''The Deserter'' ( ) is a 2008

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

feature film directed by

Simon Lavoie Simon Lavoie (born May 15, 1979) is a Canadians, Canadian film director and screenwriter from Quebec.Émile Proulx-Cloutier Émile Proulx-Cloutier (born 1983) is a Canadians, Canadian actor and musician. He is most noted for his performance in the film ''We Are the Others (film), We Are the Others (Nous sommes les autres)'', for which he received a Canadian Screen Awar ...

, Raymond Cloutier, Danielle Proulx,

Viviane Audet Viviane Audet (born November 10, 1981) is a Canadian actress, singer and pianist from Quebec. She is most noted as a frequent collaborator with her husband Robin-Joël Cool, both in the band Mentana and on film and television scores. She release ...

Benoît Gouin Benoît Gouin (born January 27, 1961) is a Canadian actor from Pointe-du-Lac, Quebec.Natalie Slight"Benoît Gouin: l’amitié, au coeur de son métier" ''7 Jours'', September 9, 2019. He is most noted as a two-time Jutra Award nominee for Best ...

and Gilles Renaud. It tells the story of Georges Guénette, a deserter from the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, who was shot and killed by members of the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

Background

Georges Guénette was a deserter from the

and, like many French Canadians during World War II, an opponent of the war and conscription. In May 1944, a few months after Guénette deserted from the army, four

(RCMP) officers found Guenette in his father's farmhouse, in St-Lambert-de-Lévis (near

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

). He jumped out of a window and ran across the fields. Guénette fell, wounded "by a ricocheting bullet," and died without the last rites of the church. Two RCMP officers were later charged with manslaughter in Guénette's death, and the shooting was an issue in the

1944 Quebec general election The 1944 Quebec general election was held on August 8, 1944 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The , led by former premier Maurice Duplessis, defeated the incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by A ...

References

2008 films Canadian drama films Films about deserters Films directed by Simon Lavoie French-language Canadian films 2000s Canadian films {{2000s-Canada-film-stub