Léolo

Jean-Claude Lauzon's acclaimed dark comedy takes a look at an off-kilter family through the eyes of the 12-year-old title character. Léolo's home life gives new meaning to the word “dysfunctional” (his grandfather has pedicures performed by half-dressed girls using their teeth—and he's the most sedate member of the clan!). To escape this weird environment, Léolo retreats into elaborate and bizarre fantasy worlds that take him as far away as the depths of the ocean and as near as the sexy neighbor next door. Much of the film will call to mind the patented surrealism one associates with David Lynch's more excessive endeavors, but Lauzon's style boasts an almost belligerent visceral energy that makes the weirdness even more extreme (and, at times, desperate). Still, if Lauzon overplays his hand at times (some of the humor in this controversial film is far more crass than funny), Léolo's soul is inevitably saved by the startling performance of young Maxime Collin as the eponymous hero. As the misfit center of a warped universe, Collin's Léolo maintains his own incorrigible and iconoclastic personality, spicing the comedy with a dramatic and disturbing undercurrent that will linger long after the laughs die down. Presented with a fine widescreen transfer but no DVD extras, this is highly recommended. (P. Hall)