Mystic River
“I watch you closely, the landscape traversing you,” says a disembodied voice in Félix Dufour-Laperrière’s Archipelago. “I can see a river, its islands, but nothing of you. Tu n’existes pas.”
The man repeats the latter phrase to a female counterpart. The animated woman considers his words, raises her hand, and traces her lifelines against the coastline of Saint Lawrence River, which appears in verité-style documentary footage. She shuts her eyes and counters, “Not true. If I don’t seem to be much, I exist in the details. Not knowing me, you underestimate me.”
The images yield to a black canvas as Norman McLaren-ish animated sounds and dynamic text illuminate the frame. “We’ll speak of what can be. Let’s go!” The woman and the lively traverses episodic movements—islands that shape a larger picture—as the two characters debate the landscape and its lore to understand their place in the world. By exploring the vast terrain and mythology of Quebec, delivers a forceful assertion of existence.
