Il faut qu’il règne (2023) - Etienne Morneau
65 min – Original French with English subtitles
It Must Reign traces the transformation of housing along Montreal’s Lachine Canal—from the first riverbank subdivisions of the mid-19th century to today’s wave of post-industrial condo development.
Rather than relying on archival footage, the film follows two fictional characters—a photographer and a professor—on a walk beside the canal. Their off-camera conversation moves through key moments in the site’s history, weaving personal reflection with social critique.
From the city’s founding, Montreal served as a break-bulk hub for St. Lawrence navigation. Before the Lachine Rapids could be bypassed, goods had to be unloaded here to continue west. The construction of the canal not only eased transport but helped spark the Industrial Revolution, profoundly shaping the neighbourhoods along its banks.
After more than a century of intense activity, industry along the canal waned, and surrounding districts fell into decline. Over the past two decades, areas like Griffintown have been rapidly redeveloped, with soaring rents and property values. What forces drove this transformation?
Blending economics, history, and philosophy, the two wanderers examine how modernity interacts with space and speed. Their close reading of the urban landscape exposes class dynamics and the moral order embedded in the city’s layout. It Must Reign ultimately speaks to the “right to the city”: the right to occupy, to photograph, to question a place’s past and future—and to claim it as one’s own.
Credits
Writer & Director: Étienne Morneau
Producers: Étienne Morneau, Anthony Martino Maurice
Narration: Ève Landry
Cinematography: Étienne Boilard
Color: Sylvain Cossette
Music: Corinne René, Olivier Maranda
Sound Design: Bruno Pucella
Mix: Bruno Bélanger
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