In English Canada, a home-grown “popular” cinema is almost unheard of. The relative dearth of locally made comedies, cop movies, thrillers and the like has been the subject of much hand wringing. But in French-speaking Québec, there is a well-ensconced pop cinema, made almost solely for domestic consumption, complete with a local star system and a regular output of genre films. Bon Cop, Bad Cop, which stars the popular Québec comedian Patrick Huard (famous for his roles in the thoroughly low-brow hockey comedies Les Boys, Les Boys 2 and Les Boys 3 and for his appearance on a number of popular Québec TV shows) and the well-respected English-Canadian actor Colm Feore (well known for his roles in films like 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould and The Red Violin, in addition for his portrayal of Pierre Trudeau in a CBC biopic about him) almost functions as a metaphor for this strange cinematic condition. It tells the story of a murder committed on the Ontario-Québec border and the collaboration that must take place between the tight-laced English-Canadian cop and his looser, crazier Québecois colleague. They couldn't be more different: one speaks English and is from Toronto and the other is a francophone from Québec. One obeys the law, the other makes his own. As they investigate the murder, their differences both threaten the investigation and help pierce its mystery.
Interview with Erik Canuel about Bon Cop, Bad CopAaron interviews French-Canadian filmmaker, Erik Canuel. He's a true "lover of cinema," which is pretty evident in both this interview and his highly enjoyable film.
(11/11/2006 Starz Denver Film Festival)
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