''Tideline'' (french: Littoral) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

- French drama film, directed by Wajdi Mouawad and released in 2004.David Rooney
"Tideline"
''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', October 12, 2014. The film stars

Steve Laplante Steve Laplante (born July 13, 1972) is a Canadian actor and writer from Quebec. He is most noted for his performance as David in the 2022 film ''Viking'', for which he received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Lead Performance in a Film ...

as Wahab, a

Lebanese Canadian Lebanese Canadians are Canadians of Lebanese origin. According to the 2016 Census there were 219,555 Canadians who claimed Lebanese ancestry, showing an increase compared to the 2006 Census, making them by far the largest group of people with ...

man whose estranged father ( Gilles Renaud) dies, leading Wahab to undertake a trip to

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

to bury his father's body in his home country, only to run into complications that send him wandering around the country and reveal aspects of his father's life that he never knew.Charles-Henri Ramond
"Littoral – Film de Wadji Mouawad"
''Films du Québec'', January 22, 2009. The film was adapted from Mouawad's own stage play, and was his first foray into film direction. Its cast also includes Miro Lacasse, Isabelle Leblanc, David Boutin, Pascal Contamine, Manon Brunelle, Estelle Clareton, Thérèse Boulad, Hani Mattar, Abla Farhoud, Pierre Curzi and Stéphane F. Jacques. The film premiered in September 2004 at the

2004 Toronto International Film Festival The 29th Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 9 through September 18. The festival screened 328 films of which 253 were features and 75 were shorts (148 of the films screened were in a language other than English). Awards No fi ...

, before premiering commercially in November.

Production

The original play was the winner of the

Governor General's Award for French-language drama This is a list of recipients of the Governor General's Award for French-language drama. The award was created in 1981 when the Governor General's Award for French language poetry or drama was divided. Because the award is presented for plays publ ...

at the 2000 Governor General's Awards. It was the first part of a thematically related, but not strictly sequential, trilogy of plays about characters of Middle Eastern origins confronting family secrets, followed by '' Scorched (Incendies)'' and ''Forests (Forêts)''. The second play formed the basis for the 2010 film '' Incendies'', which was directed by Denis Villeneuve; ''Forests'' has not been adapted as a film at all as of 2023. The portions of the film set in Lebanon were actually filmed principally in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Critical response

The film received mixed reviews from critics. Sandra Martin of ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' rated it three stars, writing that "Mouawad deftly juxtaposes cultural aspirations with the brutal realities of a continuing and forgotten war with a humour that is both poignant and cynical," while David Laplante of ''

'' was more critical, writing that "while Laplante deftly conveys the shellshocked frustration of a man jolted out of his comfort zone, director Mouawad’s theatrical approach makes the mannered drama seem increasingly artificial." Marc-André Lussier of '' La Presse'' criticized the film for casting predominantly white québécois actors as Lebanese characters, and wrote that Mouawad had not been entirely successful in transposing the story from a theatrical to a cinematic presentation.Marc-André Lussier, "Littoral: une transposition plutôt décevante". '' La Presse'', September 14, 2004.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0374828 2004 films 2004 drama films Canadian drama films French drama films Quebec films French-language Canadian films 2000s Canadian films 2000s French films Films set in Lebanon Films shot in Albania Films based on Canadian plays