Le grand paysage d'Alexis Droeven (1990)
When his father dies a young man has the choice to continue the farmwork of his old man who suffered because of the hard labour and all the regulations.
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Highly Overrated But Still Good
Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.
The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Considering the recent events in France this very year (the farmers blocking the roads last summer,demanding a square deal ),this 1981 movie -which was released in France last year- is extremely relevant and has a contemporary feel. The story is as old of the hill:a Young man is confronted with a well known problem:will he continue with farm work when he comes to his father's funeral?A father who was a convinced unionist and who "slaved away " while trying to improve a hard living (the price of milk ,a problem which is still a burning question :ironically,France imports milk from Belgium!),got his reward ,so to speak,in the speech they deliver when he is buried.The "big landscape "of Alexis is wonderfully filmed ,with superb colors .Maurice Garrel ,a seasoned French actor,too often cast in supporting casts ,is a convincing peasant;future director Nicole Garcia makes all her scenes count as a farmer's sister who left for the city and became a lawyer.The movie might put off foreign audiences because of the background (the Flemish/Walloon antagonism) and a non-linear story.