Empathy

Suzanne, a former criminologist turned psychiatrist, arrives at the Mont-Royal Psychiatric Institute, where she meets Mortimer, an intriguing intervention officer who becomes her friend, as well as patients who leave no one indifferent.

Our take

Empathie marks the entry of Quebec fiction to International Competition. Florence Longpré (Last Summers of the Raspberries, Can You Hear Me? ) turns her unique and sensitive view on the patients and medical staff in a secure psychiatric institute. A psychological drama which lifts the curtain on mental health, enhanced by the direction of her long-time collaborator Guillaume Lonergan and the tender performance by Thomas Ngijol, in an unusual role.