Yellowknife

Colour, 35mm
Canada, 2001, 116 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

Max and Linda are on the run: they escape in the direction of the Canadian North-West. On the road which takes them from Moncton to Yellowknife, they meet up with a couple of dubious twin male strippers and make the acquaintance of Marlène, a faded night-club singer, accompanied by her shady manager and driver Johnny. Fragile relationships are woven in amongst these rootless, drifting souls, revealed here in their roughest and most enigmatic state, which takes each of them to the edge of what remains of their desperate passion. Empty roads, sleazy motels, bars and night-clubs, paid sex and bad choices: and finally no escape... An uncompromising, brutal and existential road-movie.
 

About the director

Rodrigue Jean studied biology, sociology and literature before turning to dance and choreography in the 1980s. He then studied theatre and directing in London. He made his first short film, La Déroute, in 1989, and at the beginning of the 1990s he led a video workshop at a London centre for homeless young people. In 1995 he directed the documentary La voix des rivières. After two short video films, La mémoire de l’eau (1996) and L’Appel (1998) he shot his first feature, Full Blast (1999), awarded various prizes. Yellowknife is his second feature film.