The DVD release of the month for September 2008 is Leolo. This Golden Palm nominated Canadian film from 1992, directed by Jean-Claude Lauzon is released by the lovely Network DVD label in the UK on 29th September 2008.

Leolo tells the story of a young boy (Leolo), who is being brought up in squalid conditions in a shabby tenement in Montreal that he shares with his family - most of whom seem plagued by madness. To escape these conditions, he increasingly retreats into a world of his own imagination where he looks to find some path to happiness, whether it be falling in love with his beautiful neighbour, or by killing his Grandfather whom Leolo blames for the genetic failure of the entire family. When Leolo's two worlds start to merge, the escape he longs for him pushes him into increasingly desperate actions.



Leolo is a strange and relatively unknown film. The most remarkable story contained in the film is in turn funny, tragic, sentimental, brutal and other times just plain weird, all of which neatly mirror the madness that Leolo's family suffers. In fact it is plain weird quite a lot of the time. There is also a certain schizophrenia in the cinematography which switches seamlessly from the "late 1980s post-MTV ultra slick music video epic" ultra slow zoom in zoom out, to the European cinema approved long tracking establishing shots, both of which work beautifully in conjunction with the terrifically atmospheric score. Allied to these ingredients, the film contains a truly superb main cast, though special mention has to go to the then 13 year old Maxime Collin who so perfectly judges the role of Leolo.

It's always an absolute thrill stumbling across such hidden gems as this film. So here is hoping that lots more people get to discover this fantastic piece of work thanks to this DVD release.

View the Leolo trailer below (which unfortunately gives only the briefest flavour of the film itself).

Labels: Leolo