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RUNTIME
Did you know
Tight 77-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
MoodPlayr · trivia#01
Polytechnique
2009 1h 17m FR
👍
7.1
SOLID
🍅
88%
FRESH
👌
63
METACRITIC
⭐
7.2
IMDB
★7.1TMDB · 720🍅88%Rotten Tomatoes●63Metacritic★7.2IMDB · 20,632
CrimeDramaThriller
Synopsis
Spoiler shield
A dramatization of the École Polytechnique massacre in Montreal, on December 9, 1989, where 14 female engineering students were murdered (and 13 were wounded) by a 25 year old psychotic misogynist armed with a semi-automatic weapon.
“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”
Cast
Maxim Gaudette
The Assassin
Sébastien Huberdeau
Jean-François
Karine Vanasse
Valérie
Evelyne Brochu
Stéphanie
Martin Watier
Jean-François (voice)
Johanne-Marie Tremblay
Jean-François' Mother
Natalie Hamel-Roy
Jean-François' Mother (voice)
Pierre-Yves Cardinal
Éric
Credits
Behind the camera
- Director
- Denis Villeneuve
- Writers
- Jacques Davidts, Eric Leca, Denis Villeneuve
- Languages
- French
- Countries
- Canada
Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.
Did you know?
Fun facts 🍿
2 / 7
ERA
Did you know
Released 17 years ago.
MoodPlayr · trivia#02
3 / 7
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Directed by Denis Villeneuve, shot by Pierre Gill. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
MoodPlayr · trivia#03
4 / 7
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Original score by Benoît Charest. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
MoodPlayr · trivia#04
5 / 7
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Editor Richard Comeau shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
MoodPlayr · trivia#05
6 / 7
CAST
Did you know
Maxim Gaudette and Sébastien Huberdeau and Karine Vanasse carry the top of the cast.
MoodPlayr · trivia#06
7 / 7
WILD
Did you know
IMDB entry: tt1194238 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
MoodPlayr · trivia#07
Cinephile deep dive
The take
Denis Villeneuve directs. Pierre Gill behind the camera. Benoît Charest scores. Richard Comeau cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Canada. Dialogue in French.
Trivia
Things worth knowing
- 1Tight 77-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
- 2Released 17 years ago.
- 3Directed by Denis Villeneuve, shot by Pierre Gill. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
- 4Original score by Benoît Charest. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
- 5Editor Richard Comeau shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
- 6Maxim Gaudette and Sébastien Huberdeau and Karine Vanasse carry the top of the cast.
- 7IMDB entry: tt1194238 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
- 8Classified under 14 themes, including "canada", "hostage", "interview", "montreal, canada".
The technical file
- Cinematography
- Pierre Gill
- Original score
- Benoît Charest
- Editing
- Richard Comeau
- Production design
- Roger Martin
- Makeup / hair
- Martin Rivest
- Sound
- Stéphane Bergeron
- Runtime
- 77 min · 1h 17m
- Aspect ratio (typical)
- 1.37:1 (Academy)
- Status
- Released
- Original language
- FR
- Certification (US)
- NR
- Rotten Tomatoes
- 88% 🍅 Fresh
- Metacritic
- 63/100
- IMDB rating
- 7.2/10 · 20,632 votes
- MPAA
- Not Rated
Awards
17 wins & 10 nominations total
- Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television Award for Best Motion Picture
Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.
Also by
Denis Villeneuve
Stills · wallpapers
Selected frames
Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.
Trailers & featurettes
Watch the pieces
Production companies
Who made it
Don Carmody Productions
CA
- RE
Remstar Productions
US
Key crew
- Sound RecordistPierre Blain
- ProducerKarine Vanasse
- ProducerAndré Rouleau
- ProducerMaxime Rémillard
- ProducerDon Carmody
- Sound Re-Recording MixerStéphane Bergeron
- Executive ProducerJulien Remillard
- Supervising Sound EditorClaude Beaugrand
- Sound Effects EditorChristian Rivest
- Set DecorationElisabeth Williams
- Production DesignRoger Martin
- Art DirectionMartin Tessier
- EditorRichard Comeau
- Dialogue EditorCarole Gagnon
- ADR RecordistBenoît Leduc
- ADR RecordistJo Caron
- Foley RecordistJo Caron
- Key Hair StylistMartin Rivest
Themes & keywords
What it's about, really
- canada
- hostage
- interview
- montreal, canada
- murder
- school
- university
- massacre
- gunman
- misogynist
- school shooting
- 1980s
- reflective
- horrified
Release history · US
When it landed
- Premiere2010-02-05· Santa Barbara International Film Festival
- Theatrical2009-02-06NR
- Digital2018-01-15
Also known as
International titles
- PolytehneioGR
- PolitechnikaPL
- PolytechniqueCA
