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Who by Fire

Play trailer 2:23 Poster for Who by Fire 2025 2h 35m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 25 Reviews 99% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
A getaway at a secluded log cabin in the forest becomes the site of escalating, multigenerational tensions and anxieties in this disquieting, impeccably mounted coming-of-age drama from Quebecois filmmaker Philippe Lesage (Genesis, New Directors/New Films). Ostensibly a merry reunion between well-known film director Blake Cadieux (Arieh Worthalter, 2024 César winner for Best Actor for The Goldman Case) and his longtime friend and former collaborator Albert Gary (Paul Ahmarani), the vacation gradually becomes something far more complex and less stable, especially with the combustible admixture of Albert's teen son's best friend, Jeff (Noah Parker), and Albert's self-asserting daughter Aliocha (Aurélia Arandi-Longpré). Long-simmering middle-aged resentments surface, set against the anxieties of the young, all captured sensitively by Lesage, who in recent years has proven unparalleled in evoking the psychological contours of teenagers finding their paths through treacherous emotional landscapes. Featuring thrillingly choreographed dinner sequences of mounting tension, Who by Fire confirms Lesage as a major contemporary filmmaker, with its assured tonal negotiation of the naturalistic and the oneiric, the joyous (especially an epic dance interlude to The B-52s) and the ominous.

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Who by Fire

Who by Fire

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Critics Consensus

A finely orchestrated ensemble drama, Who by Fire's richly drawn character dynamics and slow-burning psychological thrills build toward a hauntingly emotional crescendo.

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Critics Reviews

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Adam Nayman Toronto Star 06/17/2025
3/4
There’s a version of “Who by Fire” that would ask us to empathize with the character’s vulnerability and rage, but Lesage observes him with a clear and skeptical eye. Go to Full Review Justin Chang The New Yorker 03/20/2025
Despite its constricted, isolated setting, the film feels more psychologically expansive than its predecessors. Go to Full Review Bilge Ebiri New York Magazine/Vulture 03/17/2025
All of Who by Fire exists in this in-between space, which is what makes it so thrilling, so unpredictable. We keep waiting for something awful to happen. That something turns out to be life. Go to Full Review Soham Gadre Film Inquiry 04/07/2025
I only wished it did even one thing more adventurous than its countless predecessors. Go to Full Review Michael Nordine Movie Brief 03/20/2025
3/4
There’s nothing we can do to prevent that flame from igniting, try as we might from our side of the screen, and the characters’ ultimate tragedy is that there’s nothing they can do either. Go to Full Review Ria Dhull Spectrum Culture 03/20/2025
Who by Fire excels on all fronts except editing. Director Philippe Lesage’s coming-of-age story is incredibly smart, but feels like a rough cut. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Sulis T @RT24766384 03/26/2025 Film nya bagus banget, sangat menarik See more Ronaldi F @RT31410641 03/19/2025 Seru banget sih filmnya well See more Randi V @RT52633625 03/19/2025 lethargy and not nearly enough palpable dramatic tension See more Read all reviews
Who by Fire

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Cast & Crew

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Philippe Lesage

Director

Noah Parker

Jeff

Arieh Worthalter

Blake

Aurélia Arandi-Longpré

Aliocha

Paul Ahmarani

Albert

Antoine Marchand-Gagnon

Max

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Who by Fire

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Who by Fire

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Movie Info

Synopsis A getaway at a secluded log cabin in the forest becomes the site of escalating, multigenerational tensions and anxieties in this disquieting, impeccably mounted coming-of-age drama from Quebecois filmmaker Philippe Lesage (Genesis, New Directors/New Films). Ostensibly a merry reunion between well-known film director Blake Cadieux (Arieh Worthalter, 2024 César winner for Best Actor for The Goldman Case) and his longtime friend and former collaborator Albert Gary (Paul Ahmarani), the vacation gradually becomes something far more complex and less stable, especially with the combustible admixture of Albert's teen son's best friend, Jeff (Noah Parker), and Albert's self-asserting daughter Aliocha (Aurélia Arandi-Longpré). Long-simmering middle-aged resentments surface, set against the anxieties of the young, all captured sensitively by Lesage, who in recent years has proven unparalleled in evoking the psychological contours of teenagers finding their paths through treacherous emotional landscapes. Featuring thrillingly choreographed dinner sequences of mounting tension, Who by Fire confirms Lesage as a major contemporary filmmaker, with its assured tonal negotiation of the naturalistic and the oneiric, the joyous (especially an epic dance interlude to The B-52s) and the ominous.
Director
Philippe Lesage
Producer
Galilé Marion-Gauvin
Screenwriter
Philippe Lesage, Philippe Lesage
Distributor
KimStim
Production Co
L'Unité Centrale, Shellac Sud
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Canadian French
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 14, 2025, Limited
Runtime
2h 35m
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