Head to Provence this Summer with movies

Two films give the feel of Provence without a need to leave home.

Summer in Provence sounds good to me.  Since this year I cannot go (it’s called being fiscally responsible…also known as NO MONEY), I'm rewatching two of my favorite Provence films, which, short of being there, are fantastic ways to visit Provence… transporting all but your body to France.  These films breathe new life into this area consumed with lavender, wine and the art of kicking back!  

Sure, it might not be as fun sipping Lemoncello among the Provencal locals, but watching these DVDs is much more fun than running up your credit card.

Both films are based on books by British native and Provence transplant Peter Mayle, a former ad man in London who, along with his wife, decides to retire early in a farmhouse in Provence’s Luberon region.  Mayle began writing both fiction and nonfiction once in France and all of his books reflect the art of fun, sun and relaxation that Provence seems to have perfected.

His most famous book, the nonfiction day-in-the-life tale A Year in Provence, tells the story of his first months in Provence and what hurdles he and his wife had to overcome to adjust to French living.  It was later made into a mini-series starring Inspector Morse's John Thaw and is what I wanted the film Under the Tuscan Sun to be…a true experience of the culture, people and general “soul” of the place. The region of Provence is similar to Italy’s Tuscany in the way that both are known for their beauty, their fragrant scents and their mile after mile of postcard images.

This mini-series is based on the book of the same title, which became a sensational hit, mostly because it is about someone who actually does something that most people just dream of…just like Frances Mayes’ book about “escaping” to Italy…Under the Tuscan Sun. Unfortunately, the film version of Mayes’ book was changed into more of an exploration of romance instead of a study of Tuscany and its people. This TV version of Mayle’s book, on the other hand, is exactly what the book is…and more! When I say more, I do not mean to criticize Mayle’s beautiful book in any way. I just mean that SEEING Provence in its full glory surpasses the written word some.

I am usually a staunch advocate that the book is always better than the movie, but when it comes to Provence, SEEING is better than reading.  A Year in Provence is filled with the “air” of Provence…the images, the language, the smells, the culture, etc.  You get a true sense of the people and the lifestyle that the French call La Dolce Vita…which means The Sweet Life (in Italian).  This is a FUN time…there is something for everybody: scenery, humor, culture, beauty. How can you miss!

Next, we switch from nonfiction to fiction with A Good Year, based on a novel by Mayle about a London financial wizard who heads to Provence to sell the estate left to him by his late uncle.  Like A Year in Provence this film transported me to France…body, mind and spirit. It is a charming, fun-loving film that made me not only want to buy a chateau and vineyard there, but to also fall in love there.

Will any of these things ever happen?  Probably not, but watching A Good Year will bring all of us about as close to those things as we’re ever going to get.  This movie really brought Provence and its people and its daydreaming sense of romance alive. And when I say romance, I do not only mean love. I mean a romantic feel in the charm and the general air of the locale. Basically, the romance of life and living.

In this story, the Russell Crowe character has a life with NO romance in London. He’s money-driven and career-obsessed. He even has lost touch with his expatriate uncle who had a chateau and winery in Provence where Crowe’s character used to vacation as a child. Why did he lose contact with the uncle? Well, because money and his job and his quest for power got in his way.

After his uncle passes, he finds out the chateau has been left to him. Most people (myself, most definitely) would jump at the chance to live in France rent-free but, of course, for this guy, it just gets in the way of his pursuit of power and money. Once he gets there, though, it is another matter. And that’s pretty much the power Provence has over someone even as egocentric as this. And it’s also the same power this film had over me.

So instead of heading to the airport, head to Niles to check out these titles that are set in a region in France that hopefully we will all visit one day.  Until then…we will just have to make do with these movies!

A Year in Provence: 1993, made-for-TV, not rated, starring John Thaw and Lindsay Duncan.

A Good Year: 2006, PG-13, 118 minutes, directed by Ridley Scott, starring Russell Crowe, Marion Cotillard, Albert Finney, Archie Panjabi, Tom Hollander, Abbie Cornish, and Freddie Highmore.

The Niles Library owns both of these titles on DVD.