The Cat in the Bag

The Cat in the Bag (French: Le chat dans le sac) is a 1964 drama film by Gilles Groulx, which played a seminal role in the development of Quebec cinema. The film's themes, improvisational style, hand-held camera work and evocative music signalled the emergence of a new generation of Quebec films and filmmakers.[2][3]

The Cat in the Bag
FrenchLe chat dans le sac
Directed byGilles Groulx
Written byGilles Groulx
Produced byJacques Bobet
StarringClaude Godbout
Barbara Ulrich
Pierre Maheu
Jean V. Dufresne
Paul-Marie Lapointe
Jean-Paul Bernier
Manon Blain
André Leblanc
Véronique Vilbert
CinematographyJean-Claude Labrecque
Edited byGilles Groulx
Music byJohn Coltrane
Production
company
Distributed byPathé Contemporary Films
Impact Films (US, subtitled)
Release date
1964
Running time
74 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageFrench
Budget$45,982[1]

The film mixes Direct Cinema documentary techniques and distancing devices similar to those employed by Jean-Luc Godard to tell the story of a young man's struggles to come to terms with his place in Quebec society and Quebec's place in Canada. The protagonist, a journalist played by Claude Godbout, struggles with the question of whether to change society or accept it the way it is. An American girl, an actress who runs a theater, does not share the troubles and struggles between the two. Claude leaves Montreal for the Quebec countryside to reflect on his life, and with the distance between them, their love fades.[3][4]

Cast
  • Barbara Ulrich as Barbara
  • Claude Godbout as Claude
  • Manon Blain as Manon J'sais-pas-qui
  • Véronique Vilbert as Véronique
  • Jean-Paul Bernier as Jean-Paul
  • André Leblanc as Toulouse
  • Paul-Marie Lapointe as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages
  • Jean-V. Dufresne as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages (as Jean V. Dufresne)
  • Pierre Maheu as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages

Production

In 1963, Gilles Groulx presented Grant McLean, the director of production at the National Film Board, with a film outline that did not even fill an entire page. The film was shot on a budget of $45,982 (equivalent to $397,015 in 2021).[1]

Critical response

Critic Robert Daudelin stated: "At last we were confronted by a film which really belonged to us, one in which we were happy to recognize ourselves and see ourselves close up. [It] was (and remains) the image of our most recent awakenings".[4]

It received the Grand Prix at the 1964 Montreal International Film Festival.[5] Le Chat dans le sac was identified as a "culturally significant film" by the AV Preservation Trust through the 2002 Masterworks programme.[2][4] It was screened at the 18th Berlin Film Festival in 1968 as part of Young Canadian Film, a lineup of films by emerging Canadian filmmakers.[6]

It was later screened at the 1984 Festival of Festivals as part of Front & Centre, a special retrospective program of artistically and culturally significant films from throughout the history of Canadian cinema.[7]

See also

References
  1. Evans 1991, p. 94.
  2. "Le Chat Dans Le Sac (1964)". Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  3. Loiselle, Andre (June–September 2004). "Le Chat dans le sac". Take One. Canadian Independent Film & Television Publishing Association.
  4. "Chat dans le sac, Le". Canadian Film Encyclopedia. with excerpts from Take One’s Essential Guide to Canadian Film. Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  5. "The Cat in the Bag". Collection. National Film Board of Canada. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  6. Gerald Pratley, "In and Out of Cinema". Cinema Canada, September 1968.
  7. Carole Corbeil, "The stars are coming out for Toronto's film festival". The Globe and Mail, 6 September 1984.

Works cited
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