Sarah Prefers to Run

2013

1h 35m

Drama

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50%

Tomatometer

6 Reviews

50%

Audience Score

50+ Ratings

Sarah (Sophie Desmarais), a gifted runner, moves to Montreal to attend a university with a great athletics program. She marries Antoine to qualify for the best scholarships and finds married life to be very different from what she expected.

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Justin Chang

Variety

Sarah may prefer to run, but she doesn't get anywhere particularly notable in this determinedly flat character study.

Aug 7, 2018

Full Review

Tim Grierson

Paste Magazine

What makes Sarah Prefers to Run so touching is that we're not quite sure what the resolution will be for Sarah. She isn't, either. But she just keeps running.

Rated: 7/10

May 29, 2013

Full Review

Jordan Mintzer

Hollywood Reporter

Although the concept is intriguing on paper, this tragic-comic tale of a track star's arduous sexual awakening feels too thin both narratively and cinematically, struggling with a belabored storyline as it heads towards the final lap.

May 23, 2013

Full Review

Craig Takeuchi

Georgia Straight

Although the charcater study doesn't necessarily break new ground, the film's overall crisp construction and Desmarais' spot-on performance keep things apace.

Aug 7, 2018

Full Review

Michael Sicinski

Cinema Scope

The film, frustratingly and a bit offensively, falls very much in line with the "Asperger's chic" that is plaguing art houses and festivals worldwide.

Nov 22, 2017

Full Review

Shaun Munro

Film School Rejects

A heartfelt, understated and sublimely-acted drama about late-blossoming sexuality.

Rated: B

May 25, 2013

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Audience Member

Chloé Robichaud est une excellente réalisatrice, j'ai adoré la bande-sonore du film, les silences qui en disent plus que les dialogues, les hauts et les bas d'une athlète, ça inspire beaucoup ce film.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Refus des clichés, jeu des acteurs impeccable. La course sert ici de métaphore pour la fuite en avant du personnage principal.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Not at all what I was expecting, but I enjoyed this. Really good performance from Sophie Desmarais.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Sarah is a 20-year-old girl who loves to run and moves to Montreal to make the big athletics league. Her life outside of running, however, is a little trivial as she constantly alienates herself from her friends and her mother. This is particularly true in the case of her relationship with Antoine, with whom she moves to Montreal and gets married for no other reason but to claim financial incentives. Sarah Prefers to Run is literally a film about a character who prefers running over everything and in the process becomes a film about giving up on love, life and even happiness to feed into her idea of ethereal happiness. Robichaud is particularly brave in making a number of interesting anti-cinematic choices that in fact go against the traditional representation of human sentiments on the big screen whether it is through Sarah's own passive nature or the awkward sexual chemistry she shares with Antoine - especially in a particularly uneasy and almost darkly comical sex scene. Though in the grand vision of the film everything makes sense, Robichaud's film can't escape or shake off a feeling of pretentiousness and superficiality which will leave some members of the audience feeling totally cold - as cold, in fact, as Sarah herself seems to be towards human connection. Sarah Prefers to Run mixes a valid mixture of honesty and metaphor, presented in a Dardenne Brothers' type of visual realism, presented through an original compelling story and a captivating character study.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

At times captivating, Sarah Prefers to run can be thought provoking, funny and an emotional roller coaster. However it is not without its flaws. To keep it simple, the film is confusing. Unnecessary motifs, bizarre character choices routed in nonsensical logic and even confusions in plot (possible lesbian love story) left me begging for this film to have been edited in a clear, concise manner to give everyone watching a deeper understanding of the universal message the film tries to put forward

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Je n'ai pas détesté SARAH PRÉFÈRE LA COURSE, mais en même temps je ne l'ai pas nécessairement aimé.... Les acteurs jouent biens, sans plus. L'histoire est intéressante, sans plus.... J'ai eu à peu près la même émotion au générique de début qu'à celui de la fin.... Une sorte de neutralité mêlé à de l'indifférence. Dommage. Le sujet est intéressant, mais quelque chose dans le rendu m'a empêché d'entrer dans l'histoire.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

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Chloé Robichaud

Director

Sophie Desmarais

Sarah

André Beaupré

Gérant du resto

Geneviève Boivin-Roussy

Zoey

Jean-Sébastien Courchesne

Antoine

Julianne Côté

Françoise

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Synopsis

Sarah (Sophie Desmarais), a gifted runner, moves to Montreal to attend a university with a great athletics program. She marries Antoine to qualify for the best scholarships and finds married life to be very different from what she expected.

Director: Chloé Robichaud
Producer: René Malo, Chloé Robichaud
Screenwriter: Chloé Robichaud
Production Co: Crédit d'Impôt Cinéma et Télévision, Téléfilm Canada, La Boîte à Fanny, SODEC Québec
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (Canada)
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 10, 2019
Runtime: 1h 35m