René Lévesque

René Lévesque

Born: August 24, 1922
Died: November 1, 1987
in Campbellton, New Brunswick, Canada
René Lévesque (1922–1987) was a Québécois politician and journalist who served as the 23rd Premier of Quebec from 1976 to 1985. Starting his career as a reporter, and radio and television host, he later became known for his eminent role in Quebec's nationalization of its electric power industry, and as an ardent defender of Quebec sovereignty. He was the founder of the Parti Québécois political party—and before that, a liberal minister of the government of Quebec from 1960 to 1966 and the first Québécois political leader since Confederation to attempt, through a referendum, to negotiate the political independence of Quebec.

Movies for René Lévesque...

The Rose Family
Title: The Rose Family
Character: Self (archival footage)
Released: August 14, 2020
Type: Movie
In October 1970, members of the Front de Libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped Minister Pierre Laporte, triggering an unprecedented crisis in Quebec. Fifty years later, Félix Rose tries to understand what could have led his father and uncle to commit such acts. Thanks to the confidences of his uncle Jacques, who agrees for the first time to speak on the subject, and to the precious traces left by his father Paul, he revives the rich heritage of a Quebec working family and gives back to the October crisis its social dimension. The fruit of ten years of research, Les Rose allows us to revive moments and characters that we only knew through a few clichés, and gives a glimpse of the social blockage experienced by a rebellious youth and the upheavals that followed.
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The Devil's Share
Title: The Devil's Share
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: February 16, 2018
Type: Movie
Quebec, on the cusp of the 1960s. The province is on the brink of momentous change. Deftly selecting clips from nearly 200 films from the National Film Board of Canada archives, director Luc Bourdon reinterprets the historical record, offering us a new and distinctive perspective on the Quiet Revolution.
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Nation - un huis clos avec Lucien Bouchard
Title: Nation - un huis clos avec Lucien Bouchard
Character: René Lévesque
Released: August 1, 2014
Type: Movie
A man bears witness to history. A musical soundtrack guides us back in time. A time when nationalist fervour in Quebec was a rallying point for a substantial cross-section of its population. We are ushered into the inauguration of the Quebec nationalist journey that will become the crux of Lucien Bouchard's political life. Nation delves into critical turning points in former Quebec premier Lucien Bouchard's life, to explain the why behind subsequent historical events, including broken loyalties, how certain obvious dangers could have been avoided, finding joy in seemingly despondent times, and most importantly, how one man embodied, in such a multifaceted way, the one thing that tormented a nation throughout so many years : the perpetuation of its own identity.
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Thieves of Innocence
Title: Thieves of Innocence
Character: Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: October 7, 2005
Type: Movie
Every year in Quebec, 25,000 reports of children being beaten, sexually abused or abandoned are retained by the Directorate of Youth Protection. And nearly 40% of babies who die in the province to die because of the violence of their parents. This explains the fact that nearly 30,000 children are supported by the DPJ until the age of 18. But this government agency is in a position to meet the needs of young people? Journalist and documentary filmmaker Paul Arcand presents the testimonies of children and adult victims of abuse of all kinds, and interviews politicians, social workers and members of the judiciary on their perception of the problem. In addition, Arcand denounces the carelessness of a bureaucratic system that does not always seem to be concerned about the well-being of those for whom they are responsible.
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The Champions, Part 3: The Final Battle
Title: The Champions, Part 3: The Final Battle
Released: January 1, 1986
Type: Movie
The final instalment of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque spans the decade between 1976 and 1986. The film reveals the turbulent, behind-the-scenes drama during the Quebec referendum and the repatriation of the Canadian Constitution. In doing so, it also traces both Trudeau's and Lévesque's fall from power.
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Comfort and Indifference
Title: Comfort and Indifference
Character: Self
Released: February 7, 1982
Type: Movie
Made shortly after the referendum on Quebec's independence was held, this documentary illustrates what the politicians' promises were and how the population did not really care nor truly understand what was really at stake, even though just about everyone had an opinion on the subject.
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Harmonium in California
Title: Harmonium in California
Character: Self
Released: January 1, 1980
Type: Movie
Through concerts and interviews, folk-progressive group Harmonium takes Quebec culture to California. This documentary full of colour and sound, filmed in California in 1978, recounts the ups and downs of the journey of the Quebec musical group Harmonium, who came to feel the pulse of Americans and see if culture, their culture, can succeed in crossing borders.
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The Champions, Part 2: Trappings of Power
Title: The Champions, Part 2: Trappings of Power
Released: January 1, 1978
Type: Movie
Part 2 of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque covers the years between 1967 and 1977, a colourful decade that saw Trudeau win three federal elections, the 1970 October Crisis and the sweeping rise to power of the Parti Québécois.
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The Champions, Part 1: Unlikely Warriors
Title: The Champions, Part 1: Unlikely Warriors
Released: January 1, 1978
Type: Movie
In Part 1 of this 3-part documentary series, director Donald Brittain chronicles the early years of Pierre Elliott Trudeau and René Lévesque. From their university days in the 1950s to 1967 when Lévesque left the Liberal Party and Trudeau became the federal Minister of Justice, Brittain attempts to get at the heart of what makes these men so fascinating.
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15 Nov
Title: 15 Nov
Released: June 16, 1977
Type: Movie
A look at November 15, 1976, the date the Parti Québécois seized power in the provincial elections, a victory that gave rise to an unprecedented outburst of joy at the Center Paul-Sauvé, a place where PQ sympathizers gathered.
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À la croisée des chemins
Title: À la croisée des chemins
Character: Narrateur
Released: January 1, 1943
Type: Movie
A young man, Jean Liber (Paul Guèvremont), who, at the end of his cours classique, decides to leave his rich, happy family and his finance, Pauline (Denise Pelletier), in order to become a missionary in China. This story of his struggle, 'at the crossroads' between love and God's calling, is clearly a pretext for a film designed to encourage young men to enter missionary work.