Alex95 Posted April 20, 2023 Author Share Posted April 20, 2023 20. I Killed My Mother 15.71/20 Watch Trailer @*Chris - 4/20 @~Tom~ - 13/20 @FrogLenzen - 16/20 @Deeee - 18/20 @Steven_ - 19/20 @*Diana - 20/20 Public - 20/20 Chris Quote "I Killed My Mother" is a French Canadian drama film released in 2009, directed by a young Xavier Dolan, who also wrote and starred in the film. As a French Canadian gay man, this film holds a special place in my heart. The honesty and rawness of its depiction of adolescence, the emotional intensity of first love, and the difficulty of coming out to those closest to you struck me when I first saw the film. Xavier Dolan's performance as Hubert is particularly poignant, capturing the frustration and anger that can accompany adolescence, as well as the profound need and longing that can exist right beneath the surface. The film is important for its representation of queer identity and sexuality, particularly through the lens of French-Canadian queer people. It provides representation that was not previously available for queer teenagers growing up in French Canada. Watching Hubert struggle with his own desires and attractions, while dealing with the homophobia and intolerance of the world around him, gave me a sense of being seen for the first time. The film depicts Hubert's coming of age and how it affects his relationship with his mother. It explores the complexities and challenges of family dynamics and embracing one's own emotions and desires. His frustration with his mother's inability to understand him and her overbearing nature causes a breakdown in their relationship. The performances of Xavier Dolan and Anne Dorval are remarkable and capture the nuance of the characters' emotions, making the audience feel empathy with the struggles of both characters. One particular scene that remains engrained in my memory is the one where Chantale discovers Hubert's homosexuality, which captures the mixture of anger, hurt, and betrayal that both characters are feeling. However, the film's ending, where Hubert and his mother share a poignant moment of reconciliation, is both touching and emotionally resonant as they lead us to believe that they both have made progress to finally be able to understand each other, or one would hope so... The outstanding performances of the actors in the film of Xavier Dolan, Anne Dorval, and Suzanne Clement, to highlight a few, add to the emotional resonance of the story. The chemistry between the actors are important to drive the story forward, which can be seen through their performances that were able to create powerful and relatable scenes throughout the movie. More importantly, the film also captures the nuances of language and culture that can be difficult to translate into English, which is something that I always felt that many non-French Canadian queer individuals never understood from my upbringing or some of my beliefs or experiences. To summarize the above: "I Killed My Mother" is a powerful representation of French Canadian culture and language. Even today, years later, the film continues to have the same impact it had on me when I first saw it. It gave me representation of my experiences that I had never seen before in French Canadian media. Watching the film made me feel that I was not alone in my struggles and that my experiences were valid and important. It is a reminder of the power of film as a catalyst to connect us to our own emotions and experiences, and I am grateful for the impact this film has had on me. I am incredibly proud to have been able to bring this film into the Top 20 despite it not being heard of or watched by many individuals. Tom Quote Not a perfect film by any means, but I enjoyed watching Xavier and his mother come to terms with his being gay, and I liked that she was more hurt that he did not tell her right away rather than her being gay. Also, Xavier Dolan is a qt! Congrats to Chris for getting it here. Derek Quote Honestly, I’m kind of bummed that Chris protected this one over C.R.A.Z.Y. because I think I would have liked that other one better. This was just fine to me. Okay, so the appeal is that this is a young queer filmmaker and he made the movie himself. It’s about being young and he’s still young when making it, so all the emotion is fresh and authentic, etc. But it just did not seem super profound to me at the end of it all. I too have once been an insufferable 16 year old with irrational hate for a parent that I was too similar to. What makes these characters stand out more so they don’t just seem petty??? The way this is presented on film is very… indie and was really taking its time. But I thought the pacing could have been much tighter. Honestly, edit this down to 1 hour and then add a whole new third act where something else happens. For as much time as we spent with the characters I wanted them to be developed more, or just for something else to happen. I mean the cliche would have been for him to kill himself at the end, which would have been cringe in a different way, but I still feel like this movie was missing something. Dee Quote The only film in this finalist group that I had never seen. One has to admire Chris's dedication to preserving all of Dolan's films in these film rankdowns! This film happens to be the directorial debut of Dolan and though I might not love the film, I do not think it is bad by any means. Just not a very exciting movie and it certainly plays like the film of a first-time director, which is what held be back from loving the movie. The film is a bit obvious