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Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation

Directed by Catherine Annau
Canada, 1999 (documentary, 76 minutes, colour, English / French)
Also known as "Frenchkiss : la génération du rêve Trudeau"
Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation
Image: © National Film Board of Canada

Film Description [in French] :
"Que reste-t-il de ce rêve d'un Canada bilingue qui a bercé les enfants de la 'génération Trudeau'? Débordant d'humour et d'esprit, un groupe de trentenaires attachants, héritiers de cette vaste ambition politique, nous entraîne à la découverte de l'autre langue et de l'autre culture. Pour John qui a grandi à Toronto, tous les Montréalais passaient leurs journées à prendre un verre et à faire l'amour. Sylvain, lui, se rappelle avoir repéré à leurs 'grandes dents blanches' deux jolies anglophones entrant dans un bar de Québec. Un bilan captivant, un film au montage inventif et au rythme trépidant des meilleures chansons d'une époque agitée."
-- Office national du film du Canada (source)

Film Description:
"In this fresh, dynamic social documentary, director Catherine Annau turns the lens on the Trudeau Generation: those who grew up during the bilingual revolution led by the 'Canadian Kennedy.' Still an incredibly emotional subject for some, the film finds its subjects passionately debating the impact of Pierre Elliot Trudeau's quest to redefine Canada as a truly bicultural country."
-- Helen du Toit (source)


Film Credits (partial):
Produced by: Louise Lore, Gerry Flahive, Yves Bisaillon
Participants: André Gobeil, Jocelyne Perrier, Meg McDonald, John Duffy, Sylvain Marois, Evan Adams, Susanne Hilton, Doug Garson
Cinematography: Ronald Plante
Film Editing: Craig Webster
Music: Rick Tait, Jim Tait
Production Company: National Film Board of Canada / Office national du film du Canada
(sources)

Awards won by Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation

Notes about Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation

(sources)

Quotes about Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation

"[Catherine] Annau's film [Just Watch Me: Trudeau and the 70's Generation] shows the people, Canadians, refracted through the prism of Trudeau's image and policies. The sense of self and national identity of many of the interview subjects is attributed to media images of Trudeau and participation in some of the cultural and educational programmes initiated by his government between Québec and Anglophone Canada"
-- Christopher E. Gittings (source)

"There is nothing more moving than real human drama, and that's exactly what [Catherine] Annau captures in this crafty outing that maps the post-Trudeau Canadian experience, and finds a self-possession against a backdrop of national doubt."
-- Katherine Monk (source)

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