2015 Inside Out LGBT Film Festival : What We Have

I went into this film with zero expectations, the synopsis was vague and I couldn’t be less interested in a small northern Canadian town but when I pressed play I instantly connected with the music, setting and protagonist Maurice (Maxime Desmons). What We Have is set in North Bay, Ontario and if you’re anything like me the first thing you thought was um, where? Well from what we see in the film North Bay is a place that has a beautiful landscape filled with forest and lakes but the town Maurice finds himself in is dismal.

Parisian Maurice is a brilliant character. His brooding disposition and masked aching for affection is so touching that you find yourself clutching your own chest for his confliction. His confliction lies in his mysterious past, unplanned and constantly wavering future and empty sexual encounters. In the midst of these hollow relationships Maurice discovers an immediate connection with a teenage boy he tutors in French, Alain (Alex Ozerov).

Alain’s character is vital to the film in discovering his own sexual identity and showing the audience Maurice’s tender, altruistic side. As Alain has no real father figure, Maurice is comfortable with taking on the role. Usually, in a dominant-subordinate relationship the more dominant figure would take advantage of his control over the subordinate. In What We Have Alain and Maurice have a mutual respect and admiration. At times it borders on inappropriate, but the chemistry between the two is riveting and refreshing.

The setting truly is one of the most crucial pieces of the puzzle that is What We Have. After a few short clips of the North Bay architecture and its habitants the atmosphere of the town screams repression, which is an unusual escape for Maurice. A seemingly flawed decision but a perfect backdrop for the films attention to isolation; both self-imposed and in the loss of moving from a metropolis to North Bay.

I suppose self discovery can be made everywhere, even where you would never expect it. And where would you expect it less than North Bay, a town constricted by naiveté and sexual repression? Maxime Desmons does an exquisite job of portraying the coexistence of the archetypal small town and a European misfit.

Watch the trailer for What We Have (Ce qu’on a) below!