''Old Buddies'' () is a Canadian drama film, directed by

Claude Gagnon Claude Gagnon (born 1949 in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and producer, who frequently works in both Canada and Japan. He won the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award in 1979 for '' Keiko''. Filmog ...

and released in 2020. The film stars Patrick Labbé as Pierrot Joyal, a man returning to his hometown of

Saint-Hyacinthe Saint-Hyacinthe ( , ) is a city in southwestern Quebec east of Montreal on the Yamaska River. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 57,239. The city is located in Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality of the Montérégie regi ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, following several years of living in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

, to visit his family and friends after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, and

Paul Doucet Paul Doucet (born 1970) is a Canadian actor known for his portrayal of Jean Duceppe in '' Jean Duceppe''. Early life Doucet was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1970. He studied drama at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Career His mo ...

as Pierrot's childhood friend Jacques Larose, of whom Pierrot has a special request to help him end his life. The cast also includes Luka Limoges, Marie-Pier Labrecque, Stéphan Côté, Luc Proulx,

Natasha Kanapé Fontaine Natasha Kanapé Fontaine (born 1991) is an Innu poet and actress. Born in Pessamit, Quebec, Fontaine first became noticed in 2012 as part of the Montreal poetry scene. Her first poetry collection, ''Do Not Enter My Soul in Your Shoes'', earned h ...

, Michel Olivier Girard, Geneviève Rochette and

Pierre Curzi Pierre Curzi (born February 11, 1946, in Montreal, Quebec) is an actor, screenwriter and politician in Quebec. He is a former Member of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNA) for the riding of Borduas in the Montérégie region south of Montrea ...

. The film reunites the principal characters of Gagnon's 1982 film '' Larose, Pierrot and Luce (Larose, Pierrot et la Luce)'', although Gagnon stated that it was intended as a standalone film rather than a sequel or a remake. It was based on his own experiences spending time with his childhood friend Luc Matte, who had played Pierrot in the earlier film, in the year prior to Matte's death. The film premiered on November 1, 2020 at the Abitibi-Témiscamingue International Film Festival, before premiering commercially on May 21, 2021.Luc Boulanger
"La mort en douce"
''

La Presse is a French-language online newspaper published daily in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1884, it is now owned by an independent nonprofit trust. ' was formerly a broadsheet daily, considered a newspaper of record in Canada. Its Sunday edi ...

'', May 21, 2021.

References

External links

* 2020 films 2020 drama films Canadian drama films Films directed by Claude Gagnon Films shot in Quebec Films set in Quebec 2020s French-language films French-language Canadian films 2020s Canadian films French-language drama films {{2020s-Canada-film-stub