Leolo (1992)

Young Leo Lauzon is torn between two worlds - the squalid Montreal tenement that he inhabits with his severely dysfunctional (and largely insane) family, and the imaginative world that he ... See full summary »

Director:

Jean-Claude Lauzon

Writer:

Jean-Claude Lauzon

Stars:

Maxime Collin, Ginette Reno, Gilbert Sicotte

8 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gilbert Sicotte	...	Narrator (voice)
Maxime Collin	...	Leolo
Ginette Reno	...	Mother
Julien Guiomar	...	Grandfather
Pierre Bourgault	...	Word Tamer
Giuditta Del Vecchio	...	Bianca
Andrée Lachapelle	...	Psychiatrist
Denys Arcand	...	Director
Germain Houde	...	Teacher
Yves Montmarquette	...	Fernand
Lorne Brass	...	Fernand's Enemy
Roland Blouin	...	Father
Geneviève Samson	...	Rita
Marie-Hélène Montpetit	...	Nanette
Francis St-Onge	...	Leolo, age 6

Storyline

Young Leo Lauzon is torn between two worlds - the squalid Montreal tenement that he inhabits with his severely dysfunctional (and largely insane) family, and the imaginative world that he constructs for himself through his writings, where he's Leolo Lozone, son of a Sicilian peasant (conceived in a bizarre act involving a tomato). And his experiences of growing up (especially his sexual development) affect his response to both these worlds...

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Plot Keywords:

hereditary insanity | mental illness | obsessive compulsive | tomato | dark humor | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ginette Reno's film debut.

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Quotes

Narrator: That day, I understood that fear lived in our deepest being.

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Alternate Versions

The UK censors made 2 cuts totaling 32 seconds. One showed young boys stroking a woman's breasts. The other was for cruelty to a cat.

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Connections

References Psycho (1960)

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Soundtracks

The Lady of Shalott
Lyrics by Alfred Lord Tennyson and music by Loreena McKennitt
Performed by Loreena McKennitt
(used during the movie and also during the closing credits)

User Reviews

A difficult world to enter

This is one of the few movies that left me mystified. Was it trying to create only mood (however unpleasant), was it trying to convey a deep message (however obscure), was it trying to show that there is squalor in modern Montreal (however unsurprising)? All of these? None of these? Why was this movie made?

A boy is coming of age in a totally dysfunctional family. The parents are obsessed with bodily functions - the father checks the boy's output after each visit to the toilet; all five children are forced to take laxatives. If you see dark humor in this, then you may like this movie. I'm afraid the humor flew over my head.

We see rats in the sink, rats in the bathtub. In one scene, that I assume is to have some special meaning, we see at some length a filthy turkey in the bathtub. What's the meaning of that? And what an inspiring thing it is to see a young boy having sex with a cat.

I felt like taking a shower after watching this movie.

The boy, Léolo, finds his family so difficult to deal with that he escapes into dreams, fantasy, and writing. Maybe understandably, most everyone in this family winds up going nuts or heading toward death.

The music is a grab bag. There is a mixture of things like Tom Waits' "Cold Cold Ground," Tallis' "Spem in Allum," the Stones' "You can't always get what you want," and chanting.

Much of the movie is told in a voice-over and sections of the novel "L'avalée des avallés" by the Canadian Réjean DuCharme are read - this is a book that Léolo is reading and it is the only book in his house. A recurring quote is, "Because I dream, I'm not." I think the idea behind that is that we dream to escape reality, but your guess is as good as mine.

I have to give this movie credit for coming out of nowhere to give us something like we have never seen before, but that doesn't mean that we will like it. Sometimes there is a fine balance between art and pretension and, for me, this movie weighs in on the pretension side.

Details

Official Sites:

-Bande annonce

Country:

Canada France

Language:

French

Release Date:

2 April 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Leolo

Filming Locations:

Taormina, Messina, Sicily, Italy

Box Office

Gross USA:

$611,703

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$611,703

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alliance Films Corporation, Canal+, Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image Animée

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1