, Tom now has to play the peacekeeper in a household whose obscure past bodes even greater darkness for his “trip” to the farm. Long ways, long lies… Set in Québec’s rural panorama, Tom à la ferme is a psychological thriller that centres on the ever-growing gap between city and country, and the nature of men who live there. Stockholm syndrome, deception, grief and secretive savageries pervade this brief and brutal pilgrimage through the warped and ugly truth.

VENEZIA 70

Tom à la ferme by Xavier Dolan – Canada, France, 95'

language: French – s/t English, Italian

Xavier Dolan, Pierre-Yves Cardinal, Lise Roy, Evelyne Brochu

Director’s Statement:

With my previous films, I wanted to show how the notion of couple changed over the teenage years and through adult life, and how it deteriorated over time. Put together, the three movies managed to form a trilogy on unrequited love. But when I acquired the rights to Michel Marc Bouchard’s play, my goal was clear— trying something new. Another genre, another style of writing. I kept that in mind every second we filmed, or edited, or mixed Tom à la ferme. Inevitably, it turned out to be an amazing opportunity to understand the importance of variety in a filmmaker’s path. I felt the sheer joy of exploring genres and abiding by their specific grammar and principles. Going into the wild like this, relearning basics, saying no to tics… was the most satisfying journey through this form of art. Thinking more, doing less, working harder. Carrying on.

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