The Cat in the Bag

The Cat in the Bag (Le chat dans le sac) is a 1964 drama film by Gilles Groulx, which played a seminal role in the development of Quebec cinema. The film's themes, improvisational style, hand-held camera work and evocative music signalled the emergence of a new generation of Quebec films and filmmakers.

The film mixes Direct Cinema documentary techniques and distancing devices similar to those employed by Jean-Luc Godard to tell the story of a young man's struggles to come to terms with his place in Quebec society and Quebec's place in Canada. The protagonist, a journalist played by Claude Godbout, struggles with the question of whether to change society or accept it the way it is. An American girl, an actress who runs a theater, does not share the troubles and struggles between the two. Claude leaves Montreal for the Quebec countryside to reflect on his life, and with the distance between them, their love fades.

Cast

 * Barbara Ulrich as Barbara
 * Claude Godbout as Claude
 * Manon Blain as Manon J'sais-pas-qui
 * Véronique Vilbert as Véronique
 * Jean-Paul Bernier as Jean-Paul
 * André Leblanc as Toulouse
 * Paul-Marie Lapointe as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages
 * Jean-V. Dufresne as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages (as Jean V. Dufresne)
 * Pierre Maheu as Messieurs – ont joué trois personages

Production
In 1963, Gilles Groulx presented Grant McLean, the director of production at the National Film Board, with a film outline that did not even fill an entire page. The film was shot on a budget of $45,982.

Critical response
Critic Robert Daudelin stated: "At last we were confronted by a film which really belonged to us, one in which we were happy to recognize ourselves and see ourselves close up. [It] was (and remains) the image of our most recent awakenings".

It received the Grand Prix at the 1964 Montreal International Film Festival. Le Chat dans le sac was identified as a "culturally significant film" by the AV Preservation Trust through the 2002 Masterworks programme. It was screened at the 18th Berlin Film Festival in 1968 as part of Young Canadian Film, a lineup of films by emerging Canadian filmmakers.

It was later screened at the 1984 Festival of Festivals as part of Front & Centre, a special retrospective program of artistically and culturally significant films from throughout the history of Canadian cinema.