The Last of the Black Robes
Commentary The best historical film set in Canada—about the only good movie about our history ever made—is called “Black Robe” (1991). Based on the Brian Moore novel and filmed in the Saguenay–Lac St-Jean region of Quebec, it tells of a fictional Jesuit priest, Fr. Paul Laforgue, arriving in New France in 1634 and paddling upriver […]
The 1991 film “Black Robe,” based on a Brian Moore novel and set in Quebec’s Saguenay–Lac St-Jean region, is highlighted as a rare good historical film about Canada. It depicts a fictional Jesuit priest’s journey in New France in 1634, encountering the historical events of the Haudenosaunee-Iroquois genocide of the Huron-Wendat. Despite the mission’s human failure, the Catholic martyrs are recognized as founders of the Canadian church.
- “Black Robe” (1991) is considered the best historical film set in Canada.
- The film is based on a novel by Brian Moore and filmed in Quebec.
- It follows a fictional Jesuit priest, Fr. Paul Laforgue, arriving in New France in 1634.
- The story touches upon the historical genocide of the Huron-Wendat by the Haudenosaunee-Iroquois.
- The mission faced catastrophic failure in human terms, but the martyrs are revered.
- An Australian director, Bruce Beresford, made the film.
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