Why so much hype?

Masterful Cinema

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

I grew up living in the country in the 1970's and have always had a penchant for films about people moving from the big city back to their rural roots, or about the close connections people develop when they rely on each other,because they are all they have to rely on. This film is about that,Like American films Doc Hollywood,or the period drama,Places in the Heart,or gentle romances like Baby Boom and Murphey's Romance,Local Hero and many others. Some set of circumstances brings the main character back to live in a small rural area and they grow to love and appreciate the local people and their close knit ways.This film also features beautiful scenery of the French Alp country,and it makes you wonder if there could be some way that you might be able to live there and make a living,but you expect that you couldn't, or many others would already be there. Still, this film is a pleasant escape from our urban existence for a few minutes.

All French movies are either about sex or sons reconnecting with their fathers. This one is mostly about the latter.The powers-that-IMD-be demand eight more lines of text.It's a charming movie well-described in these other reviews. The plot, simple as it is, is contrived. But you won't mind. The acting is lovely, as are the actors. They're charming. The countryside is charming. The grocery truck is charming. Even the little grocery items-sausages on strings and juniper pate- are charming. It made me nostalgic for the summer jobs of my youth. France's answer to "Adventureland."

A very nice film I think you'd like.... fine acting, terrific musical score, richly nuanced character interactions. The theme of personal growth and relationship redemption is strong and compelling. That said, this same theme both resonates with and is diluted by being juxtaposed as parallel to the urban vs bucolic dichotomy. This is unfortunate only to the extent that it is an incidental distraction to the character dynamics, and misleading as an undercurrent suggesting some inherently beneficent quality to rural areas resistant to modernity.The photography in itself is rather good but somehow I left feeling they could have done more with the panoramic vistas sensed in the background as well as to contrast the city vs country ambiance; somewhat better cinematography might have elevated this movie from really good to excellent. For me the film lacked perhaps the exuberance of a fine Amarone but 'tasted like a really good Cab'..One for your list of films to see..

Despite its very simple plot (the story of a son taking over the daily round of his sick grocer father), 'Le fils de l'épicier' qualifies as an enriching film experience. Helmer Eric Guirado never relies on twist plots, car chases or visual effects… and yet the viewer is captivated and leaves the theater fulfilled and happy. This is no small feat, so how does the co-writer/director Guirado accomplish this object? It's easy for me to analyze how he went about it (although I guess it must have been very difficult for him to make such a thin story interesting). What actually makes this film particularly effective is its fine blend of documentary and fiction. A real ethnographer, the director captures real life to perfection. The grocer's son's customers are real people, what they say is what everyday fellows do in everyday life. Moreover most of the people playing villagers and customers are not professional actors but true people re-enacting what they do day after day. Simple, old chaps, rarely honored by the big screen. All rings true in 'Le Fils de l'Epicier' and this all the less surprising as Eric Guirado followed three different grocers in their daily rounds for months and months before filming. He DOES know his subject and you get an impression of truth throughout.However, supposing 'Le fils de l'épicier' had been a hardcore documentary, it might not be as exciting as it is. For what little fiction is added to the documentary aspect lives up to it and finally makes the story and the characters catch on even better. For instance Guirado examines with impressive relevance the tense relationships in the family. He also explores convincingly the serious theme of finding one's place in life and in society. Just like the customers mentioned before, the characters are true to life and Eric Guirado, never condemning any of his characters, tries to make us understand all of them, including the most unpleasant ones. A humanistic approach Jean Renoir would have approved of. Add to this a knack for comedy. Whenever it is possible Guirado eases the tension thanks to well-timed and staged funny sequences, like the painting of the van, the crazy appearances of Lucienne, etc.) There are good professional actors too ( handsome brooding Nicolas Cazalé; refreshingly unaffected Clotilde Hesme; Jeanne Goupil, Joel Seria's former sexy muse turned plump-fifty-year-old-mother-with-a-heart-of-gold ; always unsettling Daniel Duval as the unforgiving father).To put it in a nutshell, in 'Le Fils de l'Epicier' the documentary side enhances the fiction and vice versa. Go and see it. You won't be disappointed.