LA
FACE CACHEE DE LA LUNE
FAR SIDE OF THE MOON |
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Director:
Robert Lepage
Screenplay:
Robert Lepage
Cast:
Philippe/André: Robert Lepage
The Mother: Anne-Marie Cadieux
Carl: Marco Poulin
Awards:
FIPRESCI Prize, Berlin Film
Festival (2004)
Best Adapted Screenplay,
Genie Awards (2004)
Best Film, Namur Festival of Francophile Film (2004)
Running time: 105’
Production: Canada, 2003
Rating: Not Rated
Gauge: 35mm, DVD (color)
Distributor:
TLA Entertainment
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“Employing
plenty of the director’s signature seamless pans
across time and space, Lepage lyrically fuses childhood
memories with present-day sibling rivalry, archival footage
with crisp video… Lepage spins a rich, moving film
that acknowledges humanity’s power to break out
of Earth’s daily gravity; in the process, he leaves
audiences floating.”
Mark Peranson, The Village Voice |
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Before Galileo,
it was believed that the moon was a polished mirror, its surface
a reflection of the globe. In the 1960s, a Soviet lunar probe
exposed the far side of the moon (which can never be seen
from Earth) as scored and disfigured by the storms of celestial
debris. From this discovery, writer-director Robert Lepage
crafts an engaging metaphor of mysterious dualities, juxtaposing
sibling rivalry with the US-Soviet space race. Estranged brothers
Philippe and André (both played by Robert Lepage) relive
childhood disputes as they dispose of the belongings of their
recently deceased mother. André, a television meteorologist,
has little in common with his older sibling Philippe. Philippe
is a forty-ish doctoral student who has repeatedly failed
to defend his dissertation on human narcissism and space exploration.
He is deeply hurt by the scientific community’s refusal
to acknowledge his work. When he receives an invitation to
go to Russia to present his theories on the competitive exploration
of the cosmos, Philippe hopes that he will finally gain some
recognition. This captivating cinematic journey probes issues
of competition and reconciliation while searching for meaning
in the universe.
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| PHOTO TLA Entertainment |
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