Poor Man's Pudding

Poor Man's Pudding (French: Pudding chômeur) is a Canadian satirical comedy film, released in 1996.^[1] It was the final theatrical film directed by Gilles Carle.^[1]

Poor Man's Pudding
Film poster
Pudding chômeur
Directed by	Gilles Carle
Written by	Gilles Carle
Produced by	Claude Gagnon Yuri Yoshimura-Gagnon
Starring	Chloé Sainte-Marie Louis-Philippe Davignon-Daigneault François Léveillé
Cinematography	Pierre Letarte
Edited by	Aube Foglia
Music by	Jean Delorme
Distributed by	Aska Films
Release date	1996 (1996)
Running time	96 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	French

Plot

The film stars Chloé Sainte-Marie as Yo-Yo and Louis-Philippe Davignon-Daigneault as Alphonse, a New Age cult priestess in Montreal and her faith healer nephew.^[2] Events are set in motion when Alphonse's father Aristide (François Léveillé) threatens to commit suicide by jumping off the Jacques Cartier Bridge, leading to an ad hoc neighbourhood referendum on whether or not he should jump.^[2]

Production

The film is in part a satire of the political and social rhetoric, on both sides of the issue, in the 1995 Quebec referendum on independence from Canada;^[3] Carle was inspired by, and singled out for special opprobrium in his film, the notion offered by some of his sovereignist friends that Quebec independence would in and of itself solve the social problems of poverty, unemployment and homelessness.^[3]

Awards

The film garnered two Genie Award nominations at the 17th Genie Awards in 1996, in the categories of Best Screenplay (Carle) and Best Costume Design (Denis Sperdouklis).^[4]