And the Birds Rained Down

As acclaimed director Louise Archambault's elegiac and charming And the Birds Rained Down opens, we meet three hermits living in cabins in the Quebec countryside, miles from civilization. Tom (Rémy Girard), Charlie (Gilbert Sicotte), and Ted (Kenneth Welsh) fled society years ago, and have eked out a back-to-the-land existence, selling pot to the closest locals with help from local hotelier Stephen (Éric Robidoux). But their lifestyle is increasingly endangered by nature, infirmity, and age. Ted collapses from a heart attack. Photographer/ researcher Ange-Aimee (Eve Landry) threatens to disrupt their lives when she starts looking for survivors of a catastrophic blaze that happened decades ago, most notably Ted, whose actions during the fire have assumed heroic stature. (Toronto International Film Festival)