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Exotica (film)
Encyclopedia
Exotica is a 1994 Canadian film set primarily in and around the Exotica strip club
in Toronto, Canada
. It was written
and directed
by Atom Egoyan
. Music used includes "Montagues and Capulets".
Exotica presents a disparate group of characters whose lives are interconnected through the Exotica nightclub. Christina (Mia Kirshner
) is an exotic dancer
at Exotica, owned by Zoe (Arsinée Khanjian
). Eric (Elias Koteas
) is the club's DJ and Christina's former boyfriend, and is involved in a complex relationship with Zoe. Francis (Bruce Greenwood
) is a customer who comes in nightly and always has Christina--dressed in a schoolgirl uniform--give him a private dance (to Leonard Cohen
's "Everybody Knows"), which seems to inspire Eric's jealousy.
Francis hires a teenaged girl (Sarah Polley) to babysit each night while he attends the nightclub. But Francis has no child and the girl waits in an empty house each night until her employer returns.
In his professional life, Francis is a tax auditor for Revenue Canada, and Thomas (Don McKellar
) is a latent-gay
pet store owner whose books of account
Francis is auditing pursuant to a suspicion of Thomas running an illegal import business with revenues of $200,000 per year.
Francis is eventually banned from the club when Eric manipulates him into touching Christina during one of her dances (which is against the rules of the club). Around the same time, Francis discovers illegal activities in Thomas' financial records, and forces Thomas to get involved in his conflict with Eric--and we eventually learn that Francis's obsession with Christina has much more complex roots than it first appears. The film's final scene, set many years before the others, shows that the death of Francis' daughter and the discovery of her body is central to the lives of the main characters.
Strip club
A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....
in Toronto, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It was written
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Atom Egoyan
Atom Egoyan
Atom Egoyan, OC is a critically acclaimed Armenian-Canadian stage director and film director. Egoyan made his career breakthrough with Exotica...
. Music used includes "Montagues and Capulets".
Synopsis
- Note: The story of Exotica is not told in chronological order and important information is often revealed only late in the film. The following synopsis does not reflect the viewer's actual experience of the events as they unfold.
Exotica presents a disparate group of characters whose lives are interconnected through the Exotica nightclub. Christina (Mia Kirshner
Mia Kirshner
Mia Kirshner is a Canadian actress and social activist who works in movies and television series. She is best known for her portrayal of Jenny Schecter on The L Word and for her role in the 2006 crime film The Black Dahlia as Elizabeth Short.- Early life :Kirshner was born in Toronto, Ontario,...
) is an exotic dancer
Exotic dancer
The terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context. In the erotic sense, "exotic dance" is a often used to refer to practitioners of striptease...
at Exotica, owned by Zoe (Arsinée Khanjian
Arsinée Khanjian
Arsinée Khanjian is an Armenian-Canadian actress and producer. In addition to her independent work and stage roles, she is regularly cast by her husband, Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan, in his films...
). Eric (Elias Koteas
Elias Koteas
Elias Koteas is a Canadian actor of film and television, best known for his roles in The Prophecy, Fallen and the live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films.-Early life:...
) is the club's DJ and Christina's former boyfriend, and is involved in a complex relationship with Zoe. Francis (Bruce Greenwood
Bruce Greenwood
Bruce Greenwood is a Canadian actor and musician. He is generally known for his roles as U.S. presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets and for his role as Captain Christopher Pike in the 2009 Star Trek film...
) is a customer who comes in nightly and always has Christina--dressed in a schoolgirl uniform--give him a private dance (to Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
's "Everybody Knows"), which seems to inspire Eric's jealousy.
Francis hires a teenaged girl (Sarah Polley) to babysit each night while he attends the nightclub. But Francis has no child and the girl waits in an empty house each night until her employer returns.
In his professional life, Francis is a tax auditor for Revenue Canada, and Thomas (Don McKellar
Don McKellar
-Personal life:McKellar was born in Toronto, Ontario to a lawyer father and teacher mother. He attended Glenview Senior Public School, Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute and later studied English at the University of Toronto's Victoria College...
) is a latent-gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
pet store owner whose books of account
Double-entry bookkeeping system
A double-entry bookkeeping system is a set of rules for recording financial information in a financial accounting system in which every transaction or event changes at least two different nominal ledger accounts....
Francis is auditing pursuant to a suspicion of Thomas running an illegal import business with revenues of $200,000 per year.
Francis is eventually banned from the club when Eric manipulates him into touching Christina during one of her dances (which is against the rules of the club). Around the same time, Francis discovers illegal activities in Thomas' financial records, and forces Thomas to get involved in his conflict with Eric--and we eventually learn that Francis's obsession with Christina has much more complex roots than it first appears. The film's final scene, set many years before the others, shows that the death of Francis' daughter and the discovery of her body is central to the lives of the main characters.
