One of the unqualified masterpieces of Québec cinema, Entre la mer et l’eau douce plays out against the backdrop of late Sixties Québec, during the province’s tumultuous shift from a rural to an urban society. Claude (Claude Gauthier) is a young man who leaves his small town on the North Shore for the big city – Montréal, a magnet for Québec youth. He meets Geneviève, a young waitress superbly played by a very young Geneviève Bujold, and the two of them fall in love. Claude enters a singing contest that launches his music career; as he becomes more famous, he must work out how Geneviève will fit into his new life. Entre la mer has an effortless, naturalistic feel to it; Brault has always been superb with his actors and has an unerring eye for the moment, and for the city. With charming performances from Gauthier, one of Québec’s major singing stars of the Sixties, and the then up-and-coming Bujold, this landmark film deserves to be seen as one of the finest works ever produced in this country. – Piers Handling

 Rated 14A.