Jean de Florette

Dir: Claude Berri

1986

*****

Verdi's 1862 opera La forza del destino is genius. It’s full of rapture and wonder, but when you hear it played on an accordion or a harmonica, it means something else entirely and suddenly you find yourself in a small little village on the south of France. Back in 1953, Marcel Pagnol wrote and made his film Manon des Sources but it was four hours long and subsequently cut by its distributor. This left Pagnol dissatisfied, and led him to retell the story as a novel. The first part of the novel, titled Jean de Florette, was an exploration of the background for the film; a prequel of sorts. Together the two volumes made up the work Pagnol called L'Eau des collines (The Water of the Hills). Many years later, Claude Berri came across Pagnol's book by chance in a hotel room, and was captivated by it. He decided that in order to do the story justice it had to be made in two parts and that is exactly what he did, shooting both films back to back. The story takes place outside a small village in Provence, shortly after the First World War. Ugolin Soubeyran returns early in the morning from his military service and visits his uncle César whom he refers to as his grandfather (Papet). Ugolin is happy to see his uncle but is somewhat distant and eager to get to his own place farther up in the mountains. Here he throws himself into a project that he keeps secret from Papet. He eventually reveals that the project consists of growing carnations. Papet is at first skeptical, but he is convinced when they both take the grown flowers to market and get a good price for them. They decide the project is worthy of expansion, and together they go to see the neighboring farmer known as Pique-Bouffigue, to buy his land. The land in question is apparently dry, but Papet knows of a source of water, a spring, that can solve that problem. Pique-Bouffigue does not want to sell and an altercation breaks out when he insults the Soubeyran family. In the fight, Pique-Bouffigue is knocked unconscious. He becomes friendly (as a result of memory loss from a head wound) but dies about a year after the fight. Papet sees this as an opportunity, so after the funeral, Papet and Ugolin dig out the rubble that is filling the spring, plug the hole, and cover it with cement and then earth. The property descends to the dead man's sister, Florette, a childhood friend of Papet, who married the blacksmith in another village whilst Papet was recovering in a military hospital in Algeria. He writes to a common friend for news on Florette and finds that she died the same day his letter arrived. The property thereby descends to her son who is a tax collector and "unfortunately, by God's will...he's a hunchback". To discourage Florette's son from taking up residence, Ugolin breaks many tiles on the roof of the house. Florette's son Jean, arrives with his wife Aimée and young daughter Manon, and the Soubeyrans' hopes of an easy takeover are soon shattered. Florette's son is called Jean Cadoret, but Ugolin, in the local custom, calls him Jean de Florette. Jean makes it clear that he has no intention of selling, but plans to take up residence and live off the land. He has a grand scheme for making the farm profitable within two years, involving breeding rabbits. Jean does not know about the blocked spring, only of a more distant one, and is relying on rainfall to fill a cistern with water for supplying livestock and irrigating crops. The distant spring, where an old Italian couple lives, is two kilometres away and also part of the property. Jean believes the needs of the farm can be met from here. Ugolin is discouraged, but Papet tells him to befriend Jean and gain his confidence. They also keep secret from him the fact that - while average rainfall for the surrounding region is sustainable - the area where Florette's farm lies rarely gets any of this rain. Meanwhile, the two work to turn the local community against the newcomer, who is described merely as a hunchbacked former tax collector, since the deceased Pique-Bouffigue had cousins in the village who know about the blocked spring and would tell Jean about it should they come to trust him. Jean initially makes progress, and earns a small profit from his rabbit farm. In the long run, getting water proves a problem, and dragging it all the way from the distant spring becomes a backbreaking experience. Jean asks to borrow Ugolin's mule, but is met only with vague excuses. Then, when the rain does come, it falls on the surrounding area but not where it is needed. Jean loudly berates God, whom he thinks has already given him enough trouble by deforming him. Later, the dusty winds of the mistral also arrive, bringing the farm to near-catastrophe. Jean is undeterred, and decides to dig a well. At this point Ugolin sees it fitting to try and convince Jean that his project is hopeless, and that he might be better off selling. Ugolin and Papet’s plan finally works but with dire and heart-breaking consequences. Suddenly a light-hearted comedy of sorts turns into a story of cruelty and greed beyond reason. Ugolin and Papet bathe in the spring of their new property and the film ends with the caption "end of part one". Manon des Sources then follows the story a few years later. Jean de Florette is a quintessential French classic, a great film in its own right but the first part of something much greater. It’s rare that a film has a truly masterful performance in it, but thanks to Yves Montand, Daniel Auteuil and Gérard Depardieu, Jean de Florette has three.