Hot Docs

Everybody’s welcome at the Resto Pop, a restaurant run by a group of “misfits, outcasts, losers and punks” that caters to single moms, hungry kids, the poor and unemployed in Montreal’s East End. The film plunges us into the dynamic social and political world of the restaurant as the staff prepares and serves food that would otherwise be thrown out because of minor imperfections. Structured around autobiographical songs written and performed by the staff, Au Chic Resto Pop mutates the participatory documentary form into an innovative “docu-musical”. People come not only for the healthy $1 meals, but to celebrate birthdays, hold graduation ceremonies for elementary school students, or just hang out and socialize over a good dinner. The film shines with the music, hopes, and dreams of marginalized people struggling to take control of their diets, their jobs, and their lives. - Lynne Fernie

Media Coverage

Globe and Mail (Capsule Review), NOW Magazine (Feature / 4-Star Review)