Leolo (1992) User Reviews (69)

By body betrayed, by poetry saved...

[ThurstonHunger · 6/10 · 28 December 2004]

Which came first, the disturbing or the disturbed? This is a difficult film for me to assay. Certainly I did not enjoy "Leolo" but then there are many films I have appreciated which I did not enjoy. Despite being tagged as such, this film was never a comedy for me, outlandish scenes too often were tainted by a ring of tragic truth. Well, I should clarify and say "at least an emotional truth."

This film reminded me of Baudelaire and Rabelais. I remember in my late teens, seeking out those poets feeling that I should appreciate them from the little I had heard about them. Someone probably mentioned Iggy Pop in the same breath with 'em. Anyways, their poems never did connect with me, I remember thinking that something in translation or in the transatlantic crossing was lost upon me. This film has many moments like that (despite a shorter journey down from Canada), but cast amidst shining gems of genius. One example, the recurrent use of the refrigerator light, and other illumination, shining over Leolo's shoulder.

This film slips and dips into the "rabelaisian" in the reduced definition, i.e. a fecal focus. A childhood is deprived more than depraved, but a little of both. If any sexual appetite is offensive for you, than this film is not for you... Spend your time on some counseling instead.

And yet for me, much of the film was grotesque...and I think that's a nearly perfect word for it, what with its stylish franco-suffix... gracefully covering over its seamier stewings. Like a sauce over spoiled meat.

But as I think more about this film: the merd, the bugs, the dead dog in the canal...all of that waste, is not wasted. Instead the images, the reviling of an earthly existence drive us off the screen and into the voiced-over poetry of Leolo. Even in translation and subtitle, the words had a precise beauty. A beauty I feel was intentionally and successfully accented by the sordid scenarios stitched together.

It would be an interesting test for someone to read the poetry from the screenplay first and then watch the film. Would the words be strong enough without the sights, sounds and implied smells of Leolo's world to suffice?

While I cannot honestly recommend this film (too many times I found myself hoping that a fade-to-black was final), it would be interesting to hear/read others' comments. I'll come back to the reviews here, and maybe the film in the future.

Til' then, I 'll give it a 6/10

PS Interesting. In posting my review the "s-word" now appears to be banned...so let them read "merd."

Holy Sh*t! (for real)

[Travis_Moran · 8/10 · 25 May 2005]

I found this movie on a used VHS tape the other day and decided to check it out since it was a Canadian production.

Man, I can't decide whether I love or hate this movie. It's just plain weird! Sometimes it had me laughing (like in the beginning with the tomato, later when Leolo trades his flies for his sister's turd, etc); And then sometimes I was totally grossed out (like the cat scene). And the raw meat incident was sick, then later hilarious when it got served for dinner. There's definitely some "toilet" humour throughout this film.

Almost always I watch movies for enjoyment and I try not to analyse too much because it often spoils my enjoyment. But I've noticed some really deep analysis from previous reviewers regarding this film. And honestly, some of it is way too deep for me. (Maybe I'm the ignorant savage in the art museum.).

I wouldn't really class this movie as a comedy although it has some humorous scenes (very dark humour). I'd say this movie was more like a trip through a mental institution. It is a very haunting movie and I did find myself reflecting on it every so often for a while. It's a thinker for sure. It seemed sensitive, but in a very harsh way.

Acting was very good in my opinion. Any actor who can pull off roles like the ones in this movie has to be good.

Normally, I'm not fond of narration. But for some reason it didn't seem to bother me in this film. It sort of fit in better I guess.

This movie could freak out a lot of people. It's really worth watching, but not for young kids. I gave it 8 out of 10 because it was well acted, made me think on it, and it was certainly unique. Also I respect a person who goes against the flow to make something original.

Unique and lyrical exploration of a childs fantasy

[ollie501 · 8/10 · 27 December 2003]

Léolo (1992) - Dir- Jean-Claude Lauzon Reviewed by Ollie - 27th December 2003.

