PRODUCT INFORMATION
A sprawling tale of greed, betrayal, and revenge plays out amid the bucolic splendor of the French countryside in Claude Berri’s masterly two-film adaptation of a literary work by the legendary Marcel Pagnol. Spanning three generations in the lives of two families, Jean de Florette and Manon of the Spring vividly recreate the provincial world of an early-twentieth-century village, where an outsider’s arrival sets in motion a devastating chain of events. With gorgeous cinematography, keen insights into human nature, and superb performances from icons of French cinema (Gérard Depardieu, Yves Montand, Daniel Auteuil, and Emmanuelle Béart), these richly absorbing moral tales—at the time of their production, the most expensive French films ever made—are triumphs of epic storytelling in the classical tradition.
JEAN DE FLORETTE
The sun-dappled beauty of the Provence countryside belies dark motivations, in the first installment of Claude Berri’s monumental pastoral tragedy. When the naively idealistic tax collector Jean Cadoret (Gérard Depardieu) unexpectedly inherits a family farm, he leaves the city for a new life in the agrarian community where his mother, Florette, grew up—though she moved away decades ago. His neighbors, however, the scheming Ugolin (Daniel Auteuil) and his proud uncle César Soubeyran (Yves Montand), have plotted to divert the flow of water away from Jean’s land. Brought to extraordinary life by acting legends Depardieu, Auteuil, and Montand, Jean de Florette draws viewers into a fully realized vision of 1920s rural France in which the culture clash between modern ideas and the rustic older codes of the country takes a heartbreaking turn.
MANON OF THE SPRING
Shot simultaneously with Jean de Florette, this second chapter in the epic story of the intersecting fates of the Cadoret and Soubeyran families unfolds ten years after the events of the first film, as Jean Cadoret’s daughter, Manon (Emmanuelle Béart, in a César-winning performance), now a teenage shepherdess, learns of the circumstances that drove her family to ruin—and seeks revenge on those responsible. A stirring portrait of a young woman’s awakening to her own agency, Manon of the Spring brings to a close Claude Berri’s sweeping Marcel Pagnol adaptation with a devastating power that approaches Greek tragedy.
FEATURES:
New 4K digital restorations, supervised by director of photography Bruno Nuytten, with 5.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks
In the 4K UHD edition: Two 4K UHD discs of the films and two Blu-rays with the films and special features
Claude Berri: The Card Dealer (2018), a documentary on director Claude Berri’s life and career
The Force of Destiny (2017), a documentary about the making of the films
Trailers
New English subtitle translations
PLUS: An essay by film scholar Sue Harris
Shipping
No, we only ship inside the US
Most orders for in-stock items take less than 24 hours to ship (may take longer if you place an order over the weekend). Pre-orders are shipped as soon as the product arrives. International pre-orders may not come in before the street date. This is especially true with Australian pre-orders.
We only use USPS for all shipments. If there is an issue after your order ships you will need to contact your local post office.
Product
All items that come with a slipcover will say so in the product page.
Pre-orders will not say WITH SLIPCOVER until the product comes in.
Slipcovers are not guaranteed to be in mint condition.
If you can order it, it's either in stock or a pre-order. If an item is out of stock you will not be able to add it to your cart. It's rare but our inventory may not be correct. So in some cases an item may have to be shipped separately.
Other
We do not sell bootlegs. All product arrives from the distributor or is directly from the filmmakers. All items are new and sealed. Some indie titles or signed editions may not have shrinkwrap.