A wartime thriller, which was released in 2010, is available to watch on Prime Video, and it has a whopping score of 91 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes. Denis Villeneuve’s mysterious wartime drama, titled Incendies, is a two-hour thriller that confronts the uncomfortable reality of a country torn apart by a bloody and violent civil war. The title roughly translates as “scorched” and is based on a play by Lebanese-Canadian playwright Wajdi Mouawad.
The film follows a pair of Canadian twins, Jeanne and Simon (Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin and Maxim Gaudette), as they navigate their lives following the death of their mother. Through a series of flashbacks, they attempt to track down their brother as well as their father, whom they believed was dead. Set across contrasting landscapes of Canada and the Middle East, Villenueve described his film as a “total fiction” with no historical grounding. However, the war flick closely resembles the Lebanese conflict from 1975 to 1990.
One critic from Red Eye wrote, “Absolutely shattering. Nawal forces information on her children because while there may be devastation in knowledge, there is no peace of mind in uncertainty.”
Another from Boston Globe also praised the film, saying, “A mystery, a melodrama, a prison film, and a love story, “Incendies” is foremost a scream of rage at a society destroyed by religion and by men.”
A review from Dallas Morning News also stated, “Rage has no expiration date in Incendies, director Denis Villeneuve’s gripping, era-jumping drama about a family melded to its war-torn past.”
The film also boasts a 92 percent score from audience viewers. Villeneuve’s mainstream success later came when he directed the sequel Blade Runner 2049 before directing Dune (2021) and Dune: Part Two (2024).
The director has now been nominated for four Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards, and his filmography has garnered more than $1.8 billion worldwide. He is now preparing to direct the next Dune installment, which is due to be released next year.
Incendies is now available on Prime Video.
