Jean De Florette Page #4

A toast to the losers!

Is that guy renting the farm?

No, he told me he'd bought it.

- Is he a farmer?

- No, he's a hunchback.

Where does he buy his bread?

In Ruissatel.

Is he scared my bread is poison?

No, he's avoiding the village.

He's from Crespin.

From Crespin?

- That's nothing to brag about!

- Not all Crespin folks are bad!

What did he do there?

- He was a tax collector.

- Maybe he'll raise our taxes!

Is he staying long?

No idea. In any case,

he's fixing up the house.

- All by himself?

- Yes, with gloves on.

Some farmer!

A hunchback from Crespin,

that sounds fishy to me!

Just ignore him!

Maybe he's a spy!

What'll he spy on? Your chickpeas?

The Good Lord sent us a real loser!

In six months, he'll be gone.

He claims

he'll succeed in three years.

That's just bullshit!

Maybe, but he has money!

Inheritance money

burns a hole in your pocket.

In six months he'll be broke

and we'll buy him out.

Meanwhile, let's see what he does

with his Chinese squash

and his giant rabbits!

Mmm! Smells like roast pigeon!

He mustn't find the spring.

We'd better steer him away.

- Hello, neighbour!

- Hello, Monsieur Jean! Ma'am!

Nice day!

What's that contraption for?

With that pickaxe of yours,

you'll knock yourself out

for three months.

With my plough,

we can finish the job in three days.

Aime!

The Lord has answered my prayer!

It's from his field.

The best soil in the region.

It's worth its weight in gold!

Rich soil like that.

It just kills me!

He's a good man.

- I don't like him.

- That's because he's ugly.

Manon's scared of him.

Manon, I'm surprised at you!

You don't like him?

- He's ugly! He looks like a toad!

- It's your thoughts that are ugly.

A coarse exterior often conceals

a pure soul.

Look!

Manon. Come here.

I have a special task for you.

You'll water these plants

carefully every evening.

The man's a real joke!

He's planted his tomatoes

on the north side.

They'll never ripen.

He poked his chickpeas

in way too deep.

They won't yield a bowlful.

He's planted his onions

at the foot of an olive tree!

And he just barely

covered his potatoes.

He doesn't sow his seeds,

he throws them!

They'll grow in tufts,

like hair on a mangy dog!

If the fool thinks

he can feed a family like that...

Yet, when I look at him,

I laugh,

but I also feel sorry for him.

I feel like showing him

how to do it right.

Let him do it his way.

If it's no good,

so much the better for us!

Hello! Going out for the day?

We're off to the Plantier spring.

Our cistern is empty and I can't

keep relying on your generosity.

My well is pretty near dry, too.

I think it'll rain tonight.

- Why? Do you have rheumatism?

- No, thank heavens!

I counted on six days' rain in May,

but we only got three.

And we've had no rain in June,

so we're owed five days of rain!

I'm giving the heavens 48 hours

to settle their debt!

Which way is the spring?

Don't use the shortcut.

There's an easier way.

Go to the end of the valley,

but stay below the village,

turn right and follow the road

up to the spring.

Very good! See you later!

It's beautiful!

We're the new owners!

But we don't want you to move out.

We're here for some water!

Our cistern is empty.

If we had that spring here,

our problem would be solved.

Have faith in statistics

and providence!

I'm off to Aubagne!

Can I bring you anything?

No, thanks!

Buying more seeds?

Better than that!

I'm going to get my breeders!

Come and see them tonight.

Fine! I'd love to see

your first rabbits!

I'll bring your wife some snails.

See you tonight!

I chose young females

who've never had a litter.

That's essential if you want

to create a new breed.

Here's the male.

We'd better close the door!

He's lively, he may get away!

Not from me, he won't!

Holy Mother! What's that?

It's an extremely rare crossbreed.

I've never seen one like him!

The fur of a dog, the paws of a hare

and the ears of a donkey.

- Was he expensive?

- Very expensive!

He's a strange one!

He's a breeder.

He's not young, but he's virile.

He looks fierce!

I bet he could eat a steak!

He's been taken for a ride!

What breed did he say it was?

The Romarins breed!

Make us some baby rabbits, boy.

Start the Romarins breed.

There's not much left

of the inheritance money.

But I'm sure we'll pull through!

Our bills are paid

and the worst is over.

I'd like you to manage

the 1,123 francs we have left.

It has to last us a year.

Hopefully, in three months,

I'll start selling my rabbits.

If need be,

we could sell my necklace.

I was told it's worth 10,000 francs.

Sell your necklace?

Never!

I'd rather go without shoes!

Come quickly!

What is it?

Csar!

- There's Ugolin's neighbour.

- Talk about stuck-up!

You should have aimed at his hump!

Some joke!

Go on! You're too tiny!

You're too tiny!

He's too tiny! Here's a big one!

What a beauty!

A real Romarins!

Shall we take it? How much?

It won't last.

It'll do for my vines,

but not for his vegetables.

What can this mean?

Only one thing... Disaster!

Water!

"If it rains on Ascension Day,

"all your crops are washed away."

Stop worrying!

Remember:
a wet spring

always brings a torrid summer.

By the end of July,

his garden will be parched!

His corn leaves will crackle

like patent leather shoes.

"Showers in June

bring nothing but ruin."

I'm off to sell my vegetables!

This is to thank you

for all your advice.

Good job I didn't give up

on my vegetable plot.

Are your potatoes out?

- Not for three weeks.

- Really? Look at mine.

How do you do it?

Amandine!

I always forget she's deaf.

That's enough! I'm hungry.

The worst thing is that

now he's giving me advice!

You have a fine garden!

But I'm worried.

Summer hasn't really begun yet.

It's already July 20th

and it's sure to rain in August.

- It'd be a shame to lose all this.

- My cistern is overflowing.

It holds 3,000 gallons,

and I only need 750 per watering.

I can hold out another week.

But what if it doesn't rain

in a week?

"One seed yields an ear

with 400 to 450 kernels, or even two.

"As a rule, the yield is 400 times

the seed plant."

Hear that?

Even using a more reasonable

estimate - say 300 times -

I've planted enough

for three tons of corn.

Thank you, sweetheart.

We'll also have 20 tons of squash.

Even half that amount is plenty.

The manual says we only need

eight tons of feed a year.

We only have 720 francs left.

- And the income from the rabbits?

- It's included.

Now more than ever

we need God's help.

The water's stopped!

The water's stopped!

There's no more water!

I expected this.

But I thought we had

a few days' water left.

If it doesn't rain tonight,

we'll figure something out.

Lucky we've got the spring!

Four trips a day

will kill your donkey!

We can stock 850 gallons in a week.

But we need rain within ten days.

Ten days? At this time of the year?

I wouldn't count on it!

If the heavens let me down,

could you rent me your mule?

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