CONTAINS SPOILERS

This is probably one of the most difficult reviews I have written, simply because I have absolutely no idea where to begin. Léolo is one of the most unique, and unusual films I have ever seen. Unlike most films it doesn't sit comfortably in any particular genre. It dances a fine line between black comedy, and an offbeat coming of age `drama'.

Leon Lauzon, or `Léolo' is convinced that he is the unlikely offspring of a sperm laden Sicilian tomato, and that his true heritage is that of Italian blood. For the most part, his family are insane. His Father is obsessed with bowel motion, on the theory that, and I quote, `A s*** a day, keeps the Doctor away'. His brother, after a fight with a bully becomes obsessed with body building, one sister is obese, borderline catatonic and appears to happily communicate with insects, the other is in a mental institution, where most of the family seem to reside with startling regularity.

This film will not appeal to everyone. There are some particularly unpleasant scenes, including an attempted murder, the `rape' of a cat, by a group of beer swilling, glue sniffing, leather clad youths, and Léolo himself having a sexual experience with what appears to be a piece of liver.

Throughout the film, these images are neatly juxtaposed with a poetic, and in places, almost lyrical dialogue.

There is a lot to take on board in one viewing. This is a film that most definitely demands attention, and concentration. Light hearted entertainment it most certainly isn't, but it is ultimately rewarding, albeit as a sad reflection of a young boy's progression into sexual awareness, and eventual descent into the madness that, through his writing, he is continually trying to escape.

This film walks a fine line between a sick and depraved collection of perverse imagery, and a poetic, gentle and yet devastating account of life. Somehow, through a combination of superb acting, unique direction and a fabulous soundtrack, the film manages to always stay on its metaphorical tightrope.

Definitely well worth seeing, although to fully appreciate the film, I suspect two or three viewings will be necessary. If I had to award points to the film it would get a well deserved 8.5/10.

Ollie

A beautiful, unforgettable work of art - but not one for the easily offended

[gogoschka-1 · 10/10 · 22 December 2013]

To me, 'Léolo' is like a rare gemstone. A unique, surreal fairytale, which you can look at from many different angles and yet it remains hard to describe. Although there clearly is a structured narrative, I believe this film is more to be felt than understood. While it's often tragic and disturbing, it's also very funny and darkly comic. Somehow fitting for a story inspired by childhood memories, reality and fantasy are seamlessly interwoven to create an often dream-like, sometimes nightmarish atmosphere.

This was only director Jean-Claude Lauzon's second film, and sadly he never got to make more than two; he died in a plane crash while he was preparing his third film.

A beautiful, unforgettable work of art, albeit not one for the easily offended.

My vote: 10 out of 10

Favorite films: http://www.IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/

Lesser-known Masterpieces: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls070242495/

Favorite Low-Budget and B-movies: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls054808375/

Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls075552387/

Devastating masterpiece.

[ItalianGerry · 10/10 · 8 August 2001]

"Léolo" is one of the best unknown films of the 90's. It is regarded in some quarters as the very best French-Canadian film ever made. It is a triumphant and devastating picture that will leave you haunted by its images and sounds and reflecting on its characters and events for a long time after you see it. The title character is the adolescent Léolo, wondrously played by Montréal's Maxime Collin, who has kind of a cult following among the young there, is the youngest member of a dysfunctional family living in Montréal in the fifties.

His real name is Leon Lauzon, but he mock-Italianizes it to Léolo Lozone, because he wants to be Italian. It is the private escape from family misery for this sensitive youth who loves to read and fantasize. He fantasizes that he was born after his mother had been impregnated by a Sicilian tomato, because an Italian had ejaculated into it. His sister Nanette is near-catatonic, his sister Rita communicates with insects. Daddy administers laxatives to the family members as though he were passing out the Eucharist. He examines his kids' feces in the toilet, just to make sure they have pooped well. They are more in than out of a mental institution.

