Gérard Depardieu, Gisèle Casadesus and Sophie Guillemin do a fabulous job in this one. Also, both the actresses playing his mother are very well cast indeed.
The premise of the movie is the unlikely friendship between an old woman, Margueritte, who is well-educated and a middle aged man, Germain, who is almost an illiterate. As different as their backgrounds are, they are both very endearing people. They meet on a park bench while observing pigeons. To Germain, Margueritte is a compassionate mother figure who slowly opens up his eyes to the world of literature. In his growing years, his indifferent mother & insensitive teachers had always made Germain feel that he could never learn. However, Margueritte soon realizes that even though Germain is a bit slow while processing information, he has quite a rich imagination and thus, is a better student of literature than most people. She shares her love of literature with him and he realizes that he likes learning. He starts appreciating the books for their stories and philosophy, and even comes to terms with his difficult relationship with his mother. His friends are surprised at his transformation and aren't too happy to lose the 'straight man' on whom they pitch most of their jokes.
I like the fact that in a light-hearted way, this movie deals with complex issues surrounding old age, parental indifference and the stigma attached to slow learners. I also like the fact that it emphasizes the transformative effects of literature and knowledge on someone's self-esteem. It also very rightly points out that knowledge can be a double-edged sword since it also make you see everything more clearly, including your own shortcomings. Germain realizes this and even points that out to Margueritte. He returns the dictionary to her and says that everything was better when it was hazy and simple. In a way, he's having his own existential crisis. Margueritte understands his dismay and instantaneously starts with a new book, making him realize that the double-edged sword is still worth the trouble. Once again he feels his active imagination taking him into the world where the story is playing out. Just like that, he's out of his hazy world and plunged into a world full of imagination and wonder where all his senses come alive! And yet, it is for the sake of Margueritte that this lovable goof starts learning to read better so that he can read the book out to her now that she seems to be losing her eyesight. He knows how important her books are to her. His loving girlfriend feels threatened at first with his new relationship but later helps him in his endeavour since she realizes how important this is to him.
Director Jean Becker's view of humanity is very positive and life-affirming. And while majority of us may not share his views, his ideas still give us food for thought. Both his protagonists may be a bit too good to be true, but just imagine how good the society would be if we had more people like these two!
The premise of the movie is the unlikely friendship between an old woman, Margueritte, who is well-educated and a middle aged man, Germain, who is almost an illiterate. As different as their backgrounds are, they are both very endearing people. They meet on a park bench while observing pigeons. To Germain, Margueritte is a compassionate mother figure who slowly opens up his eyes to the world of literature. In his growing years, his indifferent mother & insensitive teachers had always made Germain feel that he could never learn. However, Margueritte soon realizes that even though Germain is a bit slow while processing information, he has quite a rich imagination and thus, is a better student of literature than most people. She shares her love of literature with him and he realizes that he likes learning. He starts appreciating the books for their stories and philosophy, and even comes to terms with his difficult relationship with his mother. His friends are surprised at his transformation and aren't too happy to lose the 'straight man' on whom they pitch most of their jokes.
I like the fact that in a light-hearted way, this movie deals with complex issues surrounding old age, parental indifference and the stigma attached to slow learners. I also like the fact that it emphasizes the transformative effects of literature and knowledge on someone's self-esteem. It also very rightly points out that knowledge can be a double-edged sword since it also make you see everything more clearly, including your own shortcomings. Germain realizes this and even points that out to Margueritte. He returns the dictionary to her and says that everything was better when it was hazy and simple. In a way, he's having his own existential crisis. Margueritte understands his dismay and instantaneously starts with a new book, making him realize that the double-edged sword is still worth the trouble. Once again he feels his active imagination taking him into the world where the story is playing out. Just like that, he's out of his hazy world and plunged into a world full of imagination and wonder where all his senses come alive! And yet, it is for the sake of Margueritte that this lovable goof starts learning to read better so that he can read the book out to her now that she seems to be losing her eyesight. He knows how important her books are to her. His loving girlfriend feels threatened at first with his new relationship but later helps him in his endeavour since she realizes how important this is to him.
Director Jean Becker's view of humanity is very positive and life-affirming. And while majority of us may not share his views, his ideas still give us food for thought. Both his protagonists may be a bit too good to be true, but just imagine how good the society would be if we had more people like these two!