The Man Who Planted Trees (1987)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

"The Man Who Planted Trees" is as motivational as 30 minutes can be. It is about a lonely shepherd who dedicated his life to planting trees. In the end we found out that this green area which was no longer a desert thanks to the shepherd became the home of many many people after World War II. Booth big wars are referenced in this short movie, but only so that we can put it in a certain time. The narrator is not the shepherd, but a man who met the shepherd during this long-lasting endeavor. It was the task of his life and it is great if you found such. I have to say I enjoyed the narration a lot. It was incredibly poetic, which is certainly not everybody's taste. Yet it manages to be never or almost never only the slightest bit of pretentious. I personally did not like the animation that much, maybe the weakest aspect for me. The writer is Jean Giono and the director is Frenchman Frédéric Back, who got his second Academy Award for this movie, six years after the first. Back died during the holidays two years ago, which means that he got as old as the title character in here. The original version is also French and narrated by Philippe Noiret, great actor by the way. The English version is narrated by Academy award winner Christopher Plummer. By now, this film is almost 30 years old already. I personally do not agree with its really really high rating on IMDb, probably one of the highest of all short films with over 1,000 votes, but still I believe it is a good watch. And yes, it's a good trigger to get going if you want to achieve something. Really motivational movie. Recommended.

THE MAN WHO PLANTED TREES is an animated film based on a short story by French author Jean Gino . It tells of a young traveler aged 20 who whilst trekking through the Alps in 1913 meets a middle aged Shepard called Elezeard Bouffier who when he's not on tending his sheep also plants acorns which eventually turn in to a forest It's a well made animated short . Director Fredirick back uses a semiotic technique where when the film starts the story is told in a muted sepia tone not too dissimilar to the sketch animation used in the famous Aha video Take On Me , then as the story progresses to the finish colour becomes more and more prominent . The story itself has a slightly obvious subtext that one man can make a difference to the world even if it may take decades to do so . It's certainly a humanist subtext even though God is mentioned , God isn't meant to be taken literally because it's what human beings do that's important and that man can leave a legacy to the rest of the species long after his death . You can understand why some people think Gino's original source novel is true - because it's an antidote to cynicism and misanthrope In all a very engaging piece of animated film making that held my attention , helped in no small part but the velvet tones of Christopher Plummer as narrator . I have to be slightly too honest and state I wasn't ever moved to tears but can clearly understand why other people might b

The Man Who Planted Trees is a work of art, a masterpiece brought to life. What aspect is there to critique? The effects? The plot? The music? I personally find myself unable to detect a flaw in any of these.The story is narrated by, and follows a young man who hikes through a barren valley. Just when he can no longer bear the ripping wind and dryness, and has run out of water in his gourd, he comes across a lone farmer, a hermit, a wordless, mysterious man. Here he stays and gets to know the man, and learns of his "mission" that he has been working on for years: to plant 100 trees everyday for years. At that time, no noticeable progress can be seen, but years later, when the traveler returns, he finds a growing, beautiful forest, full of life, where before there was none. As the traveler leaves and returns over the next few years, he continues to find the growing forest, and soon he is not the only visitor, and this new forest has been deemed "natural", a "miracle". Amazing how the farmer, the father of this new forest, remains in silence the entire time, not expecting the credit he so rightfully deserves. It is here that I find the most wonderful part of the story: this character's relentless unselfishness, his lack of want for fame, or even company.This story is a beautifully animated rendition of man's greatest qualities, of our ability to not expect payment for our services, a beautiful example of the most extreme form of altruism. The Man Who Planted Trees is a flawless work of art, one whose message remains unparalleled.

Frédéric Back's 30 minutes long Oscar winning animated film "The Man Who Planted Trees" is astounding work of art with its beautiful story and the images that equal it. The story written by the French writer Jean Giono that tells about Elzeard Bouffier, a quiet shepherd, and later bee keeper who never talked much but over 35 years of hard work singlehandedly cultivated a magnificent forest in a desolate area of Provence, France and made it a peaceful and happy home for over 10, 000 people, is highly moving, inspirational, and life-affirming. It makes a viewer proud of what a man can achieve if he is determined to create, not to destroy. Every frame looks and feels not like a flat drawing but like a beloved painting of a celebrated impressionist painter (Monet, Sisley, Morisot, and Pissarro, the "purest" impressionists come first to mind). To achieve this effect, Back worked on unpolished acetates using crayons and modulating the colors. During the film, the colors change dramatically from barren and lifeless desert like palette in the beginning to the tender glowing delicate colors of blossoming eternal Spring in the final scenes. I was absolutely mesmerized by Back's visual style and his ability to beautifully translate such a literally story to the screen and not to lose any of its appeal but on the contrary to enrich it with incredible taste and unique exquisite beauty and tenderness of his images. For the first time, I came across the work of animation that reminded me so much of my all time favorite animated film "Tale of Tales" by Yuri Norstein, artistically and spiritually. It was not surprising for me to find out that Norstein and Back have met, respect and admire each other work and that Norstein studied Back's techniques and took with him to Moscow Back's acetates and coloring pencils that he was going to use while working on his ambitious project, full feature animation "Overcoat".There is one question that pops up from time to time on the different IMDb boards, "Is there any movie that all viewers would love and cherish"? I am always skeptical and up until tonight used to believe that the universally loved movie simply does not exist. I am happy to admit that I was wrong. I don't think that anyone who saw this little marvel may not be affected by its clear message, its kindness, beauty, and artistry.