David O'ConnellConversations With My Gardener
November 10th 2008 05:22
This sun-soaked, laconic comedy-drama from acclaimed French director Jean Becker, about two childhood friends fortuitously meeting again as adults as their lives are winding down, is bound to appeal to a large audience.
Daniel Auteuil is the disillusioned painter who has retreated to a scenic country estate after the breakdown of his marriage. He requires the services of a handyman/gardener to help maintain the grounds and hires a retired railway worker (Jean-Pierre Darroussin), who also happens to be his best friend from primary school.
They affectionately dub one another ‘Dauber’ and ‘Gardener’ respectively as they fall into a routine, Auteuil’s blithely talented painter no longer relishing the prospect of his work; with declining motivations he prefers the nostalgic remembrances that his re-ignited acquaintance with his old friend provides.
They reminisce about those times, including the prank which led to their expulsion from school and a parting of the ways. Both grew up to be men with vastly different trajectories ahead of them – 'Gardener' never having cause to abandon his humble, rural beginnings, toiling on the railway until retirement, whilst 'Dauber' was reaching a far higher social standing in Paris as an artist of some note.
There is no grand design in Becker’s lovingly crafted film, based on a novel by Henri Cueco; his two main characters are both endearing and engaging, their dry humour imbuing wistful reflections of the many years of experience under their belts, filled with joys and disappointments – perhaps vastly divergent in scope, but essentially the same, and it’s these that tie them together again; after a while, it’s almost as if the passing of years since has occurred in the blink of an eye, so easily do they assume their old selves.
The life of ‘Gardener’ may be a less noteworthy one but there has always been the stability of his modest existence and a loving family to define him, whilst ‘Dauber’, in achieving notoriety, has lost all sense of those profound gifts with a crumbling marriage, tainted by his frivolous affairs, and a daughter he rarely sees anymore.
Auteuil is the consummate professional, bringing something of interest to virtually every role he plays; he’s probably the most readily identifiable actor - for international audiences - working in French cinema today; though he’s easily matched here by Darroussin as the simple but wise 'Gardener' who lacks the insight to know what his life has been missing but may never have found such perfect contentment otherwise.
There are some funny moments along the way which serve as poignant reflections of these two men, so contrasting and yet with so much common ground beneath them – like Dauber’s carefree attitude towards his younger lovers; their return to childish nicknames and outbursts of laughter at the wake of a prominent member of the local community, and the recounting of how Gardener and his wife have an identical holiday to Nice every year, taking the same route and doing the exact same things each time.
Conversations With My Gardener is a modest but charming film, distinguished by natural performances and, thankfully, a lack of reliance on sentimentality; it’s a prototypically provincial French story well told.
A French trailer:
Daniel Auteuil is the disillusioned painter who has retreated to a scenic country estate after the breakdown of his marriage. He requires the services of a handyman/gardener to help maintain the grounds and hires a retired railway worker (Jean-Pierre Darroussin), who also happens to be his best friend from primary school.
They affectionately dub one another ‘Dauber’ and ‘Gardener’ respectively as they fall into a routine, Auteuil’s blithely talented painter no longer relishing the prospect of his work; with declining motivations he prefers the nostalgic remembrances that his re-ignited acquaintance with his old friend provides.
They reminisce about those times, including the prank which led to their expulsion from school and a parting of the ways. Both grew up to be men with vastly different trajectories ahead of them – 'Gardener' never having cause to abandon his humble, rural beginnings, toiling on the railway until retirement, whilst 'Dauber' was reaching a far higher social standing in Paris as an artist of some note.
A meeting between old friends
There is no grand design in Becker’s lovingly crafted film, based on a novel by Henri Cueco; his two main characters are both endearing and engaging, their dry humour imbuing wistful reflections of the many years of experience under their belts, filled with joys and disappointments – perhaps vastly divergent in scope, but essentially the same, and it’s these that tie them together again; after a while, it’s almost as if the passing of years since has occurred in the blink of an eye, so easily do they assume their old selves.
The life of ‘Gardener’ may be a less noteworthy one but there has always been the stability of his modest existence and a loving family to define him, whilst ‘Dauber’, in achieving notoriety, has lost all sense of those profound gifts with a crumbling marriage, tainted by his frivolous affairs, and a daughter he rarely sees anymore.
The painter at work
Auteuil is the consummate professional, bringing something of interest to virtually every role he plays; he’s probably the most readily identifiable actor - for international audiences - working in French cinema today; though he’s easily matched here by Darroussin as the simple but wise 'Gardener' who lacks the insight to know what his life has been missing but may never have found such perfect contentment otherwise.
Gardener fishing for a specific fish against which he battles regularly.
There are some funny moments along the way which serve as poignant reflections of these two men, so contrasting and yet with so much common ground beneath them – like Dauber’s carefree attitude towards his younger lovers; their return to childish nicknames and outbursts of laughter at the wake of a prominent member of the local community, and the recounting of how Gardener and his wife have an identical holiday to Nice every year, taking the same route and doing the exact same things each time.
Conversations With My Gardener is a modest but charming film, distinguished by natural performances and, thankfully, a lack of reliance on sentimentality; it’s a prototypically provincial French story well told.
A French trailer:
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Comment by Joanne Fedler
Thanks,
Joanne
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Comment by Cibbuano
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Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Auteuil is very prolific and he has made a couple of dubious choices, but this is one of his best of recent times without doubt.
Comment by Tracy
Movies and Life
It would be interesting to see Austeui in a different role other than his recent, familiar ones - fairly predictable comedies.
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Apparently the Michael Hanake drama Hidden with Juliette Binoche is very good too but I still haven't caught up with it yet unfortunately!