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7.0

The Barbarian Invasions

Corporate star Sebastien (Stephanie Rousseau) is called back to Canada by his mother to see his estranged father, outspoken academic Remy (Remy Girard) who is has a terminal illness and not much longer to live. With coaxing from his mother Louise (Dorothee Berryman) Sebastien takes it on himself to ensure his father has everything he needs and is comfortable for the last few months of his life. He manages to move his father to his own wing of the hospital (long abandoned due to cost cuts and staffing restraints) and locates many of his father’s friends, and former mistresses, to keep him comfy in his final days.

Whilst the main thrust of The Barbarian Invasions focuses on Sebastien and Remy as they try to bridge the gap that has sprung up between them it also gives us an insight into the lives of Remy’s friends as they examine their own pasts and futures. A talented cast bring the circle of friends to life as we see glimpses into their worlds and how age has changed them – all the while discussing history and politics, the significance of which went over my head I’m afraid – however it didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the characters and film overall.

As a side plot the journey of heroin addict Nathalie (Marie-Josee Croze) who comes to provide pain relief to Remy is an intriguing character, who you hope will take some inspiration from Remy’s circumstances and change the course of her own life. Thankfully Nathalie is never used as a cautionary tale about the use of drugs, or as a tool of over the top anti drug propaganda; again due to the subtle nature of Denys Arcand’s script and direction. Indeed the strength of the film is its subtlety, there is no great talk about feelings and resentment between Remy and Sebastien as you would expect from a film of this type and yet an understanding is reached.

The Barbarian Invasions is a film about people and the choices they make; death may bring these people together but it does not overwhelm them. Indeed the film is more about the importance and joy of life rather than a maudlin reflection on death.

Video and audio quality on the disc is great having been filmed only recently; as The Barbarian Invasions is a foreign language film it is subtitled, however they were clear and easy to read at all times. There are no special features included which is strange considering the film did win an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film in 2004 – an audio commentary or making of featurette would be more than welcome.