I Killed My Mother (2009) J'ai tué ma mère (original title)

Director:

Xavier Dolan

Writers:

Xavier Dolan (screenplay)
Xavier Dolan (dialogue)

Release Date:

15 July 2009 (France)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Plot:

A semi-autobiographical story about Dolan as a young homosexual at odds with his mother.

Plot Keywords:

Adolescence | Guilt | Manipulation | Contempt | Love Affair

Awards:

26 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Anne Dorval	...	Chantale Lemming
Xavier Dolan	...	Hubert Minel
François Arnaud	...	Antonin Rimbaud
Suzanne Clément	...	Julie Cloutier
Patricia Tulasne	...	Hélène Rimbaud
Niels Schneider	...	Éric
Monique Spaziani	...	Denise
Pierre Chagnon	...	Richard Minel
Justin Caron	...	Young Hubert
Benoît Gouin	...	Boarding School Principal
Johanne-Marie Tremblay	...	Boarding School Teacher
Hugolin Chevrette-Landesque	...	Student Fighter #1 (as Hugolin Chevrette)
Francis Ducharme	...	Student fighter #2
Pascale Audrey	...	Art Professor
Emile Mailhot	...	Classroom Student #1 (as Émile Mailhot)
Laurent-Christophe De Ruelle	...	Classroom Student #2
Mathieau Grimard	...	Hélène's Young Lover (as Mathieu Grimard)
Mariflore Véronneau	...	Waitress
Manuel Tadros	...	Apartment Concierge
Bianca Gervais	...	Video Library Cashier

Directed by
Xavier Dolan

Writing credits
Xavier Dolan		(screenplay)
Xavier Dolan		(dialogue)

Produced by
Xavier Dolan	....	producer
Carole Mondello	....	executive producer
Daniel Morin	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Nicholas Savard-L'Herbier

Cinematography by
Stéphanie Anne Weber Biron		(director of photography) (as Stéphanie Weber-Biron)

Film Editing by
Hélène Girard

Set Decoration by
Anette Belley

Costume Design by
Nicole Pelletier

Makeup Department
Marie-Josée Galibert	....	key makeup artist

Production Management
Karl Archambault	....	unit manager
Carole Mondello	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
France Boudreau	....	first assistant director
Robert D. Morais	....	additional first assistant director
Sinan Saber	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Anette Belley	....	props
Anette Belley	....	set designer

Sound Department
Sylvain Brassard	....	sound editor
Sylvain Brassard	....	sound re-recording mixer
Benoît Dame	....	dialogue editor
Alexis Farand	....	foley artist
Jean-Sébastien Roy	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Ryal Cosgrove	....	special effects supervisor
Marc Reichel	....	special effects foreman

Visual Effects by
Martin Lipmann	....	visual effects supervisor

Camera and Electrical Department
Xavier Boisvert	....	extra lighting technician
Nicolas Canniccioni	....	director of photography: additional photography
Ilio Kotorenchev	....	first assistant camera
Manuel Lessard	....	gaffer
Lino Mondello	....	lighting technician
Sean Sweeney	....	data wrangler
Armando Tremblay	....	extra lighting technician
Alexis Vanier	....	best boy lighting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Xavier Dolan	....	costumes
Nicole Pelletier	....	costumes

Editorial Department
Martin Lipmann	....	colorist

Other crew
Karl Archambault	....	location manager
Curtis Michael Davey	....	production assistant
Francine Lebrun	....	production coordinator
Erick Nyhuis	....	production assistant
Pascal Pelletier	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Mifilifilms

Distributors

• 791 Cine (2011) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Cinemien (2010) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• K Films Amerique (2009) (Canada) (theatrical)
• KOOL Filmdistribution (2011) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Kino Lorber (2012) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Rézo Films (2009) (France) (theatrical)
• Adrenal Film (2010) (Turkey) (all media)
• Alberto Bitelli Intl. Films (2010) (Brazil) (all media)
• Film1 (2011) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Filmcoopi Zürich (2009) (Switzerland) (all media)
• Homescreen (2010) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• PCV (2009) (Greece) (all media)
• Sound & Media (2011) (UK) (DVD)
• Tongariro Releasing (2011) (Poland) (all media)

Other Companies

• Audio Post Production SPR Inc.  sound post-production
• Cinepool  grip and lighting equipment
• Département Camera  camera equipment provided by
• Post-Moderne  post-production facilities
• Société Cine Multi  unit supplies

Also Known As:

"J'ai tué ma mère" - Canada (original title)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

French

Color:

Color | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Ontario) | Netherlands:6 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Sweden:11 | Argentina:16 | UK:15 | Germany:16 | USA:Not Rated | France:U

Filming Locations:

Longueuil, Québec, Canada

Company:

Mifilifilms

Trivia:

Canada's official submission to 82nd Academy Award's Foreign Language in 2010.

Quotes:

Hubert Minel:I wasn't born to have a mother.
Julie:Maybe your mother wasn't born to have a son.

Movie Connections:

References The 400 Blows (1959)

Soundtrack:

Tell Me What To Swallow

Clever, innovative and honest

She: like most mothers she cares for her son and looks after him. She drives him to school, she washes his clothes, she cooks.

The downside: She uses these things as excuses to constantly make him feel guilty, make him feel like he owes her for loving him. She keeps accusing him of being ungrateful (though she never says it directly, but implies it in almost every conversation).

What's (arguably) worse: she refuses to listen to him. When she does listen, she doesn't take him seriously. She avoids confrontation, barring occasional hysterical outbursts.

He: makes it perfectly clear that he doesn't expect her to do all the material things for him that she does, and that he'd much rather fend for himself if that means not having to be made to feel guilty all the time.

She: is a struggling single mother, working each day to try to give him a better future. She has to face self-important people who judge her, but who have no idea about the kind of life she leads.

He: does not understand this. He does not see past her awful taste (in clothes and interior design). He thinks she's superficial. He refuses to let her be a part of his life, he criticizes her every word, her every move. He screams at her, insults her.

She: loves him.

He: loves her too. So much.

J'ai tue ma mere is an unflinchingly honest, masterfully shot portrayal of a strained mother/son relationship. Great actors, beautiful images and, I cannot emphasize this enough, absolutely spectacular technique.

Bravo Xavier Dolan! You have created a true work of art.