in its approach and the angst is a bit overwhelming at times. But this is certainly a good start for Dolan's career and I can understand why this film would be impactful for queer cinema in Quebec! Steven Quote This is a film I never heard about before. It seems like most rankers here were unfamiliar with this film too, but it was pushed this far into the game since Chris is apparently a big fan of the film. I didn't end up watching this film, so I had to rely on Wikipedia for the plot summary. The plot seems to revolve around an angsty teenager who can't get along with his mother. Maybe the performances is why Chris likes this film so much, as well as the fact it's a French-Canadian LGBT film? Kudos to Chris for getting this film into the Top 20, but I can't rank it higher than here. Diana Quote Am I being petty with this last placement? Probably a little but but it is to be expected when you know how much I loved Legally Blonde lol. So the last few of my rankings is based on that fact. anyway back to I Killed My Mother. I Killed My Mother was a film released in 2009 and is an Canadian drama film written, directed, and starring Xavier Dolan which was also was his directorial debut. So that is amazing for him to have these accomplishments. It has a 87 percent on rotten tomatoes and was quite successful. I did not have the time to actually watch it before ranking it so good for its fans getting it here. Rei Quote A French queer movie??? always count me in. I remember that I really enjoyed this the time when I watched it. Naive Rei always thought that Hubert would end up actually killing the mom at the end I should really catch up with the rest of Xavier Nolan's movies. Megan Quote This is the one movie I hadn't seen before but I'd heard of and just never got around to it. I in general like Xavier Dolan's movies even if I find both him and his films a bit pretentious. There's a lot to like about I Killed My Mother like the dialogue which is shockingly realistic considering it's written by a 16-year-old and Anne Dorval's masterful performance as Chantale. However, I think a lot of the experience of the movie is being astounded that it's written by, directed by, produced by, and starring 19-year-old Xavier Dolan. It's the kind of movie that you go "wow can you believe a 19-year-old did this" and then you watch and go "yah I can." The immaturity and unevenness in the film shows the creator's age. It's the kind of movie that if I had first seen this when I was in college I probably would have found revelatory. But watching it for the first time as a 32-year-old it doesn't hit as hard. Alex Quote My Ranking: 20/20 MVP: Anne Dorval Favorite Scene: Chantale tells off the headmaster. This was one of my first watches of this game and unfortunately it was my least favorite of the 20. It's a shame I can't get into Dolan outside of Mommy, which is easily one of my favorite films of the 2010's. Despite only clocking in at 96 minutes, this movie really felt like it dragged at times. Maybe it was my fault for saving this for till the end of a nearly month long 2000's movie marathon. Or maybe it was Dolan's fault that many of the scenes didn't feel like they were saying anything new. One character would commit a minor offense which would anger the other character. The two characters would then get into a screaming match where they would say the most vile things to each other. Then they would eventually move on like nothing ever happened, only for the cycle to restart again mere minutes later. It was exhausting to watch at times. The scenes of Hubert with his boyfriend at least brought a modicum of lightness to the movie. But it wasn't enough to sustain the absolute toxicity that was the relationship between Chantale and Hubert. While Chantale was far from a perfect mother (and borderline abusive at times) I couldn't help but sympathize with her as Hubert would scream at her that she's an alzheimer's patient and he wants her to die. Futhermore, I found the ending to be rather dissatisfying and the black & white narration scenes felt very Film School 101. Having said all this, I didn't dislike the movie. I rated it 3 stars out of 5 on LB, which is my lowest but the fact that nothing dropped below 3 stars is good overall for the top 20. I think Dolan shows so much potential as a filmmaker in this film, potential that is luckily realized in his subsequent movies such as Mommy (which I would highly recommend, even if you weren't a big fan of this one as I was not). You could also feel the heart and the passion in this movie. Obviously a very personal film for Dolan, it totally comes across that way. Nothing about it feels lazy or phoned in. I always appreciate when I can feel the passion behind the art radiating from off the screen. So while I unfortunately can't say I was a fan of this movie or have any interest in checking it out again, I do respect it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Chris Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 Pretty much expected this to be 20th. Still happy that I was able to protect it for the majority of the game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogLenzen Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 Not a huge surprise I guess. I was lowkey hoping for a more shocking #20 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Tom~ Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 @FrogLenzen I agree that I would’ve preferred C.R.A.Z.Y to be here as I liked it a little more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Chris Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 1 minute ago, FrogLenzen said: Not a huge surprise I guess. I was lowkey hoping for a more shocking #20 You and I, both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.Rei Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 (edited) I ranked it at #16. I wish it could have avoided the bottom but I also agree with most to the people‘s opinions Edited April 20, 2023 by .Rei Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogLenzen Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 oh yeah, who are the public again? I think it's Alex, Rei, Megan, Wallace? