22nd Calgary Underground Film Festival

April 17-27, 2025

12th CUFF.Docs Documentary Film Festival

November 20-24, 2024

Laughter

Canada, 2020: 124 minutes: Alberta Premiere
Archives 2021
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description

As a civil war shakes the province of Quebec, Valérie is the sole survivor of a mass execution in which her boyfriend is killed. Years later, she’s in a close relationship with her new partner, Gabriel. At the Long Term Care Center where she works as a caregiver, she befriends Jeanne, a well-read and funny woman, who is dealing with severe physical disability. On the edge of science-fiction and realism, LAUGHTER explores the survivor guilt phenomenon, both for the victims and persecutors, throughout love, laugh and time.

OFFICIAL SELECTION
Fantastic Fest 2020
Cinefest Sudbury 2020
Victoria Film Festival 2021

DIRECTOR'S BIO
Martin Laroche is a Canadian film director and screenwriter from Victoriaville, Quebec. He is a graduate of the film studies program at the Université du Québec à Montréal and is most noted for his 2012 film FAIR SEX (LES MANÈGES HUMAINS). His other credits include his debut feature film, LA LOGIQUE DU REMORDS (2007), MODERNAIRE (2009), TADOUSSAC (2017) and LAUGHTER (2020).

Closed captioning is available for this film. Find Out More >

press for Laughter

"A blend of grounded realism and David Lynch strangeness."
- Nerdist
"LAUGHTER (LE RIRE) explores the dichotomous layers of war, death, and dark comedy in a psychological thriller that will truly make viewers question at times whether they should laugh or cry."
- The Austin Chronicle

details

Dark Comedy / Drama / Fantasy / Narrative

French | English Subtitles
124 minutes

credits

Director
Martin Laroche

Producer
Fanny-Laure Malo (La Boîte À Fanny)

Screenwriter
Martin Laroche

Cinematographer
Mathieu Laverdière

Cast
Léane Labrèche-Dor
Micheline Lanctôt
Alexandre Landry
Sylvie Drapeau
Jean-Sébastien Courchesne
Normand Daoust
Catherine Proulx-Lemay
Christine Beaulieu
Évelyne De La Chenelière
Évelyne Rompré

Music
Robert Marcel Lepage

community

Presenting Partners

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Community Partners

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