Fleur bleue (The Apprentice)
Encyclopedia
Fleur bleue is a 1971 Quebec
-made comedy
/drama
film starring Susan Sarandon
and Steve Fiset. Although the title literally translates to English
as Blue Flower, it is better known in English as The Apprentice, which is a better translation of the idiom
used in the title. It is one of the very few Canadian films that is functionally bilingual, shot in both English
and French
, with the appropriate dialogue dubbed
for the appropriate audience.
Jean-Pierre (Fiset) is a working class young Francophone
with big dreams. He comes under the tutelage of his older best friend, a con-man and bank robber named Dock (Jean-Pierre Cartier), who starts teaching him the secrets of his trades, and making him an accomplice in his crimes. He is dating Dock's virginal sister, who is also active in the Quebec separatist movement.
To make ends meet, Jean-Pierre works a series of menial jobs. While doing clean-up on a commercial shoot, he meets Elizabeth (Sarandon), a beautiful Anglophone
model. After he is fired from the shoot for explaining the English meaning of the French name of the product she is supposed to be selling, she starts going out with him out of a sense of guilt, and they soon become lovers. However, she is a sexual libertine
with no intention of being monogamous, and this soon strains their relationship.
Eventually, the strain of keeping up with his two girlfriends wears on him and he decides to break up with Elizabeth. However, his clumsy attempts to break up in English (of which he does not have a fluent command) merely results in their spending the night together. He then decides to break up with Dock's sister, who realizing that he is going back to Elizabeth because of their sexual relationship, throws herself at him.
Eventually, Jean-Pierre's criminal activities catch up with him, and everything ends tragically.
in the late 1960s and early 1970s. At the time the film was made, Montreal was largely segregated into French speaking areas in the east, and English speaking areas in the west, with the two groups rarely interacting with each other. Jean-Pierre and Elizabeth both are from Montreal, but neither has a working command of the other's language - Jean-Pierre's English is non-fluent, and Elizabeth's French is non-existent.
In addition to the strain of his relationships and his criminal career, Jean-Pierre is also dealing with a society which, while marginally under French political control, was largely under English economic control. This film was made just after department stores such as Eaton's
required their Francophone clerks to converse with customers in English only, even if the customer was a Francophone as well. Jean-Pierre, rightly or wrongly, blames his economic circumstances on Anglophones, who are the only ones who can provide him with an honest, but low paying, job. His girlfriend has come to the conclusion that separation from Canada is the only solution to the problems plaguing Francophones. Dock is convinced that it doesn't matter who is in charge - people like him will suffer nevertheless, so it's everyone for themselves. Elizabeth, who is relatively well off, doesn't acknowledge the problems that exist for all the Francophones she shares her city with.
Montreal has notably changed since the film was made. French is now the dominant language in the city even though the English population is largely the same, primarily due to strong language laws. Montrealers are more likely to be functionally bilingual. Shops deal with customers in the language of their choice. The Quebec separatist movement is largely rejected in Montreal (where even only a bare majority of Francophones support separation), but the movement has left Francophones in effective control of the political and economic life of the city. Finally, Montreal is no longer functionally segregated, and English and French speakers can be found in neighbourhoods throughout the city.
Fleur bleue is also not without humour. At one point, Dock is shot by rival criminals and is locked in a trunk to expire. Miraculously, when a used car salesman opens the trunk the next morning to show it to a customer, Dock crawls out, calmly confirms the customer is English-speaking, and then politely asks for five dollars to take a cab to the hospital. In another scene, Jean-Pierre goes to an English language learning centre, but is frustrated by attempting to learn at a beginner's level. He finally asks the Anglophone director of the center for help in crafting a way to break up with Elizabeth, she suggests the sentence "it is time for us to end our liaison". Jean-Pierre points out that "liaison" is a French word, but the director notes that it works well in English as well.
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
-made comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
/drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
film starring Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
and Steve Fiset. Although the title literally translates to English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as Blue Flower, it is better known in English as The Apprentice, which is a better translation of the idiom
Idiom
Idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made...
used in the title. It is one of the very few Canadian films that is functionally bilingual, shot in both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, with the appropriate dialogue dubbed
Dubbing (filmmaking)
Dubbing is the post-production process of recording and replacing voices on a motion picture or television soundtrack subsequent to the original shooting. The term most commonly refers to the substitution of the voices of the actors shown on the screen by those of different performers, who may be...
for the appropriate audience.
