The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun
The Rubber Gun

Canadian International Pictures

The Rubber Gun

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Edition Type: Limited Edition Slipcover

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This Partner Label release is distributed through Vinegar Syndrome's sister company OCN Distribution. Vinegar Syndrome had no part in, nor are responsible for, the restoration, extras, quality control or any content(s) of this release. We hope you enjoy our growing roster of Partner Labels and the expertise and curation brought to each release by their dedicated staff!

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This special limited edition slipcover (designed by Sister Hyde) is limited to 1,000 units and is only available on our website and at select indie retailers. Absolutely no major retailers will be stocking them.

From arthouse to Canuxploitation, Canadian International Pictures (CIP) is devoted to resurrecting vital, distinctive, and overlooked triumphs of Canadian cinema. This label is focused on the country’s original cinematic boom years – spanning the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s – occasionally venturing past that period (and the country’s borders) to highlight the films of Canada’s most inspired actors and filmmakers. Vinegar Syndrome’s sister company, OCN Distribution, is thrilled to be representing CIP's brand new line of home video releases!

The kids your mother never let you play with.

Charismatic painter Steve (Scanners star Stephen Lack) has carved out a reputation as Montréal’s premiere drug connection, trafficking narcotics with a crew of friends and lovers living as a makeshift “family” on the fringes of society. But tensions rise when the police catch wind of their latest shipment, and Steve strikes up a friendship with a university student eager to observe the group’s illicit lifestyle for his graduate thesis. As the walls start to close in, old jealousies and new paranoias surface, and the family scrambles to adapt or perish.    

Featuring seven songs by acclaimed Leonard Cohen collaborator Lewis Furey, the directorial debut of Allan Moyle (Times Square, Pump Up the Volume, Empire Records) is an innovative drug drama that set the stage for Drugstore Cowboy and other celebrated portraits of addiction. Equal parts Warhol and Cassavetes, the film’s docu-fiction approach earned widespread praise for its urgency and vivid reality, with The Toronto International Film Festival citing it as “one of the best films of the ’70s.” Out of official circulation for decades, The Rubber Gun returns in a stunning new restoration from the original camera negatives.

directed by: Allan Moyle
starring: Stephen Lack, Pam Holmes-Robert, Pierre Robert, Peter Brawley, Allan Moyle
1977 / 84 min / 1.37:1 / English DTS-HD MA 2.0

Additional info:

  • Region A Blu-ray
  • Newly scanned and restored in 2K from the original 16mm A/B negatives by Canadian International Pictures with sound transferred from the answer print
  • New interviews with actor and co-writer Stephen Lack
  • New interview with director Allan Moyle
  • New interview with composer Lewis Furey
  • New interview with co-cinematographer Frank Vitale
  • American Cinematheque Q&A – Post-screening discussion featuring Moyle
  • Fantasia International Film Festival intro and Q&A featuring Lack and Vitale
  • Original theatrical outro song
  • Archival stills gallery
  • Theatrical re-release trailer
  • Booklet featuring a new essay by professor Nathan Holmes and an archival profile by P.M. Massé-Connolly
  • Reversible cover artwork
  • English SDH subtitles

Overall rating: 4.6 / 5 from 25 reviews.

AI Generated Review Summary

Summary topics

Review topics: ["shipping","service","film","lack","movie","restoration","snapshot","gem","feels"].

Review highlights

Reviews

What's not to Lack?

"Heard this recommended on a podcast, with a particular emphasis on Stephen Lack's performance. Very excited to check it out!"

— Adam M. (5/5)

A total snapshot of grungy

"A total snapshot of grungy Montreal in the late 1970s. Stephen Lack is amazing in the lead with so much charisma and personality. So different than he was in Scanners. I loved that new wave film making feel. Great extras too with a couple long highly enlightening Q & As"

— Bryan K. (5/5)

A raw and compelling snapshot

"A raw and compelling snapshot of a particular time and place, with a distinct feel that stayed with me after watching it. I’m glad this film received such a thoughtful release. The service was great, and everything arrived safely and in perfect condition."

— Luis C. (5/5)

The Rubber Gun

"A blind buy based solely on loving director Allan Moyle’s Pump Up The Volume and Empire Records. Terrific character study, just a good little hang film. Give it a chance, if so inclined."

— Barb M. (3/5)

Shoot It Up

"The Rubber Gun feels like a fascinating time capsule of late-‘70s counterculture. It’s messy, raw, and deliberately chaotic, but that authenticity gives it a strange charm that sticks with you. Definitely not for everyone, but if you appreciate grimy cult cinema, it’s a rewarding watch."

— Shawn M. (3/5)

Fascinating film

"A fascinating film. It presents as a bit incoherent and random. but - like a Cassavetes movie - it wraps up to have had plenty to say. The glimpses of relationships all throughout, while not quite forming a narrative, do show a trajectory of how friendships and various relatings do go. The period songs and fashions (jeans!) all seem to further what characterizations there are - the songs, in particular, feel like commentary on what activities do go on. There are good, strong, homoerotic vibes going on - nothing explicit, very much of its time that way, with everything really pretty much hanging in a haze of indecision and verbiage. The drug use is not explicit but the key topic of discussion, which keeps it all seeming a bit chaotic (apt, actually). An enjoyable film in that slice-of-life way, each scene on its own varies in its ability to make sense, but as a whole, they indeed are of a piece."

— Donald M. (5/5)

Good Movie!

"The slipcover is awesome, as always with anything VS or their awesome partner Labels release! It is a cool movie that was a lot of fun to watch! I always love the unique VS service of allowing you to stack as many movies as you like in your cart during any release period and ship them for free! The peerless VS restoration process was on full display with stellar sound and picture! Thank you, VS, for continuing to lovingly restore and release so many wonderful films from every conceivable genre! You are keeping physical media alive in this streaming world we now live in! Highly recommended!"

— Paul K. (5/5)

A fascinating 70s indie time capsule!

"An incredible look into the 1970s Montreal counterculture. The Rubber Gun is a gritty, semi-improvised docu-fiction masterpiece that feels completely raw and authentic. Stephen Lack is fantastic to watch, and the soundtrack fits perfectly."

— Pablo R. (4/5)

Great cancon

"Solid 70s Canadian movie. The guy from scanners is in this. Honestly not the best movie. The kind of stuff that is maybe more notable for its era and location visuals than its quality. But I’m a local and I really enjoyed it. Will be showing to friends in the near future."

— Kieran S. (5/5)

Stephen Lack really could act and be charismatic

"Excellent Canadian film of a certain period in Quebec. Nice extended interviews with the star Stephen Lack and other extras to flesh out the time period."

— Kenneth C. (5/5)

Q&A

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