1:54 ***½ (2016, Antoine Olivier Pilon, Sophie Nélisse, Lou-Pascal Tremblay, Robert Naylor) – Classic Movie Review 12,742

The very special 2016 Canadian drama film 1:54 stars Antoine Olivier Pilon as Tim, a shy, talented 16-year old brilliant athlete, who is being bullied at school, along with his gay best friend, classmate Francis (Robert Naylor). 

Writer/ director Yan England’s very special 2016 Canadian drama film 1:54 tackles the thorny theme of bullying in schools and stars Antoine Olivier Pilon as Tim, a shy and talented 16-year old brilliant athlete, who is being bullied at school, along with his gay best friend, classmate Francis (Robert Naylor).

Tim used to be a star runner but stopped a couple of years earlier after his mother’s early death. Tim lives with his father (David Boutin) but cannot confide in him, while, at school, the running team coach Mr Sullivan (Patrice Godin) is pushing Tim hard to return to the track. Tim has one ally in his sympathetic schoolmate Jennifer (Sophie Nélisse).

The intimidation pressure Tim consistently undergoes pushes him to the edge. His main competitor on the track, Jeff (Lou-Pascal Tremblay), continues his harassment and bullying, and resorts to blackmail to destroy Tim’s performance on the track with disastrous results.

This tough movie looks like it’s going to be a heart-warmer and it turns into a soul destroyer. If you keep tormenting someone enough, something terrible is going to happen. It’s that simple.

What seems like a bullying and homophobia at school story turns into a Chariots of Fire-style running competition story, as promised by the title, as the subject of rivalry between athletes come to the fore, but then it poleaxes you by turning back to its first and actual main theme, with a devastating conclusion that knocks you sideways and sends you reeling.

Antoine Olivier Pilon is absolutely tremendous as Tim, Lou-Pascal Tremblay makes an impressively slimy villain, while Robert Naylor, Patrice Godin and Sophie Nélisse give sympathetic support turns. The film is extremely carefully written and made, and the story is heartbreaking, with a couple of unbearable key events in the story, both exceptionally handled.

Wow there’s a lot of important things to think about here as the film tackles an entire universe of subjects like bullying in schools, rivalry between athletes, physical violence, verbal abuse and intimidation in schools, youth sexual orientation, teenage homosexuality, public outing, online shaming, youth suicide, ostracism, blackmail, rejection, humiliation, desperation, vengeance, and handling of grief. It’s a heck of a lot to pack in into 106 minutes, but England does, and does well, and challengingly, in his debut feature film.

The film premiered on August 24, 2016 and launched wider on 13 October 2016.

The title 1:54 is the time Tim has to make running the 800 meter track running event to qualify to the Nationals for the distance, the same event he has deliberately, and dangerously, chosen to be in competition with the champion Jeff (Lou-Pascal Tremblay).

It is in French, with English subtitles.

The cast are Antoine Olivier Pilon as Tim, Sophie Nélisse as Jennifer, Lou-Pascal Tremblay as Jeff, David Boutin as Pierre, Patrice Godin as Mr Sullivan, Robert Naylor as Francis, Anthony Therrien as Patrick, Guillaume Gauthier as David, Irdens Exantus as Fred, Karl-Antoine Suprice as Sydney, Laurie-Jade Rochon as Zoé, Benoit Finley as supervisor, Renée Cossette as headmaster Mathieu, Émile Mailhiot as physical education instructor, Ariane Jeudy as Isabelle, Hudson Leblanc as young Tim, and Louis-Julien Durso as young Jeff.

Antoine Olivier Pilon appeared in the French rock and new wave band Indochine music video for ‘College Boy’ in 2013. The controversial video about school bullying was directed by Xavier Dolan and banned on some stations for viewers below 16. The following year, Pilon was cast in 2014 as the lead in Mommy, also directed by Dolan. The film co-won the Jury Prize at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

© Derek Winnert 2023 – Classic Movie Review 12,742

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