Journey (1972 film)
Encyclopedia
Journey is a 1972 Canadian film written, directed and produced by Paul Almond
.
Found drifting down the Saguenay River
, half-drowned and clinging to a log, a woman (Geneviève Bujold
) is rescued by Boulder (John Vernon
), who carries her to Undersky, his commune in the Québec
wilderness. Named after the river from which she was saved, Saguenay is haunted by memories of her past and remains unresponsive for days, drifting in and out of consciousness. She gradually becomes aware of the life going on around her and begins to explore it. But she senses she has brought ill fortune to this community and fears something in her past has doomed her and all who know her. Finally, she journeys back up the river to confront the nightmare of her past. By doing so, she breaks through to the present and arrives at the mouth of the river.
(1968) and The Act of the Heart
(1970), obscure and complex, it is considered the weakest of the trilogy, lacking the passion of the first two. Poorly received, it was a box-office failure and ended Almond's attempt to create art film
in Québec.
Paul Almond
Paul Almond, is a Canadian former television and motion picture screenwriter, director and producer, and since 1990 has been a novelist.-Life and career:...
.
Synopsis
Journey is the allegorical story of a young woman's struggle - outside the normal framework of space and time - to find herself.Found drifting down the Saguenay River
Saguenay River
The Saguenay River is a major river of Quebec, Canada.It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east, and passes the city of Saguenay. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River at Tadoussac....
, half-drowned and clinging to a log, a woman (Geneviève Bujold
Geneviève Bujold
Geneviève Bujold is a Canadian actress best known for her portrayal of Anne Boleyn in the 1969 film Anne of the Thousand Days, for which she won a Golden Globe Award for best actress and was nominated for an Academy Award....
) is rescued by Boulder (John Vernon
John Vernon
John Keith Vernon was a Canadian actor. He made a career in Hollywood after achieving initial television stardom in Canada.-Early life:...
), who carries her to Undersky, his commune in the Québec
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....
wilderness. Named after the river from which she was saved, Saguenay is haunted by memories of her past and remains unresponsive for days, drifting in and out of consciousness. She gradually becomes aware of the life going on around her and begins to explore it. But she senses she has brought ill fortune to this community and fears something in her past has doomed her and all who know her. Finally, she journeys back up the river to confront the nightmare of her past. By doing so, she breaks through to the present and arrives at the mouth of the river.
Reception
This is Paul Almond's last film in his trilogy with Bujold that began with IsabelIsabel (film)
Isabel is a 1968 Canadian film written, directed and produced by Paul Almond. -Synopsis:Learning of her mother's serious illness, Isabel returns to her family's farm on the Gaspé Peninsula. Her mother dies before she can get there, and when her aged uncle Matthew asks her to stay on and help him...
(1968) and The Act of the Heart
The Act of the Heart
The Act of the Heart is a 1970 Canadian film written, directed and produced by Paul Almond.- Synopsis :Martha Hayes , a devoutly religious young woman from Québec's Côte-Nord who fancies herself as some kind of a saint, arrives in Montréal to serve as nanny to Russell , the son of a widowed...
(1970), obscure and complex, it is considered the weakest of the trilogy, lacking the passion of the first two. Poorly received, it was a box-office failure and ended Almond's attempt to create art film
Art film
An art film is the result of filmmaking which is typically a serious, independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience...
in Québec.