Showing @ Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Sat 12 Nov @ 8:30pm

Daniel Auteuil / France / 2011 / 107 mins

Daniel Auteuil steps into his debut directing role twenty-five years after making a name for himself in the adaptations of Claude Berri, following suit to present a well-stated remake of Marcel Pagnol’s 1940 original. Wrapped around a modern day Romeo and Juliet framework, young Patricia (Astrid Bergès-Frisbey), a well digger’s daughter with “little to offer except her love” falls for the local storeowner’s fetching son (who is of course a talented pilot) Jacques (Nicolas Duvauchelle). After Patricia falls pregnant however and Jacques is called into action, it’s up to her father Pascal (Auteuil) to regain the ‘lost’ family honour.

Given that it’s his first directorial outing, it’s commendable that Auteuil doesn’t overdo it. Gracing the screen with shots of the sprawling French countryside and rustling evergreens, he unlocks the fragile beauty held within the landscape. Auteuil himself plays the role of Pascal with fiery passion, taking the glory for both refreshing directing and convincing performance. But it’s his script which is a bit schizophrenic; some scenes clash too heavily, with comedy and foolery diluting suspense and danger. At times, this works, as Pascal’s hardnosed traditionalism battles against a modern, young couple determined to push the idea that love conquers all; it’s just a shame it all feels a little clichéd and awkward.