Nestor et les Oubliés (Nestor and the Forgotten)
Seville
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The movie depicts the portrait of Louis-Joseph Hébert, alias Nestor, an orphan of the Duplessis era. With his undeniable charisma and his words full of imagery, Nestor fascinates with his allure of an old eccentric biker. But above all, the love of life and people and his instinct of survival complete his portrait.

Louis-Joseph Hébert, aka Nestor, is one of Montreal’s good guys. He fights for the rights of a group of now seniors who were abused and neglected as child orphans. Nestor simply wants the Catholic Church to acknowledge its past misdeeds publicly so that those that were affected can move on with their lives. It’s a simple request really, but an admission of guilt the church isn’t willing to make in the course of the documentary.

Nestor et les Oubliés is a well intentioned film but one that doesn’t have a sharp enough focus or adequate background for those like myself unfamiliar with the story’s historical context. For example, although it’s mentioned several times in the course of the documentary, there is no explanation of what the Duplessis era is. I didn’t grow up in Quebec so the era is foreign to me. It wouldn’t have taken much to add a sentence or three of explanation to provide some context. This would also separate what these men went through from other accusations of church abuses.

Nestor is a likeable enough person with enough colour to make the film interesting, but I really wonder if there’s enough here to make such a specific film. Perhaps if the focus was opened up more to the abuses and focused on Nestor as part of the story it might have felt that there was more to carry the film. As it stands, Nestor et les Oubliés is a little too scattered for its own good and the level of potential impact is limited.

Video: How's it look?
The film looks good considering it’s shot digitally. It’s shown in widescreen with a 1:78:1 aspect ratio.

Audio: How's it sound?
The only option for audio is in French 2.0 stereo with English subtitles. It sounds okay and because it’s largely just dialogue 5.1 Surround isn’t really all that imperative.

Extras: What additional goodies are included?

• There’s a couple of interview pieces included on the DVD but I don’t know how they are. The first catches up with Nestor and Martin L’Écuyer after the film ends. The second is with filmmaker Benoit Pilon. They’re both in French but there are no subtitles.
• Photo gallery.
• Trailer (also in French only).

Closing Thoughts
Nestor et les Oubliés tells a noble story but for those not knowing much about the historical background, it doesn’t have the impact it might on those in the know. Also, the DVD is okay for those who speak French, but the lack of English subtitles makes it a little tough for me to give a definitive opinion.


Review brought to you by our friend Ryan @ Movie-Views.com