During the course of the film, young Léolo drools over the buxom Sicilian girl living next door, attempts to kill his grandfather because he blames him for all the family's problems. Big brother Fernand gets into body-building after being roughed-up by a neighborhood bully, but the muscles do not transform his timid coward's heart. The scene where this wimpy Atlas is beaten and humiliated before Léolo's eyes is one of the most poignant scenes I've seen in nearly sixty years of movie-going. Léolo's mother, a corpulent earth-mother, played by French-Canadian singer Ginette Reno, is the only anchor of sanity.

There are scenes in this movie which shock or make us uneasy and the movie caused an uproar in some quarters. We see some childhood sexual experimentation, leather-coated adolescents tormenting a cat in a sick ritual, a prostitute masturbating two young boys in the ruins of a demolished building. Léolo masturbates himself using a piece of liver...which his mom later cooks up for the family dinner.

Out of all this bizarre material, director Jean-Claude Lauzon, who died since the making of this masterpiece, has fashioned a complex, mesmerizing work of art that is semi-autobiographical, and at once a labor of love and virtuosic skill. The acting, the photography, the use of camera movement, the evocative use of an enormous variety of music that includes everything from Buddhist chants to Tom Waits, the thrilling poetic transitions are all of such an imaginative height as to make thousands of other movies from the same period seem puny by comparison. "Léolo" has often been viewed as a kinky comedy. While there are indeed elements of that, it really needs to be seen for what it really is: a shattering family drama of truly lyric force.

The most magic of magic realism

[fertilecelluloid · 31 December 2003]

Echoes of the magnificent THE TIN DRUM reverberate through the stunning, lyrical French-Canadian LEOLO.

The late Jean-Claud Lauzon's masterwork filters a dysfunctional family through the eyes of a dreamer who imagines himself to be Italian.

The film is filled with gorgeous cinematic studies of childhood cruelty, sexual abuse, eccentricity, first love, first self-love, insanity, obsession, unusual uses for meat products, and familial bonds.

As Leolo, Maxime Collin is without peer, delivering a truly amazing performance as a young boy on a difficult journey of discovery and exploration.

A wonderful Tom Waits cue anchors the soundtrack and eccentric supporting performances bring vivid color to the drama.

The film is photographed and directed with such amazing precision and passion that you can not help but be propelled by it.

In every sense an original, emotional work, and one of the best films ever made.

An obscure modern classic.

Best Film of 1992

[ColeSear · 10/10 · 11 April 2000]

I caught this late one night on the Independent film channel i caught the first few minutes and was amazed when i had finally seen the whole thing I loved it rarely have i seen a more poetic or brilliantly told portrait of any person young or old personified on screen the film is French-Canadian but transcends language Maxime Collin's performance is stellar. The voice over narration adds just the right element to the film. It is often funny, dramatic, heart wrenching and odd in the same breath and enjoyable throughout. Leolo is a film that is a rarity and most definitely a can't miss.

one of the weirdest coming-of-age movies

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 22 January 2016]

Léo Lauzon is a young boy living in a Montreal slum with his weird family. He doesn't get along with his grandfather. His older brother Fernand starts pumping up after getting picked on by a bully. His sister Rita is mentally disturbed. He writes in his book and has an imaginary world. He doesn't see any similarity between himself and his rotund silent hard-working father. He imagines he comes from another father who masturbated into a crate of tomatoes in Sicily. His mother gets impregnated after getting knocked into the pile of tomatoes.

This is one weird movie. It has a lot of odd sexual allusions. The memorable scenes are utterly unique. I don't really like narrators in general. I wish the movie would have more of a structure to the story. His coming-of-age story meanders too much. Nevertheless, this is a good and completely different kind of movie.

Brilliant, beautiful, wistful black comedy.

[Bill-380 · 10/10 · 17 April 1999]

Wonderful sad film about the tragedy of a sensitive soul in conflict with a society that is brutal, vulgar, and obscene. One of the most unusual films ever made-- daring and audacious, and richly rewarding. And the Tom Waits songs on the sound track are just right for this movie: melancholy and off-beat.

