The Death & Life of John F. Donovan

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Xavier Dolan directs. André Turpin behind the camera. Gabriel Yared scores. Xavier Dolan cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Canada, United Kingdom. Dialogue in Czech, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Earned back only 10% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
• 2Released 7 years ago.
• 3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Czech, English.
• 4International production across 2 countries: Canada, United Kingdom.
• 5Directed by Xavier Dolan, shot by André Turpin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 6Original score by Gabriel Yared. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 7Editor Xavier Dolan shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 8Kit Harington and Natalie Portman and Jacob Tremblay carry the top of the cast.
• 9IMDB entry: tt4042818 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 10Classified under 8 themes, including "movie business", "celebrity", "hollywood", "lgbt".

The technical file

Cinematography

André Turpin

Original score

Gabriel Yared

Editing

Xavier Dolan

Production design

Colombe Raby

Costume design

Michele Clapton

Makeup / hair

Julie Brisebois

VFX supervisor

Robert Bock

Sound

Sylvain Brassard

Stunt coordinator

Peter Bucossi

Runtime

123 min · 2h 3m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$35,000,000

Box office

$3,326,364

Return

10% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

R

IMDB

The Death & Life of John F. Donovan (2019) ↗

Also by

Xavier Dolan

• 
  Mommy

  2014 · ★ 8.2
• 
  The Night Logan Woke Up

  2022 · ★ 7.9
• 
  Laurence Anyways

  2012 · ★ 7.6
• 
  I Killed My Mother

  2009 · ★ 7.4
• 
  It's Only the End of the World

  2016 · ★ 7.2
• 
  Heartbeats

  2010 · ★ 7.1

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  Own it now on Digital & DVD

  Teaser · Official
• 

  ▶
  Official Trailer

  Trailer · Official
• 

  ▶
  TIFF 2018 Cast and Crew Q&A

  Featurette

Community reviews

What people are saying

• cityguide2018-09-05

  Perhaps best known as the film that Jessica Chastain’s role was cut from, Xavier Dolan’s upcoming drama is still plenty star-studded, featuring a cast that includes Natalie Portman, Jacob Tremblay, Thandie Newton, Susan Sarandon, and Kit Harington. Though little is truly known about the project — only a single 17-second teaser trailer has been released — it’s described as a reminiscence on the life and death of an American TV star (Kit Harington), as told through his then 11-year-old pen pal (Jacob Tremblay)

  Read full review ↓
• SWITCH.2020-05-13
  ★ 7/10

  You can see Xavier Dolan reaching for something grand with this film, a bigger story than he has ever attempted before and even more romantic questions of identity and self, but while one of the problems of 'The Death and Life of John F. Donovan' is that there are <i>too</i> many questions being asked, it doesn't mean that any of them aren't worth asking. This is still a Xavier Dolan film, and for all the right reasons, even down to his continuing dissection of the complex relationships between mothers and sons, and when he has sure footing, his flashes of spectacle in this film are really wonderful. He also connects so beautifully with his cast, with almost all of them in perfect step with him. This isn't a hidden masterpiece, but it also is nowhere near a disaster. It's an arresting misstep from a deeply passionate filmmaker who cares about every frame, who is trying for something genuine and honest, and yes, he chooses the framework of the privileged and the white, but these are (for all their problems) our modern mythical figures. To Rupert, John is a god, a superhero, an ideal to reach for, and the ultimate understanding of the film is that it is far more important to be human than iconic. In many ways, through his journey to discover that for himself, this is the gift that John gives Rupert in his letters. 'The Death and Life of John F. Donovan' will be a curiosity in the (hopefully long) career of this gifted filmmaker, and to be honest, a failed curiosity from Xavier Dolan is still a film worth every second. - Daniel Lammin Read Daniel's full article... https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-the-death-and-life-of-john-f-donovan-xavier-dolans-flawed-but-fascinating-english-language-debut

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• SO

  Sons of Manual

  CA

• LY

  Lyla Films

  CA

• 

  Warp Films

  GB

Key crew

• Art DirectionJames Price
• Makeup ArtistJulie Brisebois
• Makeup ArtistLinda Dowds
• Makeup SupervisorSjaan Gillings
• Makeup ArtistSiân Grigg
• Makeup ArtistScott Hersh
• Makeup Department HeadKathy Kelso
• Makeup ArtistCamiel McLean
• Makeup ArtistMaïna Militza
• Sound Re-Recording MixerSylvain Brassard
• ADR EditorSylvain Brassard
• Supervising Sound EditorSylvain Brassard
• Sound Effects EditorSylvain Brassard
• Sound DesignerSylvain Brassard
• Sound Re-Recording MixerJean-Charles Liozu
• Sound Effects EditorJean-Philippe Savard
• Set DecorationFrédérique Bolté
• Set DecorationPascale Deschênes
• Set DecorationSusan Raney
• Set DecorationSébastien Thivierge
• Set DresserPatrick Binette
• Set DresserLouis Cyr
• Set DesignerRaymond Larose
• Set DesignerAnna Mayerová

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• movie business
• celebrity
• hollywood
• lgbt
• actor
• gay theme
• non linear
• idol

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical (limited)2019-12-13R
• Digital2019-12-13R

Also known as

International titles

• The Death and Life of John F. DonovanCA
• Džona F. Donovana dzīve un nāveLV