Jean de Florette (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ də flɔʁɛt]) is a 1986 period drama film directed by Claude Berri.
Berri's version was the first attempt at adapting the whole saga, including the first part, Jean de Florette, which was originally written as a prequel to the novelization of Manon of The Spring.
The story takes place in rural Provence in the 1920s, where two local farmers plot to trick a newcomer out of his newly inherited property.
The film starred three of France's most prominent actors – Gérard Depardieu, Daniel Auteuil, who won a BAFTA and a César award for his performance, and Yves Montand in one of his last roles.
At the time the most expensive French film ever made, it was a great commercial and critical success, both domestically and internationally, and was nominated for eight César awards, and 10 BAFTAs.
His uncle César, referred to as Le Papet, meaning grandfather in the local dialect, is at first skeptical; but is convinced when the flowers get a good price at the market.
From the mortgage money, Jean buys dynamite to finish the well, but in his first blast, he is hit by a flying rock; falls into the cavity, and subsequently dies of his injuries.
[3] For the village of the story he settled on Mirabeau (65 km to the north), while Jean de Florette's house is located in Vaugines, where the church from the film can also be found.
The facades of the houses of Mirabeau had to be replaced with painted polystyrene, to make them look older, and all electric wires were put underground.
[2] The long filming period and the constantly increasing cost put a great burden on the actors, many of whom frequently had to return to Paris for television or theatre work.
A special promotional screening before the film's official release 27 August 1986, was attended by then Minister of Culture Jack Lang.
[8] The musical score is based around the aria Invano Alvaro from Giuseppe Verdi's 1862 opera La forza del destino.
[10] It also performed very well internationally; in the United States it grossed nearly $5 million, placing it among the 100 most commercially successful foreign-language films shown there.
Allowing that it could indeed be "a definitive French masterwork", she reserved judgement until after the premiere of the second part, as Jean de Florette was only a "half-movie", "a long, methodic buildup, a pedantically paced tease".
[15] The reviewer commended Berri particularly for the work done with the small cast, and for his decision to stay true to Pagnol's original story.
[4] Nominated for a total of eight César awards in 1987 – including 'Best Film', 'Best Director' and 'Best Cinematography' – Jean de Florette won only one, 'Best Actor' for Daniel Auteuil.
[21] Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources have been interpreted as part of a wider trend in the 1980s of so-called 'heritage cinema': period pieces and costume dramas that celebrated the history, culture and landscape of France.
[8][22] It has also been suggested that the treatment given the outsider Jean de Florette by the locals was symbolic of the growing popularity of the anti-immigration movement, led by politicians like Jean-Marie Le Pen.
[23] The films inspired a vision of the area as a place of rural authenticity, and were followed by an increase in British home ownership in southern France.
[24] As late as 2005, the owners of the house belonging to Jean de Florette in the movie were still troubled by tourists trespassing on their property.