A difficult world to enter

[bandw · 5/10 · 29 January 2006]

This is one of the few movies that left me mystified. Was it trying to create only mood (however unpleasant), was it trying to convey a deep message (however obscure), was it trying to show that there is squalor in modern Montreal (however unsurprising)? All of these? None of these? Why was this movie made?

A boy is coming of age in a totally dysfunctional family. The parents are obsessed with bodily functions - the father checks the boy's output after each visit to the toilet; all five children are forced to take laxatives. If you see dark humor in this, then you may like this movie. I'm afraid the humor flew over my head.

We see rats in the sink, rats in the bathtub. In one scene, that I assume is to have some special meaning, we see at some length a filthy turkey in the bathtub. What's the meaning of that? And what an inspiring thing it is to see a young boy having sex with a cat.

I felt like taking a shower after watching this movie.

The boy, Léolo, finds his family so difficult to deal with that he escapes into dreams, fantasy, and writing. Maybe understandably, most everyone in this family winds up going nuts or heading toward death.

The music is a grab bag. There is a mixture of things like Tom Waits' "Cold Cold Ground," Tallis' "Spem in Allum," the Stones' "You can't always get what you want," and chanting.

Much of the movie is told in a voice-over and sections of the novel "L'avalée des avallés" by the Canadian Réjean DuCharme are read - this is a book that Léolo is reading and it is the only book in his house. A recurring quote is, "Because I dream, I'm not." I think the idea behind that is that we dream to escape reality, but your guess is as good as mine.

I have to give this movie credit for coming out of nowhere to give us something like we have never seen before, but that doesn't mean that we will like it. Sometimes there is a fine balance between art and pretension and, for me, this movie weighs in on the pretension side.

Brilliant and genuinely original.

[brences · 10/10 · 19 August 2005]

I absolutely adore this movie.

I first saw it with a group of friends at the local college town art cinema when it was first released. When it ended, hardly anyone in the theater even stirred, slowly and quietly rising only after the credits ran out. Afterwards, we went for drinks, as had been the plan for the evening, but it took a long time for us to break out of the film's spell and begin to really talk. When we finally did, each of us was relieved to find that everyone else had been as moved by it as each had individually.

The reason for all this doubt and anxiety, I believe, is the film itself. It doesn't rely on any conventions at all, nor does it allow the viewer to respond via convention. What it does do is provide the viewer with an intensely private view of the characters. You get to see them in broad daylight at times and on occasions where one would most want to be absolutely alone. Because of this willingness to really expose its characters, a more honest self-relation is demanded in response and for a response. (In this respect in reminds me a bit of Milan Kundera's novels, during the reading of which I often find myself embarrassed for the characters that I am there intruding on their privacy.) I think what myself and my friends (then still young adults) feared was revealing something about ourselves--a kind of fragility and ambivalence in one's own self-relation that one normally represses, but which this film repeatedly draws to the surface. Wouldn't admitting that one was moved by these characters be also an admission that one could relate to them in some more profound way? Yes, and I have felt just a little bit less alone in the world since seeing Leolo. Not better perhaps, but less alone.

A truly great, great movie. Rent it on VHS, grab a Canadian DVD off of Ebay, or pester IFC to show it again (record it because you'll want to see it again), but don't miss it.

Starts Fine But Gets Increasingly Ugly

[ccthemovieman-1 · 3/10 · 7 April 2006]

What an odd story. It was a good one for the first two-thirds of the film but the last third got so sick - at least to me and what little standards I possess, it lost favor with me. I got rid of it for that reason: overall - just too sick and too strange.

It gets ugly because a 12-year-old kid, whom the story is centered around, starts to lose it. He tries to kill his uncle, begins using way too much profanity, and says and does things that no 12-year-old boy would say/do. The story just gets out of hand. Everyone in this film except the boy's mother is very odd with most of them winding up in a mental institution. I often laugh at dark humor but this is way too black, way too dark.

People think Hollywood is morally bankrupt....well, the rest of the world, especially in the film-making business, is worse and this is a prime example.

