Gina

"Gina" (1975) is an uneven combination of social docudrama about the working classes of Quebec and a rape-and-revenge story. For most of its running time it doesn't seem to be going anywhere, but a slam-bang action (and gore) climax redeems it somewhat. Celine Lomez's beauty and the snowy landscapes are further assets (the single greatest visual of the film may be a large, abandoned ship on a frozen river), but on the whole "Gina" is a film mostly of interest to director Denys Arcand followers: he didn't hit the big time until 11 years later, with "The Decline Of The American Empire". **1/2 out of 4.