[TCFF2025]

Director: Marie-Hélène Viens, Phillippe Lupien
Cast: Pier-Luc Funk, Marianne Fortier, Franҫois Papineau
Screenplay: Marie-Hélène Viens, Phillippe Lupien
105 mins. Not Rated.

I went into You Are Not Alone expecting more horror than it ended up having, but that could also be the fact that the romantic drama elements are just so much more at the forefront and stronger than the alien angle. I caught it during TCFF 2025, and even without the horror vibes, it has one of the strongest romances of any recent film.

Léo (Pier-Luc Funk, Matthias & Maxime) is at a point in his life where he’s aimless, working as a pizza delivery guy for his mother’s pizza place. When he meets Rita (Marianne Fortier, Brain Freeze), he is immediately smitten, but as their relationship blossoms, Léo discovers he’s being stalked by a taxi driver he met who, unbeknownst to him, is an alien targeting direction-less victims.

At its center, You Are Not Alone is an excellent romantic drama. Léo and Rita are positively swoon-worthy in every scene. Funk and Fortier have tremendous chemistry here, and the movie hangs on Léo’s relatable listlessness. The awkward romance is endearing and adorable, and I was completely hooked to see what would happen and pray for a happy ending.

The inclusion of the alien subplot is where You Are Not Alone flounders. It’s just too light on description, style, tone, and impact. It’s a completely unnecessary inclusion because I was never really gaining much from the moments in the script that utilized the alien. Outside of the great sequence of Léo’s heart on fire and the alien’s obsession with it, there just isn’t enough to cling to, and the film slows down every time the focus veers away from Léo and Rita.

You Are Not Alone isn’t very much of a horror film (but who cares?), as its qualifiers indicate, and the “horror” elements of the alien never really makes much of its inclusion. It is, however, an excellent and sweet love story that worked entirely throughout the movie. If you didn’t see some of yourself in Léo or Rita, then you might just be an alien, because we’d all be willing to drive to Rimouski if the love is like that.

3.5/5
-Kyle A. Goethe