Leo the Loner

[Beaux · 26 February 2003]

*Contains Spoilers*

There are many themes presented in the stunning Quebecois film Leolo, an offbeat portrayal of a child growing up in a dysfunctional family. Of these different themes, the most prevalent appears to be isolation, and specifically the intense isolation of the protagonist. Leo was a true loner amidst a very odd cast of family members and other supporting characters. This concept powerfully drives the film from beginning to end. Early in the film it is seen that Leo is rebellious and different than the rest of his family. He obsessively fantasizes about being from Italian heritage, constantly correcting anyone who calls him Leo rather than Leolo, his preferred Italian name. Although this seems minor, the audience learns from the start that Leo views himself as something that he is not. This can be interpreted as his method of escape. By assuming a different name and identity, Leo lives in his own little world far removed from his family. He disassociates himself with his flesh and blood, establishing a sense of independence and isolation. Leo's most interesting moments throughout the film come when he is alone. The intimate scenes in the bathroom with his piece of liver and porno rags are quite vivid examples. Leo tends to rebel and plot against his family much against their knowledge and he typically does so behind closed doors. His behavior is sneaky and crafty, seen best in the scenes where he attempts to hang his sleazy grandfather or fake a s***. He is voyeuristic, as well. Leo enjoys watching his object of desire, Bianca from a distance by himself. The film ends with Leo alone and further isolated from his family in the hospital. One of the last images the audience receives is that of a lone boy in an empty room. Leo's brother, Fernand is also an isolated soul. Tormented in his youth by the local bully, he trains and becomes muscular and powerful, creating a shield between himself and society. Fernand believes that this transformation will prevent him from being further bullied, and isolates himself in this perceived barricade. Ultimately, it is revealed that Fernand is no different as a powerful man than he was as a skinny teen. His attempt to isolate and protect himself from society fails tragically. The fact that the film is entirely narrated contributes to the notion that Leo is a loner. The narrative perspective is that of an outsider looking in, making observations while keeping a certain distance. The viewer never gets the feeling that Leo is truly part of the family. Rather, he is an observer much like a member of the audience. Certain other films have used this technique well, particularly those made by Martin Scorsese. Both Goodfellas and Casino use similar narration, allowing the audience a greater understanding as outsiders. On a side note, I must mention that I loved this film. I found it downright hilarious and outrageous for the most part. Director Jean-Claude Lauzon created a masterpiece with Leolo which reminds me of another very dark and twisted film, Belgium's Man Bites Dog (or C'est Arrive Pres de Chez Vous as it was originally titled). While both films are heavy in content and perhaps offensive to some, the daring humor must be appreciated. The theme of isolation serves Leolo well and helps Leo's character establish independence and appear more `normal' than his family. Had Leo been just as strange as everyone else, the film would have failed. Without contrast or conflicting viewpoints, craziness appears diluted. Fortunately, in Leolo it is portrayed as powerfully as could be, thanks to Leo the Loner.

Where is the DVD? (Found it!)

[The_unemployed_cynic · 10/10 · 20 June 2003]

This is one of the best movies ever made. It is beautifully shot, has great music, an amazing story and it is deeply touching. The first time I watched it, in a movie theater, I just sat there after the film had ended, emotionally exhausted. Since then, I have seen it on TV and on a bad copy of a VHS tape, neither of which do this wonderful movie justice. So the question is: why is there no DVD available of one of the best movies ever made? Someone must own the rights; or are they in an insane asylum?

Edit: Since I first wrote this comment, the DVD has been published. I advise anyone who likes great, artistic movies to do as I did and buy it.

Dreamer

[lifeinfilm-1 · 10/10 · 28 April 2005]

'I loved Fernand for his ignorance...because I dream I am not' I watched Leolo again on IFC few nights ago (after what is now more then ten years when I first saw it in a theater) and realized that this film was one of the catalysts for my entrance into the world of cinema. To be part of the film industry is very much, I believe, to dream big. The moment I stop dreaming I would seize to exist. Like Leolo said 'because I don't dream, I am not'. An essential tool for dreaming may be the hardship in having to deal with misunderstood reality. Or possibly being misunderstood all together. Psychological torment and trying to make sense out of situations we find ourselves in, status quo, or sympathy for the world which regardless of our actions keeps going it's own path leaves an artist in constant turmoil. I feel i have so much in common with Leolo that I fear of my own 'death' as a dreamer. Still, just seeing 'Leolo' gives comfort and lesson that once you stop dreaming...life of an artist seizes to exist. Thank you for once again showing me the path.

