Polytechnique (2009): To Frame Violence
Written by Iman (Kru’23)
Shootings have always been a sensitive topic in film; we fear how it can inspire wrong messages or accidentally sensationalise the idea. Polytechnique (2009) was inspired by the 1989 Montreal massacre. A man entered a mechanical engineering class with a semi-automatic weapon, then, he separated the men and the women, ordered the men to leave, and opened fire on the nine women in an act of anti-feminism. Afterwards, he roamed the institution, directly targeting women, before commiting suicide by pulling the gun to his own head. A total of 14 women were killed, 10 other women and 4 men were injured.
Many compare the film with Gus Van Sant’s Elephant (2003) for depicting the topic of shootings. Both films exhibit the use of similar technical prowess with its slow tracking shots, gloomy atmosphere, and non-linear storytelling, but what separate both works lie in how they present their respective themes. Inspired by the real life event of Columbine High School massacre, Elephant uses lengthy collages of repeating intertwining lives before the violence was shown in a display to heighten the tension, and to prepare us for the inevitable violence. With how Gus Van Sant depicts the topic, we can’t help but see the people that filled the institution to be a victim long before the violence starts. And so, accompanied with its dubious abstract underlying motivations, a lengthy display of violence, tortured and made repeatedly uncomfortable, we as viewers ponder perhaps the same thing as the film ends, “Why was this made?”
Polytechnique replicates the event through the eyes of two survivors, to highlight the impact that the tragedy made on their lives. The film offers 3 perspectives, of Valerie, Jean, and the killer himself, who was not named throughout the entirety of the film. The film took a different approach from Elephant, with its more direct method on conveying its messages, rather than Elephant’s cold, detached, fill-in-the-blank technique.
We began with a monologue, of the killer’s misogynistic and isolated view of the world. It is emphasised by the film from the get go that this monologue is from someone who was clearly detached from the world, senseless in justifying his world-view. From the beginning, the film uses unapologetic ways to convey the wrongness of the radical views of the killer, giving no room for the audience to sympathise or relate with his manifesto. Through the institution itself we see that women are still underrepresented with such a clear ratio of women to men that roamed the building, including the irony present when the killer asked the classroom to separate into 2 groups.
Polytechnique doesn’t use violence as a climax for the story, rather displaying it in a tactical way, with the camera rarely ever focusing on the killer himself. Much of the lensing is used to see the killer through the perspective of victims, to avoid putting on a pedestal that is the violence on screen. Many of the film’s display of violence is also to contrast the normalities of the campus environment, to see how this act of violence infiltrated ordinary day-to-day lives. The film also often uses an upside down shot, to say in a literal sense how the events have turned their lives upside down. The film’s black and white palette is Villeneuve’s way to minimise the impact of blood on screen, in his words, “to avoid the sensationalism that is present in colour and to have distance.”
There is only one time the film has given the spotlight on the killer’s point of view. Much later in, we are thrown back right before the act of massacre in the classroom, where he elaborates his motivation in front of the women. At this point in the film we have already seen the clear wrongness of his warped view of the world, making his monologue seem to be of no merit. This narration technique succeeds in not giving any shred of praise nor glory to the killer.
The film also uses non-linear storytelling to sandwich the violence with aftermaths of Jean’s life, to further shine light on the impact made after the attack and the psychological toll that he has to bear moving forward. Jean was not the hero of the story, nor does the film have one. He was heroic in his acts, but he was undeniably a victim. With all this in mind, it is clear that Polytechnique is a film that is more interested in showcasing the impacts and consequences of the perpetrators rather than the violence itself.
After help has arrived, Jean asks for forgiveness from Val, and we see her uttering the word “it’s not your fault.” At the time when the tragedy happened, many were condemning the men for abandoning the women in the classroom. An aspect regarding the real life tragedy that was approached in a compassionate way. Val and Jean’s arcs are a powerful showcase on the human determination to endure the toughest of times. Long after the tragedy, we see Val already moving past, wearing the iron ring of engineering, working in aeronautics. As the film wrapped with a more humane, emotional approach to the climax, with Val’s display of forgiveness, and how despite facing fears and challenges on the way, goodness can still prevail from the heart.
Whether Polytechnique is a respectful depiction of the topic is highly subjective and is still up for discussions. Is there such a thing as a respectful depiction of such monstrosity? But Polytechnique showed once more that a display of compassion is the best way to go, for it highlights the humanity within us. With Villeneuve’s refusal to shoot the film on the real life institution despite having the approval needed, him getting the blessings from the family members of the victims before commercially releasing the film, and how he specifically approached the narrative, Polytechnique stood as far as it can from a disrespectful glamorisation of the event.
