Manon des sources (1953)
Directed by Marcel Pagnol

Film Review

Marcel Pagnol's penultimate film is this epic tale which masterfully portrays the frailties of human nature through some extraordinary performances and a characteristically well-crafted script. The Provençal setting is, as ever, central to Pagnol's narrative, emphasising not just the vulnerability of its human inhabitants (who are totally dependent on scarce water sources) but also the raw poetry in the unfolding mix of tragedy and comedy.  As a village priest points out to Manon (in one of the film's most touching scenes) miracles are played out in the human soul, not in the exterior world, and the film is more driven by characterisation, the way in which people relate to one another, than by events.  The result is arguably one of Pagnol's most poignant, most incisive explorations of human relationships, despite the simplicity of the narrative and the film's languorous pace.

Whilst Jacqueline Pagnol (the director's stunningly beautiful wife) makes a captivating Manon and Raymond Pellegrin is convincing as the school teacher, it is the lesser characters which make this film, giving it its charm and sense of realism.  Pagnol not only writes well for ordinary Provençal folk, he also has an unerring knack of bringing his characters alive through his choice of actors and the way in which scenes are staged.

For the most part, the film resembles more a theatrical production than a piece of conventional cinema, relying far more on dialogue than image to tell the story.  A good example of this is where the tale of Manon's tragic past is related, not through the use of the more conventional cinematic device, the objective flashback, but through snippets of dialogue related by different characters from their own points of view.  This is an approach which Pagnol used from his earliest films in the 1930s and which he had honed to perfection by the time he came to direct this film.  Unfortunately, the film's distributors, Gaumont, were not as appreciative and, mindful of the reaction of a contemporary cinema audience, insisted that its director make substantial cuts to reduce the film to an “acceptable” runtime.  The resulting cut down version was not a huge success and met with a lukewarm reaction from the critics of the day.  In the 1960s, Pagnol restored the film to a version that was nearer to its original length.

In 1963, Marcel Pagnol published a two-part novel ("L'Eau des collines") based on his screenplay for this film.  The first volume told the story of Manon's ill-fated father, Jean de Florette; the second volume was concerned with Manon's revenge and the discovery of her relationship with Papet.  In 1986, Claude Berri adapted this novel for cinema, in two films featuring Gérard Depardieu, Daniel Auteuil and Emmaneulle Béart: Jean de Florette and Manon des sources.  It is interesting to compare Berri's telling of the story with Pagnol's - the former using a far more visual approach that is more accessible to a mainstream cinema audience.  Both films have their strengths and succeed in telling a poignant story with great skill and humanity, although Pagnol's version feels more genuine, partly because it does not overlook the humorous aspects of life.

Film Synopsis

In a small Provençal village, the locals tell a newly installed schoolteacher the story of Manon, a young shepherdess who lives a wild and solitary life in the surrounding hills.  Manon is the daughter of a hunchback and a Russian opera singer who came to settle on a nearby farm about twenty years ago.  The family was ostracised from the local community, and seemed to be cursed.  Their land having no water, they were compelled to spend hours each day carrying water in pots to their land from the nearest source.  The strain of this hard life killed both the hunchback and his young son.  Devastated, Manon and her mother had no choice but to sell the farm to a neighbouring farmer, Ugolin, before moving to a secluded spot in the mountains.  Since that day, Manon has been taunted and feared by the village folk, who suspect she is a witch.  Then, one day, Manon learns the truth about the circumstances that led to the death of her father and brother.  Soon after, the water supply to the village mysteriously dries up.  Manon will finally have her revenge...