Entre ciel et terre

Entre ciel et terre

Entre ciel et terre, the biographical film about the life of Captain Robert PICHÉ, opened in theatres in July 2010.

Captain Robert Piché, an Air Transat airline pilot, was considered a hero on the night of 23 Aug 2001 when he was at the controls of Flight 236 connecting Toronto and Lisbon. The film introduces us to the stormy past and tormented personality of Robert Piché, who was imprisoned in Georgia (US) for drug trafficking and who struggled with alcoholism. Sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment, he was freed after 2 years, and, returning to Québec, took up his long-wished-for career as an airline pilot. On the famous evening of August 23, after a loss of fuel that silenced the motors, Captain Piché succeeded in gliding the plane for nearly 20 minutes before landing on a small island, a military base in the Azores, thus saving the lives of 293 passengers and 13 crew members.

Very colourful and realistic, the film recounts the dark side of Piché's life - his years of imprisonment, decline, family life and experiences as a captain - until his celebrated feat. Director Sylvain Archambault dwells on the consequences of this act of heroism while publicly revealing the captain's dubious past.

The film's reproduction of Flight 236 is amazingly authentic, Captain Piché himself having acted as consultant. Shot on board an Air Transat carrier, the minutes of gliding leave the viewers breathless. Michel CÔTÉ gives a strong performance as Robert Piché, and his son Maxime LeFlaguais plays the role of the young and troubled Piché with panache.