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex95 Posted April 20, 2023 Author Share Posted April 20, 2023 1 minute ago, FrogLenzen said: oh yeah, who are the public again? I think it's Alex, Rei, Megan, Wallace? And Andy, that's it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenKalie Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 I was going to rank but I forgot oh well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogLenzen Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 once I'm done with my morning appointments I can do the whole spreadsheet with everyone's rankings thing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Chris Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 Just now, FrogLenzen said: once I'm done with my morning appointments I can do the whole spreadsheet with everyone's rankings thing You can skip this reveal! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogLenzen Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 kind of wild that Elliott and Victoria didn't want to have a say in the final votes since they were part of the game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex95 Posted April 20, 2023 Author Share Posted April 20, 2023 Just now, FrogLenzen said: kind of wild that Elliott and Victoria didn't want to have a say in the final votes since they were part of the game I was hoping to receive public rankings from them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totes4totes Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 (edited) This was my #18 Edited April 20, 2023 by totes4totes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex95 Posted April 20, 2023 Author Share Posted April 20, 2023 I can post each individual public's ranking during each update if you're all okay with it @.Rei @totes4totes @*Wallace @#jeah. But if you'd rather keep it secret that's fine too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totes4totes Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 3 minutes ago, Alex95 said: I can post each individual public's ranking during each update if you're all okay with it @.Rei @totes4totes @*Wallace @#jeah. But if you'd rather keep it secret that's fine too You can reveal mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Wallace Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 Oooh hmm I'm okay with the ranking for I Killed My Mother, though I wouldn't have minded it and would have preferred it being a little higher. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.Rei Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 9 minutes ago, Alex95 said: I can post each individual public's ranking during each update if you're all okay with it @.Rei @totes4totes @*Wallace @#jeah. But if you'd rather keep it secret that's fine too It’s fine for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.Rei Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 2 hours ago, .Rei said: I predict Almost Famous at 20! As you can see my predictions are useless! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#jeah Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 15 minutes ago, Alex95 said: I can post each individual public's ranking during each update if you're all okay with it @.Rei @totes4totes @*Wallace @#jeah. But if you'd rather keep it secret that's fine too I’m fine with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven_ Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 Alex including his MVP and favorite scene is a cool addition to his write-ups. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elliott Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 24 minutes ago, FrogLenzen said: kind of wild that Elliott and Victoria didn't want to have a say in the final votes since they were part of the game I had my ranking, I just forgot to send it in since I was trying to do some write-ups to go with it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deeee Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 1 minute ago, Steven_ said: Alex including his MVP and favorite scene is a cool addition to his write-ups. Agreed. I thought about doing this or providing my favorite Letterboxd review for each LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex95 Posted April 20, 2023 Author Share Posted April 20, 2023 I'm okay with @Elliott sending me a ranking with I Killed My Mother excluded unless any rankers completely object to this. I Killed My Mother will still be the 20th in the public ranking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elliott Posted April 20, 2023 Share Posted April 20, 2023 3 minutes ago, Alex95 said: I'm okay with @Elliott sending me a ranking with I Killed My Mother excluded unless any rankers completely object to this. I Killed My Mother will still be the 20th in the public ranking. It was my 20 anyway. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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