Quelle idée! A two-part biography of French author Marcel Pagnol, whose original novels had (so recently) formed the basis of the two-part Jean de Florette and Manon of the Spring. The first part of the biography, which spans from birth through elementary school, and is garrulously narrated in the patronizing tones of Bedtime Story, is one long idyll. And idylls do not take long to turn dull. (The words, "Thus began the happiest days of my life," less than an hour into the movie, carry a curious chill.) Before the turn, there are some endearing moments to do with little Marcel's precocious literacy. Directed by Yves Robert. (1991) — Duncan Shepherd
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