Denis Villeneuve's French Canadian Films | Before the Dunes (Part 1) #194 episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 28, 2026 · 2H 39M

Denis Villeneuve's French Canadian Films | Before the Dunes (Part 1) #194

from Queen is Dead - A Film, TV and Culture Podcast · host Queen Is Dead

It's never nice to talk about a director whom you thought you loved but -- upon rewatching their films -- you realize you maybe don't...This is the (unfortunate) framework for QID's first episode (of 3) on director Denis Villeneuve before he became THE Denis Villeneuve responsible for helming the Dune franchise (culminating with "Dune Part Three" in December), and thereafter, directing the latest iteration of 007.Dhruv and Cris (for whom most of these films are first watches) are less than enamored by Villeneuve's French Canadian films -- especially "Polytechnique" and "Incendies" -- that catapulted him to becoming one of the most celebrated filmmakers working in Hollywood today.So they contemplate the value (or lack thereof) of his refined style -- and why Cris, at least, prefers shabbiness of his earlier work ("August 32nd on Earth" & "Maelström") heavily inspired by the French New Wave.Listen to the full episode to hear Dhruv rant about "Maelström" and the French New Wave, though. And then Cris talk extensively about how much Denis Villeneuve actually improves on the source material "Incendies" is adapted from.MAJOR SPOILERS FOR ALL 4 FILMS DISCUSSED!TIME CODESIntroduction - [00:00 - 22:52]"August 32nd on Earth" - [22:52 - 41:56] "Maelström" - [41:56 - 59:16]"Polytechnique" - [59:16 - 01:43:54]"Incendies" - [01:43:54 - 02:29:30]Outro - [02:29:30 - 02:39:54]Do hit 'Follow' on Spotify if you haven't already to help the podcast reach more people!Follow our Instagram page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://instagram.com/queenisdead.filmpodcast.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠You can also follow us on Instagram at:CRIS: https://www.instagram.com/prdscris/.DHRUV: https://www.instagram.com/terminalcinema/.You can also follow us on Letterboxd at -CRIS: https://letterboxd.com/crislim/.DHRUV: https://letterboxd.com/aterminalcinema/.

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Denis Villeneuve's French Canadian Films | Before the Dunes (Part 1) #194

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