Skeletons in the closet

The Descendant is a rural Quebec ghost
story with eerie links to the past

by CHRISTOPHER SYKES

With the election hullabaloo in full swing let’s forget momentarily about the Tory budget cuts to the arts and focus on something infinitely more inspiring. Harper be damned, there seems to be a host of independent, privately financed features coming out of Montreal these days. With Kidnapper Films’ very funny Who Is KK Downey? picking up steam, it’s time for another local act to put butts in seats and pay off some of that nasty credit card debt.

Director Philippe Spurrell’s debut film The Descendant is a tough one to label. On one hand, it’s a cautionary tale like so many horror flicks, yet there’s also a desire by the Montrealer to enlighten audiences with an unsavoury tidbit of Quebec history. Without divulging the plot twist, the result is a curious amalgamation that is eerily informative and presented in beautiful 35mm.

Exactly one year after his late mother’s death, James (Tadhg MacMahon) is tempted by the promise he made to her regarding her estranged parents. Without explanation, James’s mother forbids him from contacting the grandparents he never knew. Tempting fate, he contacts his grandmother and arranges an initial meeting at their farm in the fictional town of Ste-Harmonie, Quebec. The meeting sets in motion a chain of events that proceed to take on more and more of a supernatural flavour.

Ste-Harmonie is a one-horse town that’s seen better days. Indeed, James finds he’s from humble stock upon visiting the secluded, dilapidated farmhouse where his mother grew up. One might expect plaid-loving grandpa Maurice (Jim Reid) and God-fearing grandma Linda (Ilona Garcen) to bust out the banjo and chase poor James back to Montreal, but instead it’s an antique gramophone and a collection of photos that provide the key to the past he was lacking.

There’s an unexpected twist at the end, and while The Descendant is not perfect, it’s an ideal example of why it needs to be easier for young filmmakers in Canada to fund their films—not the other way around.

THE DESCENDANT OPENS THIS FRIDAY,
SEPT. 26 AT CINÉMA DU PARC

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