The film is based on a well known novel of old that was put in cinema before. This version is litterary in that the language is not of the field and the talking is few but significant. The sets are believable in that the places look real but many details are off and make us see a cinema set and not a travel in the past. For example, the trees are cut by axe but most of the already cut trees are obviously cut with saws. The house looks new all during the film with flat planks too well made. In spite of these flaws, the acting holds the film together and other details compensate. The snow is real and the horse carriage is real and seeing it at work in the snow is a marvel. It is a bittersweet drama of the every day of the life of the time worthy of watching. But life at the time was certainly not that orderly and quiet even in the woods or near the woods.
Review of Maria Chapdelaine