The best Canadian film ever made.

[vinzclortho · 10/10 · 24 August 2002]

Sure Atom Egoyan is Canada's finest home-grown film-maker (as well as Cronenberg and McDonald) but the promise was there with Jean Claude-Lauzon. His first film, Night Zoo, was a very moody and stylish film about the seamy side of crime in Montreal. His second film, Leolo is a truly profound and remarkable film. Sadly, Lauzon died in a plane crash shortly after Leolo's release, but he left us with a film that has more heart, life and originality than 50 Hollywood films put together. Leolo is a stunning story (partially autobiographical) about a boy growing up in Montreal. His family is a deliciously dysfunctional family where mental illness is hereditary. Leolo, who fantasizes he isn't French but of Italian descent, decides to live his life before it's too late and he loses himself to insanity. The film is a prime example of independent film, showing us original, startling and haunting images time and time again. Yes, some of the material is a bit broad and hard to take, but damn it, that's what independent film is all about! Leolo is a masterpiece, plain and simple. Max Collin gives the finest child actor performance in film history as Leolo, a child too intelligent to be a child, too young to be an adult. This is a remarkable film, it deserves to be seen. A hard film to find outside of Canada (check Foreign sections in video stores) but well worth the search. It's a shame Lauzon died after only his second film. I'm sure his career would have been filled with many more amazing films, but let us be thankful he left us Leolo, and let us honor his legacy for it.

One of the most powerful, painful films of childhood.

[jeek · 10/10 · 30 November 2002]

When I walked out of the theater after watching this film, I was emotionally drained. I laughed, cried and wretched so often, I was unsure what to think about the movie at first. After pondering, I came to the conclusion that "Leolo" is the most introspective portrait of introverted childhood ever filmed.

Leolo lives in his own mind, and tries to shut himself off from the family he both loves and hates. Although I was horrified by Leolo's surroundings, I identified with his perils. Leolo spends his spare time reading and writing, but when he tries to interact with children his own age, he realizes how little he has in common with them. Leolo still tries to overcome the horror of his life, but the family curse is something he can't evade.

What's more saddening than the conclusion to this film, is the tragic death of the films director Jean-Claude Lauzon. I didn't think too much about his first film "Night Zoo", but with "Leolo" he proved that he was one of the best new talents in film. I believe that "Leolo" was a very personal film, and that many of Leolo's trials, he experienced himself. The tragic accident that claimed his life seems so ironic when considering Leolo's tragic end.

I loved everything about this film, especially the soundtrack. Whenever friends come over to hang out, drink, smoke and watch a film, this is the one I put in the dvd player (it's available on dvd at www.amazon.ca) This films is for every person that felt the need to escape. In addition, this is for every person that hates Hollywood cookie-cutter films.

If you haven't seen it, there are few other films I could recommend.

I don't understand why so many people praise this movie

[stefan-locher · 1/10 · 18 May 2006]

I have seen this movie on DVD, and I was a bit confused. I always thought that I am somehow intelligent and able to understand even complicated plots and thoughts, but this time, I failed. Or can it be that this movie is really not as good as so many people tell us? The story is weird, and I cannot believe that it is a proof of intellectual level that we see a young girl eating an old man's toenails, while a young boy watches her and "plays with himself". And also the rest of the story is only weird. Frankly speaking, this movie is also boring and did not touch me, at all. Everything only seems to give me the impression that the director wanted to talk about some severe problems that he might have had during his childhood!? If he wants, he should go to a psychiatrist. But he should not bore audience with his thoughts.

unique storytelling

[vincenzowarner · 10/10 · 7 January 2005]

Leolo is an amazingly well made story of a boy filled with dreams named Leolo. His family is disturbed in many different ways from phecophilliac parents to muscle obsessed brothers. the unique aspect of this movie is it's use of fragmented time and it's non causal narrative. it has moments of sheer hilarity and heavy emotional impact. the characters are all incredibly well drawn unique and believable. Warning some scenes are not for the weak hearted as one scene in particular can really effect you for a couple of days unless of course you hate cats. I don't want to give too much away but this is an absolute must see. You may regret seeing this but it's worth whatever irrepareable mental problems.

