Exclusives and special events at Casa d’Italia
EXCLUSIVES
This month, Cinéma Public exclusively presents Boiling Point by Philip Barantini, a single-shot drama taking place in the kitchen of a restaurant on the busiest day of the year: Christmas Eve. It will be presented starting December 10, and the screening on Sunday, December 12 at 4 p.m. will be followed by a discussion titled: The restaurant: a microcosm of society? hosted by Lesley Chesterman (author and food columnist), with Simon Cantin (co-owner of Restaurant Manitoba and La Taverne Atlantic), Élisabeth Cardin (co-owner of Restaurant Manitoba), Hubert Marsolais (co-owner of Club Chasse et Pêche, Le Filet and Le Serpent) and Danny St-Pierre (partner/chef at Le Pontiac). It will address the themes of reality versus perception in the restaurant world, difficult working conditions, and future challenges for the industry.
Cinephiles will be able to exclusively watch Pariah (December 10), the first feature film by Dee Rees, who was nominated for a 2017 Oscar for her hit film Mudbound. Pariah recounts the tribulations of a teenage lesbian navigating between diverse identities to avoid the rejection of her peers. This strong cinematic proposition is accompanied by the limited offer of a custom-designed crewneck, screen-printed in Montreal; the artist Teenadult’s colourful, expressive vision puts a unique spin on the Cinema Public logo. It is sold through the Cinéma Public website.
On December 9, it’s time for the Podcast Listening Session, a double bill offered free of charge in collaboration with Le Centre du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui and Transistor Média. The first-time broadcast Bâtarde/Bastarde follows the quest of its director, Laurence Dauphinais, born by artificial insemination with the sperm of a donor in the 1980s. Also on offer is an episode of the series Quelqu’une d’immortelle, in which Camille Paré-Poirier records her grandmother Pauline as she loses her memory. They prepare themselves for the mourning to come, without suspecting that a pandemic will soon separate them.
Other films that are only screening at Cinéma Public this month include, notably, 8 ½ by Federico Fellini (1963) from December 3, as part of the new series “Journeys to Italy”; and Son of the White Mare by Marcell Jankovics (1981), from December 15, presented on the occasion of the festivities celebrating the five-year anniversary of Livart.
WITH THE FILMMAKERS IN ATTENDANCE
On December 3rd, director Jean Beaudry will take part in the screening of Unfaithful Mornings (Les matins infidèles), a 1989 film he co-directed with François Bouvier. Presented as part of the series “Views from the Neighborhood,” the film portrays a friendship slowly invaded by lies.
On the occasion of the theatrical release of Prayer for a Lost Mitten by Jean-François Lesage, the director will be at the screening of the film on Sunday, December 12 at 6.30 p.m. The documentary follows chance encounters to offer a meditative urban symphony on the theme of loss.
THIS YEAR’S HIGHLIGHTS
In December, Cinéma Public will also present on the big screen key films of the year 2021. France by Bruno Dumont (from December 8); Drunken Birds by Ivan Grbovic (from December 15), Spencer by Pablo Larraín (from December 17); Felix and the Hidden Treasure by Nicola Lemay (from December 19).
TO WATCH ONLINE
Son of the White Mare – from December 1st
Prayer for a Lost Mitten – from December 24