A greedy landowner and his backward nephew conspire to block the only water source for an adjoining property in order to bankrupt the owner and force him to sell.
In this acclaimed French period drama, the enterprising Ugolin Soubeyran (Daniel Auteuil) returns to his native countryside after the serving in the military. Intent on growing expensive flowers, he conspires with his uncle, Cesar (Yves Montand), to gain access to a hidden spring on a neighboring property. When their initial attempt to buy the land fails, they must contend with Jean de Florette (Gérard Depardieu), who arrives with his family to work the coveted plot and turn it into a profitable farm.
Beautiful, carefully groomed, French epic. – Filmfestivals.com
The director, Claude Berri, does not tell this story as a melodrama; all of the motives are laid out well in advance, and it is perfectly clear what is going to happen. The point of the film is not to create suspense, but to capture the relentlessness of human greed, the feeling that the land is so important the human spirit can be sacrificed to it. – Roger Ebert
Starring Yves Montand, Gérard Depardieu, Daniel Auteuil, Elisabeth Depardieu, Margarita Lozano, Ernestine Mazurowna, Armand Meffre, André Dupon, Pierre Nougaro, Jean Maurel, Roger Souza, Didier Pain, Pierre-Jean Rippert, Marc Betton, Clement Cal, Benedetto Bertino, Marcel Champel, Chantal Liennel, Fransined, Marcel Berbert.
In French with English subtitles.