Le provincial

A French reviewer wrote that,in this kind of flick,you can combine business with pleasure.

Not the viewer's pleasure ,for sure.Christian Gion whose previous works such as "Le Pion" were rather poor,has a shot at doing an ecological fable with a screenplay brimming with clichés.

In Paris ,you live in a ruthless universe,where young male and female executives are planning a TV commercial for a cheese from the Pyrenées:if like me,you cannot stand TV adverts ,it bodes ill for the story.With one exception (Gabrielle Lazure,the heroine),they are smug ,would be intellectual ,and seem to consider that working in advertising is art ;but in Paris,stress takes its toll and a businessman (Michel Galabru)suffers from high blood-pressure (220 mm!)

On the other hand ,in the Pyrénées mountains ,you keep a healthy mind in a healthy body.The hero (Roland Giraud) has a string of academic titles,but he leads a simple life with grandma who speaks Patois with the English (or American) assistant(?),and he works as a tourist guide -in the first sequence,we think he's a teacher- and a meteorologist .

It is as if the director appreciated how insipid it all was and desperately tried to infuse "dramatic" elements:Michel Galabru's character,in spite of his money,was not able to buy happiness ,but ,in the end ,everything will turn out fine.

For sure ,the cast got a breath of fresh air in the beautiful landscapes,but,as far as the Pyrénées are concerned ,you will be better off with Emilio Estevez's awesome "the way" starring his father Martin Sheen.