Mario (1984) Plot Summary Explained

Release, runtime and language

1984 · 98 mins · French

Directed by

Jean Beaudin

Starring

Muriel Dutil, Jacques Godin, Claire Pimparé, Francis Reddy, Xavier Norman Petermann, Nathalie Chalifour

Set in a summer on Quebec’s Îles‑de‑la‑Madeleine, ten‑year‑old Mario is a mute autistic boy living in a fishing village with his parents and his 18‑year‑old brother Simon. Mario hides in a surreal world he shares only with Simon and his stuffed coyote, staging Arabian‑style battles. When a tourist, Hélène, captures Simon’s attention, he drifts from Mario, whose growing jealousy sparks a tragic chain of events.