Drunken Birds Explained

Drunken Birds
Native Name:
Director:Ivan Grbovic
Producer:Luc Déry
Kim McCraw
Starring:Jorge Antonio Guerrero
Hélène Florent
Claude Legault
Marine Johnson
Music:Philippe Brault
Cinematography:Sara Mishara
Editing:Arthur Tarnowski
Studio:micro_scope
Runtime:104 minutes

Drunken Birds (French: Les Oiseaux ivres) is a 2021 Canadian drama film directed by Ivan Grbovic who co-wrote with Sara Mishara.[1] The film stars Jorge Antonio Guerrero as Willy, a Mexican drug runner in a crime cartel who travels to Canada in search of his girlfriend Marlena (Yoshira Escárrega) after she disappears, and takes a job as a migrant worker on a farm in the Montérégie region.

The film's cast also includes Hélène Florent, Claude Legault, Marine Johnson, Maxime Dumontier, Amaryllis Tremblay, Karl Walcott, Gilberto Barraza, and Normand D'Amour.

The film premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival, in the Platform Prize program.[2] The film was digitally and theatrically released in Canada is on October 15, 2021, by Les Films Opale. It was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.[3]

Synopsis

Marlena is the young wife of a powerful wealthy man in Mexico, Willy is her secret lover. Fearing the worst, the lovers will flee separately in the hopes of finding each other in a safer place. Willy suspects that Marlena is hiding in Montreal, so he escapes to Quebec where he is hired as a seasonal worker at the Bécotte Farm. While friendships are being forged between foreign workers on the farm, a gap is growing between the Bécotte family members. Willy, unknowingly, will arouse the desire in Julie, the wife of the owner. The situation will not be without consequences for the group - especially for her estranged teenage daughter Léa, who soon finds herself exploited after running away in search of freedom. Willy is accused of a crime he did not commit, which sends a ripple effect through the lives of all, leading to an eventual redemption.[4]

Reception

Critical response

Drunken Birds has an approval rating of 75% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 12 reviews, and an average rating of 6.1/10.[5]

Jared Mobarak of The Film Stage gave the film a positive review writing, "Writer/director Ivan Grbovic and co-writer/cinematographer Sara Mishara seamlessly take us back and forth through time so the romance at the center of their Les oiseaux ivres [Drunken Birds] can unfold with mystery and anticipation."[6] Another positive review was written by Pat Mullen for That Shelf: "Exceptionally crafted with its feet firmly planted between two worlds, Drunken Birds represents the best that is happening in Canadian cinema right now. It challenges us to look at the landscape we love and wonder if it looks so golden from another perspective. Drunken Birds is the best film the TIFF Platform competition had to offer this year and a Canadian standout for the year overall."[7]

The film was named to TIFF's annual year-end Canada's Top Ten list for 2021.[8]

Awards and nominations

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)Result
2021 Best Canadian Film [9]
[10]
[11]
Luc Déry, Kim McCraw [12]
Ivan Grbovic
Claude Legault
Marine Johnson
Ivan Grbovic, Sara Mishara
André-Line Beauparlant
Sara Mishara
Arthur Tarnowski
Luc Déry, Kim McCraw
2022 Best Film Drunken Birds [13]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. André Duchesne, "Les oiseaux ivres d’Ivan Grbovic au TIFF". La Presse, August 11, 2021.
  2. Pat Mullen, "TIFF Unveils Line-up for ‘Celebrating Alanis’ Retrospective". Point of View, August 11, 2021.
  3. Web site: Drunken Birds chosen as Canada's contender for international film Oscar . Victoria Ahearn. . October 4, 2021 . October 5, 2021.
  4. Web site: micro_scope. Press Kit. live. micro_scope. https://web.archive.org/web/20210923202710/https://micro-scope.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/LOI_Press-kit-english_FINAL.pdf . 2021-09-23 .
  5. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/drunken_birds
  6. Web site: Mobarak. Jared. September 19, 2021. TIFF Review: Drunken Birds Centers on a Romance That Unfolds with Mystery and Style. September 29, 2021. The Film Stage. en-US.
  7. Web site: Mullen. Pat. September 18, 2021. TIFF Platform 2021: Drunken Birds Flies High. September 29, 2021. That Shelf. en-US.
  8. Norman Wilner, "TIFF announces Canada’s Top Ten films of 2021" . Now, December 6, 2021.
  9. https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1841033/prix-ficfa-2021-festival-films-acadie-wandel-grbovic-gould "Le jury du 35e FICFA récompense les meilleurs films"
  10. Brent Furdyk, "2022 Canadian Screen Award Nominees Announced, ‘Sort Of’ & ‘Scarborough’ Lead The Pack". ET Canada, February 15, 2022.
  11. Dana Gee, "The Power of the Dog, Night Raiders lead Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards nominations". Vancouver Sun, February 20, 2022.
  12. François Lévesque, "Hélène Florent aux oiseaux au Gala Québec Cinéma". Le Devoir, June 5, 2022.
  13. Maxime Demers, "Prix collégial du cinéma québécois : les finalistes dévoilés". Le Journal de Montréal, January 18, 2022.