Cast
- David HemblenDavid HemblenDavid Hemblen is an English-born actor who frequently works in Canadian film, television and theater. He was a mainstay on the television series Earth: Final Conflict, playing Jonathan Doors, and played recurring roles in A Nero Wolfe Mystery and La Femme Nikita . He voiced Magneto on the popular...
- Customs inspector - Mia KirshnerMia KirshnerMia Kirshner is a Canadian actress and social activist who works in movies and television series. She is best known for her portrayal of Jenny Schecter on The L Word and for her role in the 2006 crime film The Black Dahlia as Elizabeth Short.- Early life :Kirshner was born in Toronto, Ontario,...
- Christina - Calvin Green - Customs officer
- Elias KoteasElias KoteasElias Koteas is a Canadian actor of film and television, best known for his roles in The Prophecy, Fallen and the live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films.-Early life:...
- Eric - Bruce GreenwoodBruce GreenwoodBruce Greenwood is a Canadian actor and musician. He is generally known for his roles as U.S. presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets and for his role as Captain Christopher Pike in the 2009 Star Trek film...
- Francis Brown - Peter Krantz - Man in taxi
- Don McKellarDon McKellar-Personal life:McKellar was born in Toronto, Ontario to a lawyer father and teacher mother. He attended Glenview Senior Public School, Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute and later studied English at the University of Toronto's Victoria College...
- Thomas Pinto - Arsinée KhanjianArsinée KhanjianArsinée Khanjian is an Armenian-Canadian actress and producer. In addition to her independent work and stage roles, she is regularly cast by her husband, Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan, in his films...
- Zoe - Sarah PolleySarah PolleySarah Polley is a Canadian actress, singer, film director, and screenwriter. Polley first attained notice in her role as Sara Stanley in the Canadian television series, Road to Avonlea...
- Tracey Brown - Victor GarberVictor GarberVictor Joseph Garber is a Canadian film, stage and television actor and singer. Garber is known for playing Jesus in Godspell, Jack Bristow in the television series Alias, Max in Lend Me a Tenor, and Thomas Andrews in James Cameron's Titanic.-Early life:Born in London, Ontario, Canada, Garber is...
- Harold Brown - Damon D'Oliveira - Man at opera
- Jack BlumJack BlumJack Blum is a Canadian writer, producer, director, story editor, actor, educator and communications consultant based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. With his longtime partner Sharon Corder, he has written and produced more than fifty hours of television drama for both Canadian and American broadcasters...
- Scalper - Billy MerastyBilly MerastyBilly Merasty is a Canadian actor and writer of Cree descent. He moved to Toronto at the age of 17, and launched his acting career after attending a theatre school program for aboriginal youth....
- Man at opera - Ken McDougall - Doorman
Awards
- At the 1994 Cannes Film Festival1994 Cannes Film FestivalThe 1994 Cannes Film Festival started on 12 May and ran until 23 May. The Palme d'Or went to the American film Pulp Fiction directed by Quentin Tarantino.-Official Selection:*Clint Eastwood *Catherine Deneuve...
, Exotica was nominated for the Palme d'orPalme d'OrThe Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
, and won the FIPRESCIFIPRESCIThe International Federation of Film Critics is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world for "the promotion and development of film culture and for the safeguarding of professional interests." It was founded in June 1930 in...
Prize. - Don McKellarDon McKellar-Personal life:McKellar was born in Toronto, Ontario to a lawyer father and teacher mother. He attended Glenview Senior Public School, Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute and later studied English at the University of Toronto's Victoria College...
was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 1996 Chlotrudis AwardsChlotrudis Awards 1996The 2nd Annual Chlotrudis Awards were presented in 1996 by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film.-Best Movie:Dead Man Walking* Amateur* Babe* Jeffrey* The Secret of Roan Inish* Sense and Sensibility-Best Actress:...
for independent film. - Exotica won Best Foreign Film from the French Syndicate of Cinema CriticsFrench Syndicate of Cinema CriticsThe French Syndicate of Cinema Critics has awarded 4 prizes - the Prix Méliès annually since 1946 to the best French film of the year. The Prix Léon Moussinac, awarded to the Best Foreign Film category was added in 1967...
in 1995. - At the 1994 Genie AwardGenie AwardGenie Awards are given out to recognize the best of Canadian cinema by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. From 1949-1979, the awards were named the Canadian Film Awards...
s for Canadian cinema, Exotica won Best Motion Picture, as well as awards for the best screenplay, direction, music, costume design, cinematography and production design. Don McKellar won the award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. - Exotica was named Best Canadian Feature Film at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. - To judge from his own account, Egoyan was quite amused by an unlikely award that this film won: the Adult Video News award for Best Alternative Adult Film of 1996.
External links
- Film critic Roger EbertRoger EbertRoger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
's "Great Movies" essay about Exotica