The Well Diggers Daughter (2011 film)

Plot

In the summer of 1939 Jacques Mazel, a 26 year old pilot in the French Air Force and only child of a wealthy shopkeeper, is fishing in a stream near his parents' home. On the bank appears 18 year old Patricia Amoretti, eldest daughter of a widowed well-digger, who is taking lunch to her father Pascal and his employee Félipe. Jacques carries her across and, after seeing her again at an air display next day, takes her for a ride on his motorbike. That night he is called back to his unit so, unable to keep a rendezvous with Patricia in the morning, he asks his mother to deliver a letter. She, not approving his choice of company, burns it.

Patricia, who concludes Jacques rejected her because they were from different social classes, discovers she is pregnant. Confronted by Pascal, the parents of Jacques reject the idea that their son conceived a child out of wedlock and refuse to acknowledge the expected baby. To spare his four other daughters from learning of the illegitimate child, Pascal sends Patricia to have her baby with his sister in another village.

Then news comes through that Jacques is posted missing, his plane brought down in flames behind German lines. Félipe offers to marry Patricia but she refuses, partly because her younger sister Amanda has a crush on him. Grieving over the loss of their son, the Mazels offer to take some responsibility for their new-born grandson, but Pascal obstinately refuses.

In the summer of 1940 Jacques arrives home safe, having escaped through neutral Switzerland, and learns he has a son. His overjoyed parents call formally on Pascal to ask if he will forgive them and allow a marriage. He agrees if the couple agree. Since their love is as strong as the moment they first met, the film ends happily.

Cast

Production

The original music score was composed by Alexandre Desplat and features Enrico Caruso's rendition of "Core 'ngrato".

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 90%, based on 39 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".