Farrebique ou Les quatre saisons

"Farrebique" is a phenomenon.Nothing can be compared to it in the forties.Partly a documentary,partly a meditation on life and death ,partly a poetic celebration of the nature,which many critics compared to Flaherty's films,it has nothing to do with the other country stories of the time such as Becker's "Goupi Mains Rouges" or René Clément's "Jeux interdits" .

The story of a family of peasants during a whole year,following the circle game of the seasons (An idea Bertolucci will make his in "Novecento" ).The dialog is barely comprehensible for those farmers speak patois which even a French person cannot understand :subtitles are not needed however,for there's no real plot.

It shows the rural life in France just after WW2 as it was.Not a comfortable one;electricity is coming and it improves a bit their harsh live;the children go to school -but unfortunately,we do not see them at school-;religion plays a prominent part : a scene on the farm shows the whole family praying the Lord;another one takes place in the church where the whole congregation sings the Kyrie in Greek (!) then listens to the priest's Latin words.It's certain that catholicism has lost much of its prestige after the council of Vatican II .

Rouquier waxes lyrical about Spring,which he depicts in a vivid style: speeded-up motions which make the buds burst ,trees coming into bloom,season of love for the animals,and on the farm a new baby born to carry on.In direct contrast to that ,with the coming of the Fall, the father 's death ...and the younger's son impending leaving for the town,for the " eldest boy's task is to follow his father's traces whereas the younger's is to move on and set up home somewhere else.

"Farrebique" -which was followed by "Biquefarre" ,some forty years later-in spite of its obsolete symbolism was something drastically new in the FRench cinema.

If Vivaldi had been around to make a feature film, then he could easily have crafted this artful piece of cinéma vérité that follows three generation of a family who have farmed the land for generations. The second world war has just ended and life is tough for these labouring farmers who have little by way of technology to assist with their relentless toils. Despite their traditional existence, they are a forward looking family making sure that school features for the youngsters and they worship faithfully as their priest and his congregation pray for the continued blessings of God on their enterprising. Of course, as the seasons change their work becomes more and less onerous and that also gives director Georges Rouquier an opportunity to let his photographic imagination run wild a little, with time-lapse photography capturing some of the essence of the natural environment as the days shorten, darken and winter sets in then the reverse occurs as the spring brings buds and flowers start to emerge indicating the cycle is about to start all over again. It's not just nature that proves cyclical here, the family sees changes that cause them distress and joy - with death, birth and aspiration which tests the commitment of those left to persevere with a working life that isn't for everyone. It's a very natural film to watch with the cast presenting an honest and raw appraisal of family life that's tough yet rewarding, loving and occasionally quite fun!