A Woman and Her Car

A woman travels from one end of the province of Quebec to the other to deliver an incendiary letter in this first-person documentary. Lucie Tremblay, a mother of two, originally began work on the film. Her son, Loïc Darses, who found the footage 10 years later, completed it. Lucie shot most of the material from within her car beginning in 2003. Artfully integrated audio and visual cutaways feature her in conversation with her sons, Loïc and Yohann. In her voiceover, she reads from a letter she wrote to the man who sexually abused her from the ages of 8 to 12. She doesn't say whether he’s a relative, neighbor, or teacher, nor does she say his name. Lucie explains to the camera that she plans to hand the letter to him personally. If he has passed away, she plans to leave it at his grave. Lucie spends as much as 12 hours a day behind the wheel, but upon arrival at her destination, she discovers that the man has moved. Returning home, she checks in with her sons, and tries again. Once she arrives at the correct destination, she stops the car, breaking down in tears before going to the door to confront the man who stole her childhood (he remembers her, although the video is distorted to obscure the offender's identity). The film concludes with a family trip to a vacation spot that Lucie passed along the way, suggesting that she's in a better place, although Darses doesn't indicate why his mother was unable to complete the film. A powerful personal documentary, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)