Montreal’s underworld is the focus for this meaty flick about a crime boss aiming to set up a money-spinning project in the old country

This unexpectedly absorbing gangster movie is based on a non-fiction book of the same name by André Cédilot and André Noël that delved into Montreal’s organised crime world. Set in the 1990s but with flashbacks to the 80s, the film revolves around Francesco “Frank” Paterno (a silky Sergio Castellitto), an affable local godfather whose great ambition is to build a bridge back in the old country between Sicily and the Italian mainland, and thoroughly skim off all the money such a massive project will produce. To bankroll it, he has all sorts of funds squirrelled away in offshore accounts, but slippery accountants are skimming off the top, and there’s major trouble brewing between his son and chosen successor Giaco (Donny Falsetti) and upcoming capo Vince Gamache (Marc-André Grondin). The son of a tailor (Gilbert Sicotte) who has served the Paterno family for years, Vince tries to raise his stature in the organisation by importing drugs from Venezuela via a most horrific method. Meanwhile, Giaco’s brother Pat (Michael Ricci) gets engaged to Vince’s savvy sister Sofie (Mylène Mackay), a steel-nerved character in her own right underneath all that blow-dried hair and huge gold hoop earrings.