Mon oncle Antoine

Benoît begins his shift at the town general store on December 24, preparing the Christmas display while the townspeople gather and chat. He enjoys the festive mood and flirts playfully with Carmen, the girl who works with his aunt and uncle. The village feels alive despite the cold winter air.

Madame Jos Poulin's eldest son Marcel dies that day, sending shock through the family. She calls the store and asks Antoine to come to take care of the body. Benoît witnesses the gravity of death entering the town.

On the first occasion, Benoît is allowed to accompany Antoine as they prepare to fetch Marcel's body. They set out from the Poulin household to place the body in a coffin and begin the return trip. The moment marks Benoît's first proximity to death and adult responsibilities.

They load the body into a coffin and begin the ride home. The snowy road is quiet, and the weight of what they carry hangs over the sleigh. The journey through the winter night feels heavy with unspoken sorrow.

Benoît urges the horse to run as fast as possible, trying to shorten the journey. In the rush, the coffin tumbles off the sleigh, scattering across the snow.

Antoine tries to lift the coffin but is diminished by drink. He confesses to Benoît that he hates dealing with the dead and feels trapped in a miserable life. He reveals that he once dreamed of owning a hotel in the United States, and that his wife being unable to give him children weighs on him.

Benoît manages to get Antoine back into the sleigh and heads for home. He runs upstairs to fetch his aunt, hoping she can help calm the situation.

Benoît discovers his aunt Cécile in her nightgown embracing Fernand, the household helper. The moment shatters his sense of family safety and shows him a hidden betrayal.

Fernand takes Benoît out in the sleigh to search for the missing coffin. The boy remains traumatized and nearly mute as they ride through the night.

Benoît is so overwhelmed that he cannot remember where the coffin fell off the sleigh. The memory slips away under the weight of his fear and the earlier shock. He clings to whatever fragment of the event he can recall as the night deepens.

They finally return to the Poulin household, where the entire family gathers around the coffin to mourn Marcel's death. The communal grief strengthens bonds as they confront the tragedy together.

Jos, Marcel's father, arrives back at the house and looks at Benoît with a gaze that seems to encapsulate the film's closing. The scene leaves the boy's future unresolved as the family holds vigil.