Review: Conversations with My Gardener

Focusing on male friendship, this charming French film is a sunny and comforting look at a mid-life crisis.

French megastar Daniel Auteil plays a painter who returns to claim his family’s ramshackle country house. He hires a local gardener (Jean-Pierre Darroussin) to look after the vegetable garden. The men discover they once knew each other at primary school, and now, in middle-age, find their rekindled friendship flourishing over the summer.

Conversations is reminiscent of the old-school French flicks like Jean de Florette. Rambling country estates, red wine, and a naked blonde woman all make appearances here too. But Conversations is undeniably simple. The title says it all; the film is based around a series of dialogues between two men.

This is exactly what the film is about, and as a result it becomes difficult to review. If, as a viewer, you enjoy observing simple conversations between two friends, then you’ll love this. If, one the other hand, you expect something more, then you’ll find Conversations a bit light.

The film is moving without ever being sentimental, and is beautiful and warm to look at. It will either make you want to move to the countryside and start growing pumpkins, or it will urge you to tell your friend you love him (In the French sense). Simple yet assured, Conversations with My Gardener is charming.