Guest of Honour

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Jim (David Thewlis) and his daughter Veronica (Laysla De Oliveira), a young high- school music teacher, attempt to unravel their complicated histories and intertwined secrets in GUEST OF HONOUR, the new film from Atom Egoyan (The Sweet Hereafter) which weaves through time exploring perception and penance, memory and forgiveness.

A hoax instigated by an aggressive school bus driver (Rossif Sutherland) goes very wrong. Accused of abusing her position of authority with 17-year-old Clive (Alexandre Bourgeois) and another student, Veronica is imprisoned. Convinced that she deserves to be punished for crimes she committed at an earlier age, Veronica rebuffs her father’s attempts to secure her early release. Confused and frustrated by Veronica’s intransigence, Jim’s anguish begins to impinge on his job. As a food inspector, he wields great power over small, family-owned restaurants. It’s a power he doesn’t hesitate to use.

While preparing Jim’s funeral, Veronica confides the secrets of her past to Father Greg (Luke Wilson) who may hold the final piece of the father-daughter puzzle.

Screening as part of the series Canada Now: Best New Films 2020.

• Country Canada
• Language In English and Armenian with English subtitles.
• Running Time 105 minutes
• Distributor Telefilm
• Director Atom Egoyan
• Writer Atom Egoyan
• Editor Susan Shipton
• Cinematographer Paul Sarossy
• Cast David Thewlis, Rossif Sutherland, Laysla De Oliveira, Luke Wilson, Alexandre Bourgeois, Arsinee Khanjian
• Accessibility Assistive Listening, T-Coil

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.