Quebec’s burgeoning film scene has brought with it some rather nasty growing pains. In particular, the rapidly evolving milieu has meant that there have been ever worsening funding shortages. Telefilm’s envelope system, which rewards producers who make the blockbusters, has meant that more unusual or personal films have been pushed aside.

That’s why it was so refreshing to watch Stéphane LaFleur’s feature directorial debut, Continental: A Film Without Guns. Lafleur is so obviously in the Euro camp and not at all prone to Hollywood trends, it’s a relief.

Somehow, Lafleur manages to use the now-tired “network narrative” set-up without making it seem like a cheap device. A man disappears, early in the film, and it’s unclear whether or not he is intentionally leaving the scene or abducted. The rest of Continental shows us various scenes unfolding in the lives of four people who were either intimately involved with the missing one or tangentially connected. Lafleur artfully shows us the sheer ennui of his characters’ lives, without any of the cruelty or judgment that Altman often showed his characters, free of derision of condescension. The subtle performances of the ensemble are captured beautifully by cinematographer Sara Mishara.

Many have likened Continental to the work of Roy Andersson—a huge compliment, undoubtedly, but Lafleur deserves praise for bringing his various scenarios to life with his own distinctive style. I couldn’t help but notice Luc Déry’s name on the credits—a local producer who has consistently championed riskier films, including Un crabe dans la tête, Congorama and Familia.

In more crass and commercial DVD news, Cloverfield has arrived on DVD. I can see why there was a bipolar audience response to this entry. On the one hand, it seemed a perfect genre response to 9/11, and a very clever use of CGI. On the other, those bickering twentysomethings were annoying enough that I was ultimately hoping the Godzilla knock-offs would sink their fangs into them, so they wouldn’t be able to utter any more inane dialogue.