Jean-Pierre (Fiset) is a working class young Francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
with big dreams. He comes under the tutelage of his older best friend, a con-man and bank robber named Dock (Jean-Pierre Cartier), who starts teaching him the secrets of his trades, and making him an accomplice in his crimes. He is dating Dock's virginal sister, who is also active in the Quebec separatist movement.
To make ends meet, Jean-Pierre works a series of menial jobs. While doing clean-up on a commercial shoot, he meets Elizabeth (Sarandon), a beautiful Anglophone
English Canadian
An English Canadian is a Canadian of English ancestry; it is used primarily in contrast with French Canadian. Canada is an officially bilingual state, with English and French official language communities. Immigrant cultural groups ostensibly integrate into one or both of these communities, but...
model. After he is fired from the shoot for explaining the English meaning of the French name of the product she is supposed to be selling, she starts going out with him out of a sense of guilt, and they soon become lovers. However, she is a sexual libertine
Libertine
A libertine is one devoid of most moral restraints, which are seen as unnecessary or undesirable, especially one who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behavior sanctified by the larger society. Libertines, also known as rakes, placed value on physical pleasures, meaning those...
with no intention of being monogamous, and this soon strains their relationship.
Eventually, the strain of keeping up with his two girlfriends wears on him and he decides to break up with Elizabeth. However, his clumsy attempts to break up in English (of which he does not have a fluent command) merely results in their spending the night together. He then decides to break up with Dock's sister, who realizing that he is going back to Elizabeth because of their sexual relationship, throws herself at him.
Eventually, Jean-Pierre's criminal activities catch up with him, and everything ends tragically.
Place in Canadian film history
Fleur bleue is one of the very few films to deal with the strain between Anglophone and Francophone relationships in the city of MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
in the late 1960s and early 1970s. At the time the film was made, Montreal was largely segregated into French speaking areas in the east, and English speaking areas in the west, with the two groups rarely interacting with each other. Jean-Pierre and Elizabeth both are from Montreal, but neither has a working command of the other's language - Jean-Pierre's English is non-fluent, and Elizabeth's French is non-existent.
In addition to the strain of his relationships and his criminal career, Jean-Pierre is also dealing with a society which, while marginally under French political control, was largely under English economic control. This film was made just after department stores such as Eaton's
Eaton's
The T. Eaton Co. Limited was once Canada's largest department store retailer. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an Irish immigrant. Eaton's grew to become a retail and social institution in Canada, with stores across the country, buying offices across the globe, and a catalogue...
required their Francophone clerks to converse with customers in English only, even if the customer was a Francophone as well. Jean-Pierre, rightly or wrongly, blames his economic circumstances on Anglophones, who are the only ones who can provide him with an honest, but low paying, job. His girlfriend has come to the conclusion that separation from Canada is the only solution to the problems plaguing Francophones. Dock is convinced that it doesn't matter who is in charge - people like him will suffer nevertheless, so it's everyone for themselves. Elizabeth, who is relatively well off, doesn't acknowledge the problems that exist for all the Francophones she shares her city with.
Montreal has notably changed since the film was made. French is now the dominant language in the city even though the English population is largely the same, primarily due to strong language laws. Montrealers are more likely to be functionally bilingual. Shops deal with customers in the language of their choice. The Quebec separatist movement is largely rejected in Montreal (where even only a bare majority of Francophones support separation), but the movement has left Francophones in effective control of the political and economic life of the city. Finally, Montreal is no longer functionally segregated, and English and French speakers can be found in neighbourhoods throughout the city.
Fleur bleue is also not without humour. At one point, Dock is shot by rival criminals and is locked in a trunk to expire. Miraculously, when a used car salesman opens the trunk the next morning to show it to a customer, Dock crawls out, calmly confirms the customer is English-speaking, and then politely asks for five dollars to take a cab to the hospital. In another scene, Jean-Pierre goes to an English language learning centre, but is frustrated by attempting to learn at a beginner's level. He finally asks the Anglophone director of the center for help in crafting a way to break up with Elizabeth, she suggests the sentence "it is time for us to end our liaison". Jean-Pierre points out that "liaison" is a French word, but the director notes that it works well in English as well.