Montreal: 15 Fevrier 1839, Pierre Falardeau’s controversial conquest saga, pulled in a highly promising $66,000 on only six Quebec screens, including $6,000 with an English subtitled print, during its Jan. 26-28 opening weekend.

The film, produced by Bernadette Payeur of acpav and distributed by Films Lions Gate, chronicles the final hours leading up to the hanging at the hands of the English of ‘patriote’ rebels Marie-Thomas De Lorimer and Charles Hindelang. The opening weekend per-screen average is a whopping $11,000.

Christian Larouche of Films Lions Gate says the release is being built through word of mouth, followed by a second phase, which added 13 more prints in the greater Montreal region, and finally a full release across the province, slated for Thursday, Feb. 15.

Historical dramas are traditionally a tough sell, and an earlier treatment of the subject from veteran filmmaker Michel Brault flopped in commercial release. The distrib reckons 15 Fevrier should top the $1-million mark at the box office.

Maverick filmmaker Falardeau’s movie credits include the derivative, jailhouse riot Le Party, the cult comedy Elvis Gratton, the flq kidnap drama Octobre, and the hit ($3.7 million in receipts) summer release sequel, Elvis Gratton II: Miracle a Memphis.

Predictably, reviews for 15 Fevrier 1839, even from the more serious critics (Le Devoir, The Gazette) are split right down language lines, with glowing (‘magnificent,’ ‘like a goal scored by Maurice Richard’) five-star commentary from the French press, and a decidedly two-and-a-half-star (‘didactic,’ ‘monotonous’) verdict on the English side. •