Main Cast: Yves Montand, Daniel Auteuil, Emmanuelle Béart, Hippolyte Girardot, Elisabeth Depardieu
Release Year: 1986
Country: IT/FR
Run Time: 113 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
Manon of the Spring (Manon des Sources) has also been released as Jean de Florette II in the US, as it is a sequel to Claude Berri's Jean de Florette. Both films are drawn from the same source: Filmmaker/novelist Marcel Pagnol's 1952 rural romance, also titled Jean de Florette. Manon (Emmanuelle Beart), now fully grown, is a shepherdess who prefers to keep her distance from the local villagers. She is determined to uncover the truth behind the death of her father (played by Gerard Depardieu in Jean de Florette) and to wreak vengeance on the men she holds responsible. The more sympathetic of the two men, Ugolin (Daniel Auteil), is in love with Manon, but this does not weaken her resolve. She causes the village's water supply to diminish, blaming this action upon Ugolin and his duplicitous co-conspirator Cesar (Yves Montand). The upshot of this vengeful behavior ends in tragedy for all concerned. The joint winners of eight French Cesar awards, Jean de Florette and Manon of the Spring were released to the U.S. in tandem in 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Revenge, love, and the shocking irony of a hidden family relationship highlight this sequel to the acclaimed Jean de Florette. Although Manon des Sources can stand alone as a separate motion picture, viewers will gain a deeper understanding of it if they view Florette first. Both films, masterpieces of modern French cinema, owe their plots to Marcel Pagnol's novel L'Eau des Collines. In the earlier film, Provençal villager Cesar Soubeyran (Yves Montand) and his churlish nephew, Ugolin (Daniel Auteuil), secretly block the flow of spring water to land purchased by hunchback Jean Cadoret to grow vegetables and raise rabbits. The Soubeyrans hope to force Cadoret to sell the land so they can reopen the spring to grow and peddle carnations. Eventually they acquire the property after the hunchback works himself to death conveying water to his parched farm. Neighbors of the Soubeyrans remain silent even though they are aware of the wrongdoing. The second film resumes the tale a decade later, focusing on the hunchback's beautiful daughter, Manon (Emmanuelle Béart), a shepherdess with whom clodhopper Ugolin falls hopelessly in love but fails to win. When Manon eavesdrops on hunters and learns the truth about the Soubeyrans and their plot against her father, she stops up the water supply to the village at its source in a cave only she knows about. Pandemonium ensues as Manon's scheme exacts revenge. Though deeply tragic, the story unfolds with charm, wit, and high spirits. Then darkness and desperation rule after director Claude Berri unleashes irony and paradox to condemn, kill, and redeem. Montand and Auteuil are superb in their roles as conniving villains who pay a terrible price, and Béart is magnificent as Manon, not only because of her phenomenal beauty but also because of her wonderful acting. The cinematography, script, and inconceivable surprise ending further distinguish this extraordinary film. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide
Margarita Lozano - Baptistine; Gabriel Bacquier - Victor; Marc Betton - Martial; Yvonne Gamy - Delphine; Ticky Holgado - Le specialiste; Jean Maurel - Anglade; Armand Philoxene Meffre - Philoxene; Pierre Nougaro - Casimir; Didier Pain - Eliacin; Pierre-Jean Rippert - Cabridan; Roger Souza - Ange; Gérard Depardieu; Jean Bouchard - Priest; Lucien Damiani - Belloiseau; Florist Fransined; Chantal Liennel - Amandinde; Francoise Trompette - Village Woman; André Dupon - Pamphile
Credit
Alain Poiré - Associate Producer, Sylvie Gautrelet - Costume Designer, Xavier Castano - First Assistant Director, Claude Berri - Director, Hervé de Luze - Editor, Genevieve Louveau - Editor, Pierre Grunstein - Executive Producer, Jean-Claude Petit - Composer (Music Score), Michel Deruelle - Makeup, Jean-Pierre Eychenne - Makeup, Bernard Vezat - Production Designer, Bruno Nuytten - Cinematographer, Paul Trielli - Special Effects, Pierre Gamet - Sound/Sound Designer, Dominique Hennequin - Sound/Sound Designer, Laurent Quaglio - Sound/Sound Designer, Claude Berri - Screenwriter, Gérard Brach - Screenwriter, Giuseppe Verdi - Featured Music, Marcel Pagnol - Book Author
