''Evil Words'' (, lit. "On the Threshold") is a Canadian thriller film, directed by

Éric Tessier Éric Tessier (born March 19, 1966) is a Canadian film and television director and screenwriter from Quebec. He received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards in 2022, for the film '' You ...

and released in 2003.Charles-Henri Ramond
"Sur le seuil – Film d’Éric Tessier"
''Films du Québec'', April 19, 2009. Adapted from the novel ''Sur le seuil'' by

Patrick Senécal Patrick Senécal is a French-Canadian writer and scenarist known for his horror oriented drama novels. Senécal is well known in Québec for his unique dark genre; his work has often been compared to that of Stephen King. Three of his novels wer ...

, the film stars Michel Côté as Paul Lacasse, a doctor who is treating famous horror novelist Thomas Roy (

Patrick Huard Patrick Huard (born January 2, 1969) is a Canadian actor, writer and comedian from Quebec. Career Huard broke into the Quebec show business scene in 1989 as a comedian, actor and television personality, with success as a stand-up comedian in the ...

) following a suicide attempt, and begins to find evidence that Roy was in close proximity to every one of the last several dozen tragedies to occur anywhere in Canada. The cast also includes Catherine Florent,

Albert Millaire Rodolphe Albert Millaire, CC, CQ (January 18, 1935 – August 15, 2018) was a Canadian actor and theatre director.

, Jean L'Italien, Jacques Lavallée,

Jean-Pierre Bergeron Jean-Pierre Bergeron (born 1952) is a Canadian actor and film director from Quebec. He is most noted for his performances in the film '' The Big Snake of the World (Le Grand serpent du monde)'', for which he received a Jutra Award nomination fo ...

, Normand D'Amour, Nicolas Canuel, Frédérique Collin, Annette Garant, Christine Foley, Alexis Belec,

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 ...

, Guy Boutet, Anne-Marie Labelle, Frédéric Gilles, Richard Fréchette,

Martin Dubreuil Martin Dubreuil (born May 26, 1972) is a Canadian actor and musician from Quebec.Lise Roy Lise Roy (born 1954) is a Canadian actress who has appeared in stage productions, film and television. Roy graduated from the Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Montréal in 1975. In film, she worked with directors such as Denys Arcand, playing Mm ...

, Patrice Bélanger, Stéphane Blanchette and Éric Cabana in supporting roles. The film opened in theatres on October 3, 2003.

Attempted remakes

Within a couple of weeks of the film's release,

Miramax Miramax, LLC, formerly known as Miramax Films, is an American independent film and television production and distribution company owned by beIN Media Group and Paramount Global. Based in Los Angeles, California, it was founded on December 19, ...

acquired rights to produce an American remake, but this never materialized. In 2015, GO Films, the original film's studio, announced plans to produce its own English-language remake of the film, to be titled ''Threshold'' and directed by

Érik Canuel Érik Canuel (January 21, 1961 – June 15, 2024) was a Canadian film and television director from Montreal, Quebec. Canuel, the son of actor Yvan Canuel, began his career in the mid-1980s making music videos for such artists as Paul Piché, ...

with the setting transferred to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, but this project was also never completed.

Awards

Louis Hone received a

Jutra Award Jutras may have several meanings : * Claude Jutra: an award-winning French Canadian filmmaker **Jutra Award: Film awards formerly given in the Canadian province of Quebec, named after the filmmaker and now known as Prix Iris **The Claude Jutra Awa ...

nomination for

Best Sound The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...

at the

6th Jutra Awards The 6th Jutra Awards were held on February 22, 2004 to honour films made with the participation of the Quebec film industry in 2003.

in 2004.Luc Perreault, "Les Jutra 2003: Grand saison, grand gala". ''

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 ...

'', January 22, 2004.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0380732 2003 films 2003 thriller films French-language Canadian films Canadian thriller films 2000s Canadian films Films shot in Quebec Films set in Quebec Films based on Canadian novels Films directed by Éric Tessier 2003 directorial debut films