Product: Jean de Florette (1987)
Rating: 4.0
Good Storytelling, But Frustrating
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***I'm not quite sure what the appeal is to this movie, but it's definitely there. I've watched this several times in the past 15 years and always got involved with it....and it's companion piece, "Manon of the Spring." If given a choice, I prefer the latter movie, only perhaps because this is a frustrating story, seeing a good man get ruined simply for greed.Both stories are well-done.This tragic tale of two greedy people driving a nice man and his family off their land is not only frustrating but sad, especially since their is no happy ending, with the man dying while trying to salvage his property. The second film is years later when the daughter, now grown up, gets revenge.Gerald Depardieu is the nice guy here, the one we all root for while Yves Montand and Daniel Auteuil are the greedy jerks. These three are famous French actors who always give their audiences good performances.A big plus in this film is the very nice cinematography, which is why I bought this when it first came out on DVD. This is a fine visual movie, not just good storytelling.