Bonheur d'occasion (1983)

In the early 1940's, Canada is a country at war and Florentine is a young woman, from a very poor family, looking for love. She meets two suitable men, a nice soldier from a good and ... See full summary »

Director:

Claude Fournier

Writers:

Claude Fournier, Marie-José Raymond,

Stars:

Mireille Deyglun, Pierre Chagnon, Michel Forget

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mireille Deyglun	...	Florentine Lacasse
Pierre Chagnon	...	Jean
Michel Forget	...	Azarius Lacasse
Marilyn Lightstone	...	Rose-Anna Lacasse
Charlotte Laurier	...	Yvonne
Thuryn Pranke	...	Philippe
Thomas Hellman	...	Daniel
Martin Neufeld	...	Emmanuel
Linda Sorgini	...	Marguerite
Dennis O'Connor	...	Phil Morin
Howard Ryshpan	...	Docteur Katz
Liliane Clune	...	Jenny
Janou Saint-Denis	...	Concierge
Francine Ruel	...	Voisine
Jacqueline Barrette	...	Voisine

Storyline

In the early 1940's, Canada is a country at war and Florentine is a young woman, from a very poor family, looking for love. She meets two suitable men, a nice soldier from a good and wealthy family, and an ambitious self-centered engineer. She must decide whether she wants to follow her head or her heart...

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Plot Keywords:

based on novel

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

NFB [ca] (english)

Country:

Canada

Language:

French English

Release Date:

28 August 1983 (Canada)

Also Known As:

The Tin Flute

Filming Locations:

Lachute, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD 3,450,000 (estimated)

Gross:

CAD 1,200,000 (Canada)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cine St-Henri, National Film Board of Canada (NFB), Société Radio-Canada

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"Bonheur d'occasion"
Written by Mouffe
Performed by Diane Tell

User Reviews

Director Claude Fournier turns Gabrielle Roy's THE TIN FLUTE into THE THIN PLOT.

First of all, let me say that Gabrielle Roy's novel THE TIN FLUTE(or BONHEUR D'OCCASION) is a thematic forerunner of and, perhaps, an inspiration to Frank McCourt's ANGELA'S ASHES. The two stories deal with the poverty of the working class, war as a job opportunity, sickly children, and the effect of premarital sex on devout Catholic communities in the 1940s. All you have to do is substitute Ireland with Quebec. Although the Canadian novel is, I feel, superior, the film is inferior. Anyone expecting the crispness and humour of Alan Parker's ANGELA'S ASHES from Fournier's TIN FLUTE will be disappointed. Fournier did much better with his story about First Nations warrior Almighty Voice in his film ALIEN THUNDER. Although slow paced like THE TIN FLUTE, it at least attempts at humour to alleviate the sombre subject matter. The film does have some neat Hitchcockian film techniques like when Rose-Anna's(Marilyn Lightstone) scream is superimposed with a train whistle when she sees her husband wearing an army uniform. However, these moments are few and far between and the sensitivity of Roy's novel melts into melodramatic drivel. If you get a chance to see this film(made in two parts for CBC television, in English and in French), don't be surprised if you experience deja vu.