Self-indulgently Grotesque

[xscd · 3/10 · 26 June 2007]

Be forewarned that there is a shocking scene late in the movie in which a live cat is abused "for the sake of"--art, the film, the story, whatever.

I patiently watched the movie up to the cat scene, appreciating some of the interesting approach to storytelling and some of the beautifully shot imagery. I kept hoping for some creative resolution or development in the story, but the movie seemed to slowly degenerate instead into a series of self-indulgent and unnecessarily destructive scenes and sub-plots. By the time the cat scene appeared I was already pretty fed up with the "I'm wallowing in filth and I want you to wallow in it with me" approach the director seemed to take (with a beautiful, poetic gloss to lure the viewer into this bait-and-switch movie), so it was an easy decision to turn the DVD off at that point with no regrets other than to wish the director had not felt it necessary to abuse a live animal and film the animal's obvious pain and panic for the sake of the enjoyment? titillation? of a human audience.

Although I can't dispute the movie creator's talent (I feel he should get 8-9 stars for creative talent, 2-3 stars for abusing that talent), I was very disappointed with this go-nowhere, self-indulgently grotesque movie.

Stunning bursts of poetry

[howard.schumann · 10/10 · 27 March 2011]

Jean-Claude Lauzon's semi-autobiographical Leolo, the last film he made before his death in a plane crash in 1995, is a powerful and unique masterpiece that, for me, will never grow old. Dramatizing the thin line between art and madness, Leolo is one of the most unique films ever made: vulgar, audacious, imaginative, disturbing, yet deeply compassionate. Though Leolo feels very personal to me, it is a film made for every outsider whose environment is so devoid of the things that nurture their souls, that, to survive, they must escape into a world of dreams, surviving only by being a spectator to their own life.

12-year-old Leolo (Maxime Collin) lives in a squalid tenement in Montreal, Canada, yet to him, he is no longer Leo Lozeau but an expatriate Sicilian named Leolo Lozone. Blaming his grandfather for infecting everyone with his errant genes, the boy lives in a home where insanity rules, affecting most of his family, except for his mother (Ginette Reno). He describes his world as "strange, harrowing, stinking, with no friends and no light." His father, a rotund sweaty man who has the warmth of a night patrolman, slinks around the house obsessed with everyone's toilet habits, making sure that everyone visits the bathroom at least once a day.

Dreaming of his neighbor Bianca, a few years older than him, he navigates between his adolescent urges and the reality of his sordid existence, surviving only by resting his head "between two worlds, in the valley of the vanquished." He reads in the basement with only the light from a half-opened refrigerator door and writes in his journal whenever he can, finding his "only real joy in solitude. Solitude is his castle." When his brother is beaten up twice by the same thug, even though he has put on an enormous amount of muscle, Leolo notes that "fear lives in the deepest part of our being, no matter our outward appearance."

His cry "Because I dream, I am not" enters our heart and buries itself until it is our own, a cry from the depths of our being. Filled with stunning bursts of poetry and a gorgeous eclectic soundtrack, Leolo is a touching, yet heartbreaking experience. For those who know what it means to grow up alone, at odds with the world around you, Leolo will make you feel that you have found a kindred spirit.

Brilliant!

[RJX · 10/10 · 9 September 1998]

Well, I just find it strange that this movie so often is regarded as a comedy. Sure, there are some funny parts in it, but only on the surface. I find it to be a very sad and touching story, with a lot of pain underneath. No one agrees?

Hollywood should take cues from their neighbors to the North

[Mr Pants · 10/10 · 8 December 1998]

A film like this reminds us of everything that is wrong with Hollywood, in that it participates in none of the usual big-budget antics seen in mainstream movies. The scatalogical themes in Leolo contain infinitely more beauty than aything to come out of LA in decades. Visually and emotionally stunning, Leolo effortlessly blurs reality and fantasy in such a way that their disparity really doesn't matter any more. It is a very sad film in many ways, but its resolution only furthers the weight of its theme that what is fleeting is perhaps more important finally.

Because I dream, I am not (Swallow of the Swallowed)

[Benedict_Cumberbatch · 3 August 2008]

I'd heard of "Léolo" years ago, but just now got the chance to watch this masterpiece. This film is really one of a kind, bizarre, dark, amusing at moments (but should never be classified as a "comedy"), and extremely poignant. With a fantastic visual style, reminiscent of Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Fellini ("Amarcord", especially), but also a complete original, and a mind-blowing soundtrack (that includes Tom Waits and The Rolling Stones), Jean-Claude Lauzon created the two worlds of young Leo Lauzon (played by Maxime Collin; the name Lauzon is not a coincidence): his real life with his (very) dysfunctional family in Montréal, and his imaginary life as Léolo Lozone, son of a Sicilian peasant.

"Léolo" isn't, however, a cute story of a child with vivid imagination. It is definitely not for kids, and its dark extremes (attempted murder, sexual awakening, etc.) can shock even some adults. Jean-Claude Lauzon (1963-1997) died on a plane crash five years after its release, having made only two films, "Night Zoo" (1987) being the first. It's a sad loss of an extremely promising, iconoclastic artist, who managed to create a masterpiece in his second feature. There's an interesting anecdote about "Léolo" leaving the 1992 Cannes Film Festival with no awards: according to Ken Turan of Los Angeles Times, "Léolo" would've probably won the Golden Palm if Lauzon hadn't made an obscene suggestion to Jamie Lee Curtis, one of the jurors. Lauzon himself would've told Turan that he found himself next to Jamie Lee at the buffet at the Hotel du Cap, introduced himself and said: "What the boy in the film does to the piece of liver, I want to do to you". Apparently, Curtis wasn't that flattered...

With or without the Golden Palm or an Oscar for best foreign film, "Léolo" is one of the 'lost' masterpieces of the 90s that deserve to be discovered (Richard Corliss and Richard Schickel included it on their list of 100 greatest films of all time). A must see for anyone who loves unique film-making. 10/10.

The poetry and the magic realism in Léolo

[juliacha · 10/10 · 1 July 2005]

I give this film a 10 for its artistic qualities. It's one of the best Canadian films that has ever been made. The early tragic death of the director (who died shortly after the making of this film) prevented it from getting promoted, and the attention that it deserves.

Why I think that Léolo has the recipes to perfect art:

1. The poetry: Léolo has a secret argument. On the surface it's a story of a coming-of-age child who discovers sex and death, who rebels against the family's hereditary madness and does so by becoming a dreamer. The madness itself is a metaphor of the threshold between reality and fiction, which is played with in the magic-realism in the narration. The intertextuality to Don Quijote (one of its main theme is madness and reality and fiction), the metaphor to the plastic red rose made in China, also works into the theme of what it seems and what it really is, and the ambiguity that exists in between.

2. The social context: The reality of poor, working class French Canadians living in a Anglo Canadian dominant society, and the experience of a child growing up in this grotesque reality.

3. Entertainment: The dark humour - the scene where the cross falls off the wall, for example. The alternate ways that one could use pig liver.

4. The humanity: The profound psychological exploration of the characters. The magic-realism also provides bitter humour in this context, such as in Fernand's case. He gets buff out of fear, but the fear remains in him no matter what he does. Léo's clash in identity submits him to madness but also is preventing him from it because he is dreaming, and in this dream he is the Italian Léolo.

These are only quick memorable examples. Watch the film for the full experience.